Dear St Thomas Aquinas community,

Welcome to Week 3. We're finally getting into a rhythm here at school. I hope you are at home as well.

Last week was a very big week for us. Not only did we have a Meet & Greet and a Swimming Carnival, our school was also randomly selected by the Australian Government Department of Education for an audit of our records that support our student funding in 2025, with a particular focus on all students identified with a disability.

Front Office Team

I would like to offer my sincere thanks to the outstanding Front Office team of Lee Black and Steph Cooper. Not only do Lee and Steph listen to and support, with care and kindness, every family that walks through our front door; they also maintain very strong processes and record keeping that ensures our school can operate successfully and meet all of its regulatory requirements. We are very, very fortunate to have such a strong, outstanding team in our Front Office.

Thank you SCC

Thank you to the SCC and the volunteers for providing a sausage sizzle at our Meet & Greet last Tuesday. Stacey Campbell, chairperson, has always described to me how engaged and supportive the parent community is here at St Thomas Aquinas and the sausage sizzle was an excellent example of that. I 'm looking forward to my first SCC meeting this evening.

Thank you also to all who came up and said hello to me at the Meet & Greet. I loved meeting everyone and look forward to more opportunities for this.

Swimming Carnival 

I would like to thank Megan Smith, REC, for the excellent organisation of the swimming carnival on Friday. Thank you to all of the parents who came to assist, we couldn't have done it without you. Thank you also to the staff who were focused and supportive of every student throughout the event. It was a calm and very engaging event for every child. Outstanding!

Exemption from School - Do I need a certificate?

The Education Act 2004 (ACT) legislates that all children living in the ACT of compulsory school age (6-17) are enrolled and attending an education provider full-time or registered for Home Education, except in exceptional circumstances when an approved Exemption Certificate is in place.

If you would like to know more about when an Exemption Certificate is required please read the following.

Matthew Garton

Principal