Term 2 Newsletter 2019- Week 1

A very warm welcome back to Term 2, I hope that everyone is settling in to the new term and that some of the winter uniform still fits from last year!  I heard a funny story from a mum yesterday of a year 9 boy who asked her son to try on his winter trousers on Monday evening to check the length. Of course they came to just past his knee, so she had to frantically go through her box of ‘hand me downs’ to find something that fit. Those of us who have been through the massive growth spurt that seems to happen around year 9 will be able to sympathise!!

 

Unless you have not tuned in to any media for the last month, you will know that we are now in the throes of preparing for a Federal Election. The purpose of this early newsletter is to provide you with information around what the major parties are talking about in respect to education. We hope it will assist in enabling you to make informed decisions when it comes to casting your vote.  As many of you will know, Catholic School Parents WA is a non political organisation and therefore we are not aligned in any way to any political party. However, we will attempt to provide you with as much information as we can secure, particularly with regard to funding or initiatives that affect Catholic schools.

 

We will also continue to upload information as it comes to hand to our Facebook page, so if you are not already ‘friends’ with us there, please take the time to ‘like’ us and keep updated.

 

Here in the office we are also preparing for the CSPWA AGM which will take place on Thursday May 30. Parents from affiliated schools are invited to attend and participate in the proceedings. We would also be interested to hear from any parents who may be interested in nominating for CSPWA Council. This year we are particularly seeking councillors to represent both the Broome and Geraldton dioceses. Should you wish to find out more about nominating for council, please contact Siobhan on 0409 025 683 or admin@pff.wa.edu.au.

 

We look forward to meeting many more parents during the term and as always if you would like to arrange a visit to your school please contact CSPWA's Liaison Officer Theresa on theresa@pff.wa.edu.

 

God Bless

 Siobhan 

Executive Director

Although many parents may be confused as to how all schools are funded, it is particularly important at election time to understand how Catholic, State and Independent schools are funded by taxpayers through State and Federal governments. There seem to be differing stories in the media on a daily basis on how this happens, however this fact sheet which was developed by the National Catholic Education Commission in collaboration with Catholic School Parents Australia, provides information in a parent-friendly language to enable parents/carers to be informed about how their school is funded. If you would like further information please do not hesitate to contact our office.

All school communities should strive to have a good, active relationship with their local members of State and Federal Parliament, senators and local councillors. These local members are our representatives and the lives of our Catholic school communities are very important to them. The development of positive relationships with your representatives at all levels of government is immensely important as it enables politicians to know first-hand the great things happening in your school and to form personal connections with parents (voters). These established relationships mean that when there is an issue, they are more likely to take a personal interest and advocate on your behalf with the government or local council.

 

To learn more about how to start the process of establishing these relationships please follow the link to our

 ‘Guide to Building Relationships with your Government Representatives’