CSPWA visit to Northampton and Boyup Brook to present Award of Excellence certificates
Siobhan recently had the pleasure of visiting some of the schools in the Geraldton area and whilst there was warmly welcomed at Nagle College, St John’s School and St Lawrence’s Primary School. For anyone thinking of making the move to Geraldton these are great schools led by passionate and committed Principals.
However, Siobhan’s main reason for making the trip to the region was to present a Catholic School Parents WA Award of Excellence to St Mary’s School in Northampton. The CSPWA Awards of Excellence are presented annually to schools, who are making a commitment to building positive school communities
Students at St Mary’s have always endeavoured to live their school values through a service mindset. Prior to Covid-19 restrictions the students would regularly visit the local hospital and aged care facilities to read to the residents or to drop off food and care packages.
“We believe strongly that service is at the heart of our school charism and tradition”, says Principal Ben Will. “This service extends to our Parish, as we see the relationship between the school and parish to be key for our students understanding of living our Catholic faith.”
St Mary’s School in Northampton caught the eye of the adjudicator this year because the nomination demonstrated the close relationship this school has developed with its parish and the willingness of the students to assist in a very practical way.
Ben notes “as a small school and parish in a regional town, we lean on each other heavily for support. The parish community has decreased in recent years and parishioners who have assisted in the past are no longer able to help, due to health concerns. As a result of this, the school assists the parish in several ways. Most notably, have been the efforts of our Year 5/6 group, who through their Christian Council, chose as one of their roles, to regularly clean the church on a roster. This was linked to a fundraising effort where Year 5/6 students organised a community carwash to raise funds for a new parish vacuum, raising over $300 dollars. We are very proud of our school, our students and our school and parish communities. We hope to continue to foster this relationship into the future as it is a true example of living our faith in our actions and words”.
Catholic School Parents WA warmly congratulate St Mary’s in Northampton on their successful nomination!
On the 17th November, Support Officer Nicole visited St Mary's Boyup Brook to present the Parent Group with their Award of Excellence at their final assembly for the year.
The P&F group was nominated for their positive work with the school Principal, staff and school community, both formally through regular P&F and School Advisory Council meetings, and informally through day to day interactions and school and social events. "St Mary's is a relatively small school with less than 50 families and 75 students. The P&F consistently have 10 - 12 parents attending their meetings which, given their small size, is a great reflection of the level of engagement they have in the school community." The P&F also organise and promote social initiatives to encourage community involvement, including a community colour fun run, which gains support from the Lions Club, Local Fire Service and Police.
"Another example is the bi-annual Gala Auction Night which provides a wonderful social event for the community, involves local and relevant business sponsors, promotes the school and raises funds for the school's projects. The P&F also organise an annual outdoor movie night, providing a family friendly event for the local and surrounding communities. This attracted over 200 people and is the P&Fs third Movie Night event."
The P&F fund subscriptions for Mathletics and software for all students and a printed year book for each family, in addition to providing an annual Staff Wish List fund for staff to purchase resources to enhance their teaching and classrooms. In the last few years the P&F have also provided new library furniture, sports equipment, a new set of reading resources for the whole school, a set of faction shirts for use at carnivals and new innovative furniture for classrooms.
Nicole was lucky enough to have a tour of the school before the assembly to have a look at all of the things the P&F have helped to fund over the years, including a cookbook, and new tree top walk/fort that is currently being constructed. Pictured below from left to right are Treasurer Paula Bagshaw, Vice Chair Dana Caldwell, President Kirsten Skraha, Secretary Gemma Lee Steere and Nicole Beresford, and a photo of the new fort.
