Edition 53

Principal's Message

Can you believe it is already the end of week 7 in Term 4! I am not sure about you, but I have no idea where the time has gone this term.  This leaves us with 15 days of our regular school year left.

As you would be aware, this term is 11 weeks in length. As school terms tend to be 10 weeks in length, formal teaching and learning will finish in week 10 of this term, Friday 6 December. This does not mean school will be closed. Our last day officially of the 2024 school year is Friday 13 December.

Report Cards will be emailed home in week 10. Year 6 Graduation will occur in week 10.

During week 11, students will engage in alternative activities. They may also be in different classrooms with different teachers and different students. As our Stage 2 building should be in our possession in week 11, this will allow teachers to move classrooms. With Stage 2 opening, a majority of class teachers will need to relocate classrooms as we prepare to structure our junior (Prep – Year 2) and senior (Year 3 – Year 6) learning spaces permanently.

If you are starting holidays earlier than Friday 13 December, please contact your child’s teacher.

2025 Planning

Thank you to those families who (sadly) have notified us that they will not be attending Everleigh State School in 2025. This has assisted greatly in predicting our class structures. At present, we have 31 classes, some of which will be composite classes. While our preference is to create as many straight year level classes as possible, this can be unavoidable depending on the number of students in a year level and the number of teachers we are able to employ/afford.

If you are yet to inform the school of your child not attending Everleigh State School in 2025, please do so as soon as possible.

Unsafe Driver Behaviour

I am very disappointed and saddened to hear about the driving behaviour of some of our parents/carers in and around our school. There were at least 2 close calls at the pedestrian crossing on Monday.

Unfortunately, one of these incidents on Monday resulted in verbal abuse. As parents/carers, you are a child’s first teacher. What they see and hear from you, leaves a lasting impression on them, as they look up to you. Sometimes, the less desirable behaviours modelled by you, your child’s first teacher, appears at school in the form of inappropriate language and verbal abuse. There were young children present on Monday when there was an unpleasant verbal exchange between Everleigh State School parents/carers. This incident could be heard in the main school carpark and Breakfast Club volunteers.  There is no excuse for such behaviour.

I remind all drivers that the speed limit within the estate is 50km/hour. The school zone, which is in operation from 7.00 – 9.00 am and 2.00 – 4.00 pm, is 40 km/hour. Please slowdown in around our school for safety of our students, staff and school community. I understand the frustrations of the morning and afternoon traffic exiting the estate. As our student population grows and more houses are built, the traffic will increase. One entry and exit to the estate impacts this and is beyond our control. What we can control is leaving home earlier or walking/riding to school.

I have contacted our Stage 2 contractors to share the same message with their workers, and Mirvac. At this stage, we do not qualify for a paid crossing supervisor, and we do not have the staffing to manage the crossing in addition to supervising both pick up zones, the bike shed, and bus duty.

Best wishes Mrs Kemp

Mrs Kemp, our Head of Special Education Services, leaves us today to prepare for the birth of her third child. Mrs Kemp has contributed enormously in her role this year and leaves very big shoes to fill. On behalf of the Everleigh State School community, we wish Mrs Kemp and her family the very best. Mrs Kemp will return at the beginning of the 2026 school year.

Mrs Kemp will be replaced by Mr Joshua Newby. Mr Newby joins us from Ipswich East State School, where he has been Head of Special Education Services and Coach. Please ensure you make Mr Newby feel welcome as our Acting Head of Special Education Services.

Enriching Communities Christmas Appeal

Enriching Communities is seeking donations for their annual Christmas Gifting Appeal. The annual gifting Christmas appeal each year blesses those needing a little help from the community.

Donations can include:

• essentials for self-care like toothbrushes, soaps, sunscreen, towels, hats, socks, undies, nail care products, brushes, headbands…
• educational items: indigenous books, stationery, pens, books
• lunch boxes and water bottles,
• toys such as: puzzles, reading books, Kmart, Rebel, Event cinemas vouchers

With a bountiful year of organised events and free activities we encourage the spirit of giving with our annual "pay-it-forward" Christmas Appeal, which is only possible thanks to the local residents around the areas.

