School Contact Details
The school’s address for all correspondence is:
Richmond North Public School
14 Grose Vale Road
North Richmond. NSW 2754
The school’s phone number is: (02) 4571 1542
The school’s facsimile number is: (02) 4571 3394
The school’s email address is : richmondn-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au
Enquiries by phone are handled by the school administrative staff who also direct calls to the Principal and relay messages to teachers who are in classrooms.
Our Community Nurse’s phone number is (02) 4560 5714 and she can be contacted at the Windsor Area Health Centre between the hours of 8.30 am and 5.00 pm. to make an appointment. A clinic is held at our school on Mondays from 9.30 am to 10.30 am.
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School Contributions
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At the commencement of each school year, parents will be notified and invoiced for the School Contribution for that year. The School Contribution is comprised of 4 components.
The first component is the Voluntary Contribution. This amount covers items such as photocopying and consumable items used by students.
The second component is the Subject Contribution. This amount covers subject resources and any special programs that students participate in (eg Cooking program/Jellybeans Music/Drama). This charge is simply recouping some of the costs that the school must pay to conduct these programs.
The third component is the Student Textbook fee. This covers the cost of textbooks that the students use over the course of the year.
The fourth component is the P&C contribution. This includes a general contribution which is used as fundraising for the school as well as a levy for student accident insurance.
Payment of these contributions assists the school to provide the very best learning opportunities possible for all of our students.
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School Counsellor
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School Counsellors are qualified, graduate teachers who have additional counselling qualifications. The counselling service exists in government schools for the benefit of all children and their families who need assistance with social, academic, behavioural and emotional difficulties.
Referrals for assessment and counselling support generally come from staff, however parents are able to request counsellor support for their child. As the School Counsellor only attends Richmond North PS on one day per fortnight, all students referred have their cases prioritised. High priority cases will take precedence over lower priority cases, however all students will be processed as soon as possible.
Before a student is referred by a staff member for counsellor assessment or support, parents will be notified and written permission will be obtained. The School Counsellor will communicate and results or findings to the parents following their assessments.
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School Photographs
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During the year we arrange for class, individual and special group photographs to be taken by visiting specialists in school photography. Photographs must be pre-paid and special envelopes will be provided to students at least two weeks prior to photo day.
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School Song
In the fertile Hawkesbury Valley.
‘Tween the foothills and the river,
Stands the village of North Richmond
And it’s here we go to school.
Richmond North, Richmond North,
We think of you with pleasure,
For happy days of learning,
And the friendships that we treasure,
When our days of school are done
And we must all go forth
Into the world we’ll go
Rememb’ring Richmond North.
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Scripture
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Religious instruction classes (Scripture) are held for half an hour each Wednesday by visiting scripture teachers. Catholic and Protestant groups are held. Parents who do not wish to have their children attend these classes should indicate so when enrolling, or must send a note to the class teacher, expressing this wish. If a parent’s intentions are not communicted to the school, children will be expected to attend scripture classes.
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Security
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Outside school hours the school buildings are under the protection of a security system. However any suspicious behaviour on school property should be reported to police immediately.
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Staff Information
Principal Mr Brad Thurling
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Assistant Principals Mr Adam Wheat
Mrs Emma Wilkins
Mrs Nicole Young
Ms Tanja Kane
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School Administration Manager Mrs Kim Rickards
School Administration Officers Mrs Katherine Barlow
Mrs Simone Hyam
Class Teachers Ms Jessica McCoy-Lancaster
Mrs Belinda Gatt
Mrs Alyse McDonald
Mrs Michelle Sciberras
Mrs Lisa Hayday
Mrs Georgina Donaldson
Mr Daniel Morton
Mrs Fiona Connelly
Ms Chantelle Ziesel
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Teacher Librarian Mrs Liz Dreves
RFF Teacher
Learning and Support/ Ms Tanja Kane
Mrs Danielle DeLanty
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School Learning and Support Officers Mrs Jude Moffett
Mrs Simone Hyam
Mrs Dianne Lai
Mrs Rebecca O'Sullivan
Mrs Lyndsay Merton
Mrs Narelle Smith
Mrs Stephanie Ralph
ATSI Support SLSO Ms Kelly King
General Assistants Mr Alan Seymour
Mr Ed Walker
Mr Jeff Salerno
Mr Eric Brocken
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Student Assistance Scheme
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The Student Assistance Scheme (SAS) enables financial assistance to be provided to eligible families of students within our school. Support will be provided for school related expenses, such as school uniforms, footwear, excursions, camps, textbooks and stationery needs.
Parents or guardians should request support in writing to the office. All assistance requires parents and the Principal to fill in a request form which is kept confidential by the School Administration Manager. The level of assistance given may depend on the funds left in the Student Assistance Scheme account. There are limits in place which guide the maximum level of funding available for a particular item. Information and applications for Student Assistance can be obtained from the school office.
