Welcome to 2021 – and welcome to another lockdown! After such a fantastic start to the 2021 Academic School year, we are already facing our first hurdle. But after a turbulent 2020, we are ready for this! Those who were on site today would have seen the very dramatic start to the day with a burst water-pipe outside the Chapel.  With a good sense of humour we persevered through, only to find out that we are now entering a 5-day lockdown, which means your children will be missing three days of school next week.

We will continue to monitor the situation, but at this stage, we aim (and hope) to return to school on Thursday 18th February.

I am so glad that we managed to enjoy two very exciting and busy weeks, allowing your children to settle beautifully into their new routines and classrooms. They are all looking and feeling quite at home on our beautiful school grounds. A very special mention must go to the Foundation students, who have become independent and capable learners so quickly.

Last week, we somehow managed to host a Key Parent Function and Cocktail Party despite the threat of bad weather and the challenge of moving the event outdoors due to updated restrictions. It was so wonderful to see the school community connected face-to-face, and I would like to thank you all for coordinating your schedules and family lives to make the time for this important annual event.

We have also managed to pull off a huge coordinated effort to ensure students in Grades 1-3 were able to catch up on the swimming lessons they missed out on last year. A huge thank you to Penelope E and our incredible team of parent volunteers who have been assisting at the pool throughout the week in order to provide extra support for our staff and students. It was a huge success!

This past fortnight, we have also been busy assessing all the students at Harkaway Hills College so that we can better cater to their individual needs in the Academic Year ahead. We were extremely happy with the standard of our student body as a whole following these two weeks of assessment. Wherever your children are currently sitting, we will ensure they all progress in the year ahead.

Finally, the highlight of the fortnight would have to be the arrival of the Blessed Sacrament in the Chapel on Monday 1st February. The Chapel has very quickly become the heart of our school, and it has been beautiful to see the children making visits before and after school in such a natural way.  We are so lucky.

I would like to thank all of you for the incredible commitment and dedication you continue to show for our school. May you all have a relaxing 5-day long weekend. Let us hope and pray that this lockdown will be short-lived, and we will return to face-to-face learning on Thursday.

Sincerely,

Mary Broadsmith

Principal