If you are able to be involved, we welcome unwrapped brand-new gift/s for Primary and Secondary school aged children by Sunday 15 December 2024.

In addition to dropping gifts off at our Administration, gifts can also be dropped at

Everleigh Sales Centre 3 Guroman Dr, Greenbank, 10am – 5pm, open daily.

Annual Parent Information - 2025 Student Resource Scheme

How the scheme operates and the annual participation fee

The Queensland Government supports students’ education by providing funding for:

• Instruction, e.g., teachers
• Facilities, e.g., buildings, amenities, furniture
• Administration, e.g., staffing and resources to administer the operations of the school.

Funding does not extend to individual student resources such as textbooks, equipment for personal use, and items used/consumed by the student in the classroom. Supply of these items is the responsibility of parents.

To provide parents with a cost-effective alternative to purchasing stationery and/or resources elsewhere, Everleigh State School operates an SRS for 2025.   

The scheme ensures that students have the resources required for them to engage with the curriculum for their education and saves parents time and money in sourcing the prescribed materials elsewhere. Savings are gained through the school’s bulk purchasing practices and hiring arrangements. The scheme is not used to raise funds for other purposes, and revenue collected through the scheme is applied only to the resources and operation of the scheme. The financial impact on parents and whether the school can absorb any of the cost has been considered before determining the SRS fee.

The scheme’s operation, resource inclusions and participation fees were approved by the school’s P&C Association at the meeting held on Monday 14^th October 2024. 

SRS Participation

The objective of the scheme is to provide a convenient and cost-effective way for students to access the educational resources necessary to enhance their learning experience at school. The Department encourages parents to participate in the scheme. Participation in the SRS is optional, and no obligation is placed on a parent to participate. Participation is for the duration of your child’s enrolment at the school.

Student is new to the school.….

Parents are required to complete and return the SRS Participation Agreement Form when joining the scheme for the first time. If no participation form is received at the time of enrolment, the school will take the view that the parent has chosen to opt out of the SRS.  The parent is then required to provide the educational resources listed in the SRS for their child by the start of the school year. A parent can opt in or out of the scheme in subsequent years by completing another Participation Agreement Form.

Continuing student of the school…..

A parent’s participation or non-participation in the scheme will continue as per their previously completed Participation Agreement Form. A parent can opt in or out of the scheme in subsequent years by completing another Participation Agreement Form.

If a parent has opted out of the scheme the parent is required to provide the educational resources listed in the SRS for their child by the start of the school year.

The Participation Agreement Form can be obtained from Administration.

More detailed information about the SRS can be found on the Department’s website: (https://ppr.qed.qld.gov.au/pp/student-resource-scheme-srs-procedure).

Resource Inclusions

All resources included in the SRS are detailed below in the SRS Resource list. This list is also available on the school’s website. This is a comprehensive list of all resources included in the scheme and their associated costs.

Parents must inform the school if items on the list of resources are not received by their child when resources are distributed.

Type of Resources provided

Generally, the three types of resources that could be included are:

• Owned – these items are retained by the student and used as required (e.g. stationery, exercise books, student diary).
• Used – these items are used/consumed in class by the student (e.g. industry technology/cooking/art supplies).
• work/items produced from these resources will remain the property of the student.
• Hired – these items are hired to the student for their personal use for a specific period of time (e.g. textbooks, musical instruments, laptops).
• Hired items must be returned to the school in good condition at the end of the hire period or if the student leaves the school.
• A repair or replacement cost may be charged to the parent for any hired items that are damaged or not returned.

Costing Methodology

The schools SRS fee is calculated based on:

1. A flat fee for all students in the school, OR
2. A flat fee for a cohort group of students (e.g. a year level), OR
3. A general fee for all students or a cohort group plus additional fees for individual subject inclusions.

Please refer to the SRS Resource list for the associated costings.

