From the Deputy Principal

From the Deputy Principal

Respectful Relationships and Consent 

Last Friday, the Government introduced its new campaign “Consent Can’t Wait,” aimed at equipping parents and adults with tools to help young Australians develop healthy relationships and attitudes towards consent, ultimately to keep them safe from harm. This initiative is part of the National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children 2022-2032, aiming to address statistics that are a frequent and troubling part of our news.  

At Redlands, we have long recognised our role as an educational institution and connected community in raising confident and kind individuals through mutual compassion and respect. We have collaborated with Dr Tessa Opie for several years to ensure that we, as a School community, are proactively supporting our young people and their families with the tools to navigate conversations around relationships and consent in a way that keeps them informed, safe and able to exercise their agency in this important area of their life-readiness. 

This month, Dr Opie has again engaged with our entire School community through research-based professional learning sessions for staff, a parent webinar, and workshops and seminars for our Year 6 to 12 students on respectful relationships and consent. Year 6 parents received additional resources to continue these conversations at home. I extend my gratitude to all our staff, particularly our Deans of Students, Ms Jansons and Ms Clinton, for their support and leadership of this important domain of our Student Wellbeing Framework.  

For more resources, visit Consent Conversation Guides. 

Festival on the Fahl – McGrath Foundation 

This week, our Student Leadership team rallied to organise the Festival on the Fahl, an inclusive and vibrant School event supporting the McGrath Foundation. First organised by our 2023 School Captain, Josie Simpson, the Festival on the Fahl serves as a legacy and all funds raised will directly support McGrath Breast Care Nurses. The Redlands Charity Round this Saturday 1 June is another opportunity for our community to support and raise awareness for the McGrath Foundation.  


Celebrating our Heritage: 140 Years of Redlands 

Next week marks our 15th Heritage Week at Redlands, celebrating our 140th anniversary and 125 years on our Senior Campus on Military Road. This year’s theme is Service, a core pillar of our School ever since its foundation. Some of the many exciting celebrations and activities include: 

  • An invitation to our entire community – staff, students, parents, and alumni – to participate in an online History Quiz, with prizes announced in next week’s Note Day (Thursday 6 June).  
  • All our students will receive 140th anniversary badges and special cupcakes.  
  • The Preparatory School will hear from our Archivist, Ms. Gillezeau, on Tuesday 4 June in assembly.  
  • All staff are invited to a special morning tea with birthday cake and a historical presentation by our Principal on Thursday 6 June.  
  • The week will culminate with our Foundation Day Service on Friday 7 June, featuring a panel discussion with distinguished alumni. The service will be attended by the graduating class of each campus – Years 6 and 12. 

If you would like to learn more about Redlands’ history (or to help you with the Quiz!) see the history timeline on the School website and our dedicated 140th anniversary page.  

For a deeper dive or to conduct some family history research into a parent, grandparent or great-grandparent who might have attended Redlands, you can explore our online Archives resources where you will find back issues of Redlands’ publications, photographs and film footage. 

It’s also not too late to join Year 1 and Year 7 and try your hand at recreating some of Redlands’ heritage photographs. You will find dedicated files of archival photographs at the above link on Pulse. Please feel free to share your efforts with Archivist Marguerite Gillezeau mgillezeau@redlands.nsw.edu.au so we can showcase these and then add them to the Redlands Archives collection. 

I thank Marguerite for sharing her knowledge of our School’s rich history and her creative efforts to make it accessible and engaging for all members of our community. 

Ms Sabine Partington
Deputy Principal 

Photo Caption: The Festival on the Fahl is an inclusive and vibrant School event supporting the McGrath Foundation.