P&F Meeting

The first P&F Meeting for 2022 is next Wednesday 9 February at 7.00pm. This meeting will be via Teams and all parents are welcome to attend. The P&F provides an important opportunity for parents to engage within the school , to support community building, fundraising, the running of the Uniform Shop and Canteen, as well as just a good social connection. A link to the meeting will be shared prior to the day.

2022 is also a Fete Year!

Compass
A reminder to all parents that the Compass app is the main communication platform used for whole school information. It is also possible to set email notifications via Compasss too. Please ensure that you have access to this app and have set your desired notifications to receive alerts as they are sent out. As we send many messages and alerts via Compass our Newsletter will now be distributed fornightly. 

Qkr!

Parents are also reminded to download the Qkr! app which is used for purchasing and ordering for the canteen and the Uniform Shop. Parents must update their child's profile each year to ensure they are aligned with the correct class. This can not be done from the school end, so an alert has been set up on Qkr! when you first log in for the year.

A Message from our Student and Family Counsellor

Hi everyone. My name is Kerry and I'm excited to be back at St Joseph's this year as your Student and Family Counsellor for 2022. 

It has been a tough start to the year for many families, and I want to reassure you that it's normal if you're feeling a bit anxious at the beginning of this school year. As part of the pastoral care program for students, St Joseph's has access to an onsite Student and Family Counselling service provided by CatholicCare Canberra & Goulburn. There is no fee to access this service and I am available to talk to you about any concerns you have about your child on Thursdays and Fridays during school term.

The role of the counsellor is to focus on the emotional, social and educational well-being of students. Counsellors welcome contact with students having difficulty with some part of their life, whether or not it affects their school work. Some typical concerns that Student and Family Counsellors work with include: anger, anxiety, behavioural problems, depression, eating problems, family breakdown and family conflict, grief and loss, learning and educational challenges, parenting challenges, peer and other social relationships, school avoidance, stress and study skills. As well as individual sessions with students, counsellors can run groups, do family work, consult with parents and teachers and make referrals to other services and supports.

Student and Family Counsellors subscribe to a set of professional ethics that include duty of care and respect for individual rights to privacy and confidentiality. The counsellors’ obligation is to ensure the safety, wellbeing and confidentiality of the student they are working with. All counsellors are mandated to report any disclosure or sign of abuse or neglect to Child and Youth Protection Services.

Parental consent for counselling is required for all students under 14 years of age, and a new referral is needed each year. If you would like to make a referral to counselling for your child, please complete the online referral form at https://catholiccare.force.com/housing/s/school-referral-form. 

If you would like to talk to me before making a referral, you are very welcome to contact me on Thursdays and Fridays. You can either call me on 0488 468 056 or contact me via email at kerry.marshall@catholiccare.cg.org.au.

I'm really looking forward to working with you and your children this year

Kerry Marshall

Student and Family Counsellor

Have a great end to the week.

Yours in Christ,

Cameron Tarrant

Cameron.tarrant@cg.catholic.edu.au