The 2025 SRS Participation Fee

The SRS fee payable for the 2025 school year is as follows and an itemised list is published on the school’s website. https://everleighss.eq.edu.au/support-and-resources/forms-and-documents/documents 

Prep - $165.00

Year 1 - $163.00

Year 2 - $160.00

Year 3 - $136.00

Year 4- $123.00

Year 5 - $131.00

Year 6 - $122.00

SRS Digital Device Component (Years 2-6)

Option 1 – BYO iPad (students bring their compatible iPad as per specifications listed on annual SRS information

Option 2 – Hire Fee $130 (iPad, screen protector & case)

Financial Hardship

Parents experiencing financial hardship who are currently participating or wish to participate in the SRS should contact the school to discuss available options in confidence.

Payment Arrangement

Several payment options including a single payment for the full year’s fee or term instalments are available.  An instalment plan can also be negotiated with the school.

Any unpaid invoices will be managed according to the department’s Debt Management Procedure. Only as a last resort, a principal may use discretion to exclude a student from optional, non-curricular activities where a parent has an outstanding debt with the school. (https://ppr.qed.qld.gov.au/pp/debt-management-procedure).

Payment Method

SRS payments can be made by QParent/BPOINT, BPAY, EFTPOS (Credit/Debit Card), Centrepay.

• Payment may be made through the QParents portal using a credit card. Payment will be directed from the QParents portal to BPOINT where relevant outstanding invoice information may be selected.
• When paying by BPOINT, please use the Customer Reference Number (CRN) and invoice number printed on the invoice received from the school. If unsure of the CRN, please contact the school.
• Centrepay Deductions are available to pay the SRS fees. Use Centrepay to make regular deductions from your Centrelink payment. Centrepay is a voluntary and easy payment option available to Centrelink customers. Go to gov.au/centrepay for more information on how to set up your Centrepay deductions.

Contact Us

For all queries regarding the SRS and its inclusions, please contact Administration on 07 2899 5111 or email Admin@everleighss.eq.edu.au

Deputy Principals' Message

Celebration of Learning Afternoon

Celebration of learning afternoon will be held at 1:45 PM on the 3^rd of December. This is a chance for you to celebrate your child’s learning achievements with them. You will be able to view your child’s learning folio with them and you can also engage in some classroom activities. We look forward to seeing you on this day.

Prep Start Transition

Our Prep Start Transitions and enrolments still continue with 150 prep enrolments so far for our 2025 year. We run this program to help familiarise our new students with our school and staff and to help them develop a sense of belonging in our school community. Our last sessions begin next week if you know of any families yet to enrol, please encourage them to contact the school as soon as possible.

Message From The Executive Services

Student Absence Procedure

If your student will be absent, parents/carers have a legal obligation to notify the school office, including advising the reason for the absence. We kindly request you let us know by 9am on the day of the absence. We have two preferred methods for advising absence:

1. Via the Q-Parents App – please see reception if you require information on this.
2. Via our dedicated Student Absence Line – (07) 2899 5160, where you can leave a message any time of the day or night. Please save this number in your phone.

Reminder: You will also need to advise YMCA if your child is booked in and will be absent.

YMCA absences should be advised before 2:15pm via email aev@ymcabrisbane.org or via text or phone call 0459 905 087.

Don’t forget to also cancel your canteen order if you have pre-ordered ahead: (07) 2899 5125

Change of contact details:

Please advise Executive Services if any of your details have changed. For example:

• Address
• Best contact phone number
• Work details
• Emergency contacts other than parents/carers

Please pop into the office to complete a change of details form, or email admin@everleighss.eq.edu.au to update your details.

Lost property

Name labels make all the difference in helping us to returned lost items to the correct students. We kindly remind parents to name jackets, hats, lunch boxes, water bottles, etc. We really appreciate your assistance with this. Any item that is labelled gets returned directly to the classroom.

All previously unclaimed and unnamed school jackets have been given to our guidance officer to distribute to families in need. If you believe you have lost an unnamed jacket, please advise as soon as possible.

All unclaimed, unnamed items are disposed of or donated at the end of each term.

STUDENT FINANCE

Payment for Year 1, Year 3 and Year 5 “Swimming” invoice is due by Friday 22 November. No late payments will be accepted.

Year 6 Wet & Wild invoices will be generated in the coming days.

2024 SRS invoices are overdue for payment.  Please pay immediately if you have not already done so.

Spare change of clothes reminder

Please ensure you pack a spare change of clothes in your child’s bag just in case. Please include underwear, black shorts/skort and socks.

