A message from the Executive Director

Dear Parents and Carers

Since my last message in mid-September, CCSP has continued to be of service to our Catholic school parents and families, working hard to accomplish our vision to ‘inspire and enable parents and carers to build communities of faith and hope’, and our mission to ‘provide leadership, advocacy and support for parents of children in NSW Catholic schools’.

A big congratulations to the winners of the two free Save Our Children books by Madonna King: Mary Guralnyk of Birrong, NSW and Veronica Raic of Castle Hill, NSW.

Strategic planning for the next three years has continued, and we will have a final 2024–2026 plan to be approved by Council at our Term 4 meetings in November. We will provide a copy of this in our last edition of Parent Talk in December.

At our AGM on 24 November, we will confirm all delegates for the Council and Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Committee authorised by diocesan directors and the congregational school group/Federation of RIM PJP schools, as well as CCSP office bearers for 2024. Your new representatives will be announced in the last edition of Parent Talk for the year in December.

In my capacity as Executive Director, I attended the John Berne School Annual Luncheon Celebrating 25 Years of Marist Education, an annual fundraiser for the school, on 22 September at the invitation of CSNSW. I listened to some amazing and inspiring speeches about their success stories by ex-students of the school. The John Berne School offers at-risk students a second chance, providing a secure, safe, enriching, and challenging educational environment by engaging with their families and wider social networks. These students credited this specialised setting with their post-school success.

The Final Report of the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability was released in October. One of the recommendations regarding education in the report stated that specialised schools should be abolished and all students should attend mainstream schools. One of the objectives of CCSP is to be inclusive and ensure that diverse voices are represented at the state level, and we recognise a parent’s right to choose the most appropriate education for their child. We maintain that parents and families need choice when it comes to selecting an appropriate education setting for their children with disability. We include an article on the report in this edition of Parent Talk.

On 31 October, the CCSP Chair and the Chair of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Committee met with the Hon. Prue Car, Deputy Premier and Minister for Education and Early Learning in her offices. Prior to this meeting we surveyed our members, diocesan directors and bishops, and in our advocacy, we took this opportunity to pass on to Minister Car concerns and feedback parents and families have in regards to the education of their children in Catholic school, and issues that impact their learning.

On a less serious note, on 25 September I filmed some cooking segments in Today show’s Jane de Graaf’s Coffs Harbour kitchen designed to help families shop for and cook budget meals that are cost-effective but delicious. These are currently in production for editing into three videos for our socials and website; keep a look-out for these in 2024.

I hope you enjoy this edition of Parent Talk and wish you well as we speed towards the end of the year and Christmas!

God bless

Cath

The Council of Catholic School Parent NSW/ACT (CCSP) provides a voice for Catholic school parents in decision-making within and beyond the NSW Catholic education sector. We value and promote the critical role that parents play in the education of their children, as a partner in education, and we seek the best possible outcome for all students.

One of the objectives of CCSP is to be inclusive and ensure that diverse voices are represented at the state level, and we recognise a parent’s right to choose the most appropriate education for their child.

In response to the Final Report of the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability, CCSP maintains that parents and families need choice when it comes to selecting an appropriate education setting for their children with disability.

CCSP supports Catholic Schools NSW in its goal to find ways to care for individuals born with a range of special needs across a range of settings, including mainstream schools, support classes within mainstream schools and specialist settings. Students with disability have a diversity of learning needs and Catholic schools seek to cater for this diversity through diverse education settings.

CCSP Executive Director Cath Garrett-Jones stated that ‘Parents and carers need to have a choice when it comes to choosing an education setting for their children with disability; they need to know that their child’s wellbeing is paramount and they are cared for appropriately at school, no matter what their physical and intellectual needs are.’ 

We'd love to hear your views on specialised schools and education settings in our Catholic schools. Please contact us on office@ccsp.catholic.edu.au and tell us about your experiences.

Around our dioceses, schools gathered with parents to continue to develop relationships and involve parents and carers in the life of the school.

Diocese of Bathurst

Christmas Art Exhibition

Now in its 9th year, the diocesan Christmas Story Art Competition and Exhibition has become a much-loved tradition in the lead up to competing with other students from the Archdiocese of Sydney and the Diocese of Wollongong.

