Student support and staff

There are many times throughout the school week where students will be working with staff other than their class or specialist teacher. Class teachers work strategically to utilise additional staff to help support students - with a wide variety of learning needs - and this is standard, good quality teaching practice which nearly all students will have some familiarity within their day-to-day school life.

In an earlier 2025 edition of Newsmundi, the 2025 Diverse Learning Team were introduced. On behalf of the Student Support Team (who meet each Wednesday morning) we thought we would share another overview of various staff that work to support student learning across the school.

Head of Special Education Services (HOSES): Kaitlyn Goodall

Among a long list of roles and jobs, including lead of the Diverse Learning Team, (DLT) Mrs Goodall oversees the implementation and review of support plans for students with disabilities (Personal Learning Plans/PLPs) and consultation with parents, helps coordinate specialist services for students with disabilities, and prepares our school's NCCD - which in turns helps determine our future years' resourcing. Our HOSES works more closely with students with extensive or substantial disabilities, while our DLT's work with teachers and students with supplementary and quality differentiated levels of support.

Our Diverse Learning Teachers (DLT):

Diverse Learning Teacher P – 2 - Mrs Louise Hobson

Diverse Learning Teacher 1 – 2 - Ms Alecia Staines

Diverse Learning Teacher 3- 4 - Mr Richard Davey

Diverse Learning Teacher 5 – 6 - Mrs Lynne Weston

Our DLT's -

• partner with classroom teachers and the Student Support Team to analyse and diagnose possible barriers to student learning, and help adapt resources, learning environments, and instructional strategies, ensuring that all students can participate and excel. We also co-teach with teachers to help refine teaching practices.
• work with students who may face challenges, whether academic, social, emotional or physical, to develop tailored strategies that promote growth and success. DLT's work with teachers to maintain student learning support plans and share with parents. DLT's also implement small group targeted intervention programs for identified students such as Mini-Lit and MacqLit.
• collaborate with families and external providers to better understand children’s needs and to share tools and resources that support their development at home and school. 
• support student transitions as they enter and exit our school.

The Student Support Team also includes –

- Guidance Officer – Louise Blanch

- Guidance Officer Wellbeing - Shelley Miller (currently on leave)

- Chappy Sam (Sutherland)

- Student Engagement Officer – Oli Wardle

- Speech Language Pathologist – currently Jill Alain (5/6 days per term)

- Deputy Principals (Ms McDonagh and Mr Kross); and Principal (Mr Jennings)

Our Teacher Aide team are vital to the ongoing success with supports developed for all students, and are generally allocated to particular year junctures. Our Teacher Aide team have an extensive range of knowledge and skills for supporting students, and an in depth knowledge of student needs in our school. From time to time we also have training Teacher Aides, and replacement Teacher Aides working with teachers.

Prep + Year 1 - Miss Regan, Miss Kim, Miss Lisa (J), Miss Lisa (H), Miss Amber

Year 2 - Miss Simone

Year 3 - Miss Vicki

Year 4 - Miss Petrina

Year 5 - Miss Kyra

Year 6 - Miss Prue

Our Student Engagement Officer (Oli Wardle) has also been a highly valued support member by both students and teachers, available to help support students to engage positively in a variety of ways throughout their learning or play.

Chappy Sam has been a long-term, also highly valued, part of our support team, providing ongoing wellbeing support for all members of our school community. Sam makes regular contact with students in their learning spaces, and opens the Wellbeing Hub at various lunch breaks for students. Sam also runs specialised wellbeing programs with class teachers such as 'Peaceful classrooms'.

Our Guidance Officer has extensive expertise in providing teachers and parents with more specialised support and advice for individual students, as well as support for referrals for external health professionals and external specialists. Guidance Officers, with parent permission, are able to assist us with diagnostic screeners and assessments of student learning behaviour, some classroom observations of learning and engagement for individual students with referrals, and possible individual student counselling and therapeutic sessions.

Class teachers are always the first point of contact for parents, if you have any concerns or questions about support for your child. Students who are referred to the Student Support Team will have a Personal Learning Plan, developed by class teachers and consulted with parents, already in place. Referrals to the team require parent permission. However, a member of the DLT or Support Team may also be in contact with you at different times throughout the year to help inform parents of supports in place and continue to support positive outcomes for students.

Sarah McDonagh