From the Principal

From the Principal

We were powerfully reminded of our reliance on water this week, with the Secondary School impacted by a Sydney Water outage. The historical reasons behind the location of fortified compounds around reliable water supply was cause for comment and looking to our future, a reminder of the importance of environmental sustainability.

The notion of servant leadership and taking personal responsibility and action is inherent in our Service Learning programs and it was most encouraging to note the large number of students, parents and staff who took part in our Redlands Clean Up Australia Day event at Balmoral last Sunday. A number of students commented on how much rubbish they were still able to locate in an area that is generally well maintained. Thank you to all involved and to our staff who provided this opportunity for the community to come together in positive action. 

It is most rewarding to see students lead initiatives across the whole School. The student led and run Junior School assembly was very impressive and I was pleased to note the new SRC initiative of providing opportunities for students to provide feedback and recognise their peers. They have established an SRC suggestion box and also an SRC noticing kindness box. I look forward to hearing the feedback that comes through these channels during the year.

In the Secondary School, senior students initiated and led the production of a video to celebrate International Women’s Day, which incorporated snippets of video footage from students and staff about the importance of the day. To witness the strength of conviction and heartfelt comments from such a broad cross-section of the Secondary School was moving and inspiring.

The development of entrepreneurial and innovative thinking skills will be an important focus of our next strategic plan and it is pleasing to note these skills already being developed in certain areas of our curriculum. The Yr 9 Commerce Market Days were held earlier this week with the students selling their products to the community on the Fahl Garden at lunchtimes. There was fierce competition between products and strategic marketing and enticement. Price point was important and there were certainly some bargains available.  

Congratulations to students who represented the School in the recent ISA and HICES Swimming Carnivals and particular mention to our Girls ISA team who won the Senior Girls Swimming Shield, the Intermediate Girls Swimming Shield and the Overall Girls Swimming Shield. We are looking forward to the final round of Summer Sport this weekend and wish our Rowing crews every success at the Head of the River Regatta, as well as our 11 Basketball teams and 4 Touch Football teams competing in ISA Finals and 8 Tennis teams contesting NSTA Finals.

Congratulations also to our Director of Basketball Coaching, Renae Camino and 1st Girls Basketball Coach Kate Seebohm, who have been selected to coach one of the two NSW State U20 Girls teams at the National Championships.     

Finally, I sincerely congratulate former Board Director Colleen Godsell who this week was announced as the 2021 North Shore Woman of the Year in NSW Parliament for her decades of service to Scouting Australia in the North Shore community. Colleen made a significant contribution to our Redlands community from 1989-2020 as a parent, friend, RPFA member and Board Director.

Mr Stephen Webber

COVID-19 Update from the Deputy Principal

As many of you would already be aware from reports in the media and communication this week from the Junior Campus, on Monday 8 March some of the COVID-19 restrictions in regard to parent and carer attendance at school events have been eased. Accordingly, we are now able to welcome more parents and carers back on campus in a COVID safe manner. Specifically:

  • Parents and carers may drop off and pick up students in accordance with campus and section specific arrangements
  • RPFA meetings and other meeting or gatherings of parents and carers for events on campus may proceed
  • Parents and carers are able to attend sporting events, performances and other school activities on campus, provided the requirements of the specific COVID-19 safety plans are being followed.

Please note that there are still restrictions put on the School in terms of welcoming parents back to campus, such as:

  • Parents and carers arriving on campus to attend a meeting, event or activity must still complete the campus specific sign in requirements, as well as scan the Service NSW COVID-19 QR Code
  • There are limitations on the number of parents allowed to attend a meeting, event or activity based on the recommended 1.5 metre social distancing between adults and the total number of adults allowed in a venue as per the 1 person per 2 square metre ratio. The total number of parents and carers allowed at event will be determined by these restrictions.

Once again, we appreciate the challenges that parents and carers have faced over the past year when they have not been allowed on campus due to COVID-19 restrictions and the patience you have shown. We look forward to welcoming more parents back on campus and bringing our whole community together more often for future events.

Mr Sean Corcoran

Photo caption: Excitement, engagement and adaptability displayed by our triple-threat performers during the filming of Grease: The Musical: The Movie, which commenced last Sunday.