Welcome to Parent Talk

Welcome to the first edition of Parent Talk for 2025.

I hope the beginning of the school year has been smooth for you and your children are settling well into the new school year. I encourage you to take time to engage with your child’s school through their communication channels including their social media sites, newsletter and website. When you know what is happening in your child’s school, you are better prepared to support them in their learning.

We have been working behind the scenes on our new website, in collaboration with Schoolzine, and we can't wait to launch it a bit later in the year. Watch this space!

Since our last Parent Talk, we have continued to provide leadership, advocacy and support for all parents in our dioceses:

• Supporting healthy tech use as your child transitions into high school (354 registrations), presented by CCSP and the eSafety Commissioner
• CCSP Council and Committee Term 4 meetings and AGM
• Parent meeting at St Madeleine’s Primary School Kenthurst
• NSW Curriculum Reform Parent Roundtable
• Launch of Child and Family Hubs Framework at Centre for Community Child Health,
• Diverse Learning Needs Mass at the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle
• NSW Drug Summit
• Respectful Relationships ACU project, CSNSW & CCSP collaboration meeting
• Announced the 2024 Roger O’Sullivan Award recipient, St Joseph’s Eugowra (see the article below)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US!
This year is a very special year for the Council of Catholic School Parents NSW/ACT. We are turning 30! That’s right, it’s our 30th Anniversary, and we will be celebrating all year with some fabulous events for parents and carers, including free webinars every term. In Term 2, we’ll be taking the show on the road out to our rural and remote dioceses, Armidale, Wilcannia-Forbes, Wagga Wagga and Canberra-Goulburn, with our special guest Dr Justin Coulson, who will present to school communities. We'll let you know more information about our road trip in the coming weeks.

On Saturday 25 October 2025 we’re holding our 30th Anniversary Conference for Parents and Carers in Parramatta. It’s going to be a day for parents and carers to gather, listen to some knowledgeable speakers on parenting and education, and give us a chance to meet you and feed you!

Don’t forget to save this date in your diary!

It's also a Jubilee Year, which is a special time in the Catholic Church calendar that happens every 25 years. So, we’re looking forward to a packed year of activities and events with something for everyone! 

TERM 1 WEBINARS
Our Term 1 free online webinars for parents are:

• 25 Feb: SchoolSpeak 101: Learning the Lingo of School (repeated 26 Feb), presented by CSNSW
• 5 March: Dream Big (Primary 3–6), presented by Beyond
• 19 March: Algorithms and Adolescents: The rewards and risks of recommender systems for young people, presented by eSafety Commissioner

See the articles in this edition for how to register, and keep a lookout for reminders on our social media.

MEET OUR MEMBERS
At our 2024 AGM, we were delighted to have Mrs Anne Fehon re-elected as Chair of the Council. You can find a list of our 2025 members and our meeting dates here: 

2024 ROGER O'SULLIVAN AWARD RECIPIENTS
Jenny Scepanovic (Executive Officer) and I have visited the top three recipients of our 2024 Roger O’Sullivan Award for Family, School and Community Partnerships for Learning this week. We are so grateful for the lovely way we were welcomed at these schools and congratulate all on them on their wonderful communities: St Joseph’s Eugowra, St Cecilia’s Wyong and St Paul’s Moss Vale. See the article below to find out more about the wonderful ways these schools are bridging the gap between home and school, and enhancing student outcomes in faith development, learning and wellbeing of students.

WE'RE KEEN TO HEAR FROM YOU!
We are seeking your help to complete our annual Term 1 Parent and Carer Survey so we can support parents and carers across NSW and the ACT. Your feedback will help us to better support you to engage with your child’s school as well as build capacity in your role as primary educators of their children. Let us know your thoughts and opinions by completing our survey: https://ccsp.schoolzineplus.com/survey/71

This year we have a federal election, and in our advocacy role, CCSP aims to be a strong voice for all NSW/ACT parents and carers with children in Catholic schools. See the article below, 'Keep School Funding Fair', to find out about our school funding system in Australia and how you can use your voice to let your Member of Parliament know that school choice is important to you.

From funding through to policy and curriculum development CCSP represents the interests of Catholic school parents across all areas of education that affect Catholic school families and children. We represent Catholic school parents at government level, industry level and in the media. Find out more about what we do here in our new Annual Induction and Policy Manual:

This year, we pray for joy and happiness. Lord, fill our hearts with the joy that comes from knowing you and walking in your ways.

Stay safe and take care of yourselves and each other, my friends.

Cath Garrett-Jones
Executive Director