Year 6 Students Leaving:

We will be sad to say farewell to our wonderful year 6 cohort at the end of this term. Families should have already received a leaving form to complete and return to the office. We kindly ask that you return them as soon as possible so we can enter their new school details into the system, ready for us to depart them at the end of term. Thank you to those families who have already returned this.  If you have not received one, please contact the office.

Message From The Head of Special Education Services, Mrs Rhiannon Kemp

Exciting News!

I wanted to share some exciting news with you all — my family is growing! As my husband and I prepare to welcome a new addition, I will be taking maternity leave starting Monday, November 18th. While I will miss being a part of our wonderful school community during this time, I am confident that the students, staff, and families will continue to thrive.

I’m pleased to announce that Mr. Josh Newby will be stepping in as my replacement during my leave. Josh is an experienced educator who shares our commitment to student growth, inclusion and well-being. I am certain that he will continue to support our community in the best possible way.

Thank you all for your continued support and understanding. I look forward to returning after this special time with my family, and I am confident that Josh will do a fantastic job in my absence.

Celebrating the Successes of This Year:

As the year draws to a close, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the wonderful achievements our school community has celebrated together. This year has been marked by significant strides in supporting our students’ learning and well-being, and I am so proud of the progress we’ve made as a Student Support Services team.

One of the highlights has been the introduction of several new intervention programs to provide tailored support for our students. This included the SPELD Intensive Literacy Program, Math Mastery sessions, and Social Skills sessions focusing on conflict resolution. These programs have made a meaningful impact, helping students develop critical skills and build confidence in their learning journey. Much of this work happens behind the scenes, with our dedicated team working tirelessly to ensure every student has the support they need to succeed.

It has been wonderful to see so many students embracing our school events with enthusiasm this year. Whether it was staff supporting students to engage, cheering on peers during our Sporting Days, attending Camps and Excursions, or participating in our vibrant Colour Run Fundraiser, the level of involvement was truly inspiring. This collective spirit showcased the strength and unity of our school community.

As we approach the end of the year, our focus is now on ensuring that students who may feel apprehensive or anxious about the changes a new school year brings are well-prepared. My team is working closely with these students, highlighting what will remain the same and discussing any changes so they can enter 2025 with confidence and excitement.

Thank you to our incredible staff, families, and students for making this year so successful. We look forward to continuing this journey of growth and achievement together.

Updates to Our NDIS Providers Process

This year, we’ve seen significant growth in the number of NDIS providers working within our school community. What started with just 10 providers last year has grown to over 50 applications in 2024 alone! To better support our students and streamline our processes, we have undertaken a comprehensive review of our NDIS provider procedures. We greatly appreciate the patience and understanding of our families throughout this transition as Kylie and myself (Rhiannon) worked diligently to improve these systems.

These updates will pave the way for a smoother experience for those seeking support in 2025. Here are the key changes:

1. Application Updates:

Please be aware that applications for NDIS provider access for the 2024 school year are now closed. We will begin accepting new requests for 2025 starting on February 10, 2025. To ensure a seamless process, we encourage families to prepare all necessary, certified documentation ahead of time. Applications and documentation can be submitted to: NDIS@everleighss.eq.edu.au. We’ve also attached our updated NDIS Provider Process document to assist with your planning.

1. Therapy Room Fees:

Given the increased demand for therapy services and impact on school resources, there will now be fees associated with the use of school rooms for therapy sessions in 2025. These fees will not be passed on to families but will be included in the access agreements for NDIS providers who hire the spaces. This adjustment aligns with departmental policies and helps us better manage our resources. For further details, please refer to the Queensland Department of Education’s guidelines here.

Thank you once again for your ongoing support and cooperation. If you have any questions or need further clarification, please do not hesitate to reach out.

PBL Focus Weeks 7 & 8 - Commitment - From The PBL Team

Music Notes From Mrs Chivers

Everleigh State School - Disney Through The Decades 21st November

Student Council News - Fundraising Raffle

UMS Uniform Shop News

Sharks Volleyball - Calling all Volleyballers

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Holiday Pass – Affordable school holiday program for ages 8 to 18
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