The Christmas Story Art Competition provides an opportunity for students in Stage 3 to create art works and written reflections based on one of several scripture passages that depict the birth of Jesus Christ.

This exhibition aims to allow students to develop a greater awareness of the Scriptures through the creation of an artwork connected to the Christmas season. In engaging with the Scriptures in such a way, students have the opportunity to reflect more deeply on the events of the biblical stories and better understand their relevance in their lives today.

Archidiocese of Canberra-Goulburn

St Bernard’s Primary School - Batemans Bay’s Mission Week

Mission Week was an amazing success because of its families' enthusiastic support. The school thanked parents and friends who sponsored the Socktober Penalty Shootout, which raised a total of $602. Parents and carers also gave their support for Timor-Leste by donating or baking for the variety of stalls offered by classes and individual students. The grand total raised during the Mission Markets was $1705.10. An incredible amount raised by an even more incredible community - a combined total of $2307.10! 

Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle

Diverse Learning Mass

The 24th Annual Diverse Learning Mass, hosted by the Federation of P&F Associations in the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, was held on Sunday 29 October at St Mary’s Church, Warners Bay at 2pm. 

The Federation was thrilled to have over 140 people in attendance. The first Mass Celebrating Diverse Learning was held in 1999. Over the years, the Mass has remained a valued opportunity for everyone in the diocese to come together in celebration of the diverse gifts and talents of each and every student, which undoubtedly enrich their Catholic school communities.

Where do young people go for career information?

Thursday 30 November, 1:00pm (AEDT)

Where do young people look for information about careers? Monash University researchers
recently set out to find the answer to this question, analysing what sources of career information
young people use and which ones they are most confident in. Their findings describe a broad
range of sources that complement one another in a 'careers information ecology', as well as how
much young people trust each source, noting the crucial role that parents and carers play in
providing trusted career information.

Based on the new myfuture Insights paper 'Thinking in a joined-up way: the importance of the
careers information ecology’, this webinar, presented by the authors Professor Steven Roberts
and Dr Ben Lyall, will summarise their research findings and explain how you can support your
young person to access and make sense of the information they need. Register now

Career conversations at results time: Support your young person’s wellbeing and help them plan their next steps

Tuesday 12 December 1:00pm (AEDT)

The end of the year can be an anxious time for senior secondary students as they await their
exam results, and also an anxious time for parents! Some will celebrate, some will be
disappointed, and many will just be uncertain about what it all means.

Join Dr Michael Healy as he shares practical tips on how parents and carers, teachers, friends,
and others can support young people to understand their results and plan their next steps
accordingly. Learn how to help your young person recognise and manage their emotions at
results time (both positive and negative), discover post-school pathway options for them to
consider, and how they can make good career decisions and approach the next chapter of their
journey with confidence. Register now

Centre for Community Child Health

Webinar Registration - Zoom

The Australian Psychological Society has released some useful guides on:

• how to mentally prepare for bushfire season
• preparing children for the threat of a bushfire – information for parents and carers
• looking after children who are anxious about bushfire season – guidelines for parents and carers
• helping children who have been affected by bushfires – information for parents and carers.

Additional APS bushfire resources can be found here, including a short (1m 37s) video about easy ways to prepare children psychologically for the threat of disasters.

NSW Government information about bushfire response and recovery can be found here.

Also, Be You have a suite of resources for schools regarding responding to natural disasters. 

Parents and carers are invited to download the following guides:

Preparing children for bushfire

Helping children affected by bushfires

Mentally prepare for bushfire season

Helping children anxious about bushfires 

In these two papers, Part 1 and Part 2, renowned clinical psychologist, author and speaker Andrew Fuller discusses the concept of motivation and how parents can help to kickstart motivation in neurodivergent children.

'Learning strengths can help neurodivergent kids and their parents understand how to kickstart motivation. Building from a learning strength area that a young person already feels confident in, will increase dopamine & help to overcome their worries & fears. Starting with what is easiest builds momentum & motivation.

Download the articles: 

Increasing_Motivation_Part_1.pdf

Increasing_motivation_Part_2.pdf

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