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Student Banking
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Students should complete their deposit slip and include the deposit amount in their yellow student banking wallet. Student banking should be dropped in to the school office before 9am on Wednesday mornings.
Student banking wallets will be returned to students on Wednesday afternoons.
If you would like your child to participate in Student Banking, information packs can be obtained from the school office.
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Student Management
DISCIPLINE is the system of relationships, rules, rewards and sanctions designed to facilitate learning and progressively develop self-discipline.
SELF-DISCIPLINE allows the child to develop a capacity for initiative and mature judgement, so that he/she accepts responsibility for his/her own actions and decisions and practises a caring attitude towards others.
KEY OUTCOMES
1. To ensure a safe environment for all students
2. To recognise and celebrate student effort and success
3. To provide clear, concise rules that can be easily understood by students
4. To have clear, consistent and effective strategies for dealing with inappropriate and
unacceptable behaviour in a timely way
5. To develop clear lines of communication with staff and parents regarding discipline and
welfare issues
6. To implement systems that effectively track and report on student behaviour
7. To provide opportunities for students, parents and staff to provide feedback on this policy and
its components
8. To provide incentives for students to behave in positive ways
9. To ensure that rules and expectations are explicitly taught and reinforced every year
10. To develop student welfare programs that support the discipline policy by dealing with issues
such as mental health, bullying and child protection.
PROCESS
The school will:
• negotiate the formation of rules with the pupils
• expect acceptable standards of behaviour, punctuality and tidiness
• be consistent in enforcing rules and code of conduct
• foster self-discipline, independence and initiative, by giving choices suitable to the student
• ensure that the students are aware of the consequences of unacceptable behaviour
• develop open communication between the home and the school
MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES FOR STUDENT BEHAVIOUR
School Rules
Respect yourself and others
Do as you are asked
Be in the right place
Keep your hands and feet to yourself
Look after the school and its environment
CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
Minor offences and minor disruptive behaviours are to be handled by the classroom teacher initially.
WORKING RESTORATIVELY
Restorative practices is a social science that studies how to build social capital and achieve social discipline through participatory learning and decision making.
The use of restorative practices helps to:
* reduce inappropriate behaviour including bullying
* improve student behavior
* build a strong sense of community
* provide effective leadership
* restore relationships
* repair harm
The fundamental unifying hypothesis of restorative practices is that “human beings are happier, more cooperative and productive, and more likely to make positive changes in their behavior when those in positions of authority do things with them, rather than to them or for them.” This hypothesis maintains that the punitive and authoritarian to mode and the permissive and paternalistic for mode are not as effective as the restorative, participatory, engaging with mode (Wachtel, 2005).
Restorative practices are not limited to formal processes, such as restorative conferences or family group conferences, but range from informal to formal. On a restorative practices continuum (see below), the informal practices include affective statements that communicate people’s feelings, as well as affective questions that cause people to reflect on how their behavior has affected others. Impromptu restorative conferences, groups and circles are somewhat more structured but do not require the elaborate preparation needed for formal conferences. Moving from left to right on the continuum, as restorative practices become more formal, they involve more people, require more planning and time, and are more structured and complete. Although a formal restorative process might have dramatic impact, informal practices have a cumulative impact because they are part of everyday life (McCold & Wachtel, 2001).
The aim of restorative practices is to develop community and to manage conflict and tensions by repairing harm and building relationships. This statement identifies both proactive (building relationships and developing community) and reactive (repairing harm and restoring relationships) approaches. Organisations and services that only use the reactive without building the social capital beforehand are less successful than those that also employ the proactive (Davey, 2007).
Student Representative Council (SRC)
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Each class from Year 1-6 elects two representatives (plus reserves) for a semester on the SRC. The SRC meets weekly or fortnightly, supported by a staff member, and is active in developing a student voice for the school.
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Student Learning Support
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All teachers will make adjustments in class to meet the individual educational needs of all their students. In some instances however, students will require more individualised support with their learning. Where teachers identify that students have a higher level of need, they will make a written referral to our school Learning Support team. The Learning Support team consists of an Assistant Principal, the Learning and Support teacher, our School Counselor and Class teachers. The Learning and Support team assesses each referral and makes decisions on how to best support each student. They may provide extra resources for the classroom teacher or they may consider placing the student on a support program such as MultiLit, MiniLit, Rip it Up Reading or QuickSmart. Alternatively, the Learning and Support team may suggest that further investigation by the School Counselor or Assistant Principal Learning and Support, may need to be undertaken. At all stages of the process, parents are kept informed of and consulted about any decisions made with regards to their child.
Sunsmart Policy
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All students and staff are required to wear broad brimmed or legionnaire caps in the playground. Students without hats must play in the shade during terms one, two and four. In June and July students are allowed to wear warm head gear such as beanies, and do not have to wear broad brimmed hats to promote optimum vitamin D levels. The Uniform shop has Sunsmart hats available for sale.
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