Through CEWA’s Quality Schools Education Framework, we demonstrate our commitment to building a strong Catholic identity, enriching education, and nurturing community.
At St Mary’s, we strive to be our best selves every day. From exciting sporting and cultural events and inspiring assemblies to meaningful liturgical celebrations and engaging daily classroom achievements, St Mary’s reflects a commitment to enrich every aspect of school life. Our commitment to religious education, quality teaching and instructional practices, the provision of safe learning spaces, and a strong sense of community remains the cornerstones of our mission, ensuring that our students thrive both academically and spiritually. The four key domains of a QCS model enable provides us with our structure.
Catholic identity remains at the heart of all that we do. Our students engage in the rich traditions of Catholic faith through participation in Mass, sacraments, prayer, with the inspiration of Mary MacKillop to guide us. We celebrate important Feast days, fostering an atmosphere filled with faith, joy, and community spirit.
At St Mary’s, there is a commitment to providing a high-quality education that caters to the diverse needs of our students and this was reinforced with the positive school audit we underwent earlier this year. Our programs continue to be varied and inclusive, with a focus on both intervention and extension of students in order to ensure each child’s needs are catered for. Digital technology continues to be integrated into our teaching practice, with our teachers working with CEWA specialists to develop their own skills, enhancing student engagement and learning outcomes. Our staff engage in ongoing professional development to continually improve their teaching skills and deliver the best education to our students.
Community: Strong relationships are key to the success of our school, and we strive to foster a welcoming and inclusive environment where all members of our school community feel valued. Events such as Mother’s Day Morning tea and Father’s Day breakfasts, and the Grandparents Day celebration and this years’ wonderful St Mary’s Fete, help build connections and create a sense of belonging. We also focus on building healthy pastoral environments. Programs such as Berry Street educational model have been introduced to support students' wellbeing and emotional development, while our alignment to a code of conduct ensures that we maintain safe and respectful relationships within our community.
Stewardship: Being good stewards of the resources entrusted to us is important. We are committed to the efficient and effective management of our school to ensure it continues to meet the needs of our students, staff, and families. This year we have implemented several improvements to our physical environments, and Work Health and Safety measures continue to be important implementations across our school. These enhancements reflect our commitment to providing a safe and inviting learning environment for all.
SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT AND LOOKING AHEAD: This year CEWA advised of a 3 % Fee increase, as was mentioned in the Treasurer report, and endorsed by the School Advisory Council. Staffing and daily costs of running a school have increased significantly in 2025. Maintenance, WHS, compliance and procedural aspects of our school contribute to these expenses as well. For 2026 we have had to be very strict with our expenditure projections, working with CEWA and our System accountant to create a very tight budget for the year and our five-year financial position of the school looks solid.
An increase in enrolments, over the past year or so and the continued implementation of our evidenced based pedagogy and practice in our classrooms sees us building on Catholic identity with a range of faith based initiatives throughout our school.
Our search for School improvement will continue across all that we do, in a bid to enhance our school brand as always in areas such as:
• School wide pedagogical improvement
• Staff development and a focus on the wellbeing of both students and staff
• Catholic identity and faith formation
• Transactional and procedural management
• Maintenance and WHS compliance
• School compliance planning for next five years
• Wellbeing and pastoral care initiatives
• Data informed practice
In 2026, the school will also begin a new phase in its compliance processes. All Catholic schools in Western Australia are required to participate in the CEWA School Compliance Review process to demonstrate compliance with the Registration Standards for Non-Government Schools in Western Australia. The model of compliance involves each school undertaking one QCE Pillar per year (out of four) and a consolidation year over a four-year cycle. St Mary's will be reviewed on its compliance with the standards and other requirements that align with the Education Pillar in 2026.
As 2025 comes to a close, again I feel it vital to recognise the great people who make up our community. ‘People make places.’ An alignment of practices, behaviours and attitudes is important for mutual respect and valuing dignity and integrity. We celebrate and thank our ‘people’ - Our students, staff and families.
I would like to thank and recognise our dedicated and talented teachers for all that they do, which is a truly remarkable job, and in particular pay extra thanks, praise, and admiration to our wonderful Education Assistants.
For a variety of reasons there have been many challenges in these roles over recent years and they have all been thrust into circumstances that were testing at times. I acknowledge these difficulties and thank them all for their professionalism, and more importantly, care, that they have displayed when working with our students throughout this year.
