Mid Holiday Community Update

Online Holy Week Masses and Liturgies
As we privately celebrate the Masses and Liturgies of Holy Week please keep the whole of humanity in your prayers. We are blessed to live in a time when the technologies enable us to access the celebrations at least Online and through TV Channels. Wishing everyone of you a truly Blessed Holy Week. United in Prayer, Fr. Leenus Neetany SAC.
St Patrick’s Cathedral, Melbourne: Sunday Mass Online: 11 am & Weekdays 1 pm: Watch at: https://melbournecatholic.org.au/Mass.
Pope Francis’ daily Mass: Watch at: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope-francis/mass-casa-santa-marta.pagelist.html
Mass for You at Home: Watch at: http://www.mfyah.com/video.html or https://10play.com.au/mass-for-you-at-home.
St. Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney: TV Channel 7 : Good Friday: 3 pm and Easter Sunday: 10.30 am.

Fee Relief for Families Impacted by COVID -19

We wish to reassure any of our families impacted financially by the coronavirus pandemic that we want to assist you in every way possible to continue your child’s enrolment at St Patrick's.

As many in our school community grapple with unprecedented changes to finances, emotional wellbeing and physical health, we have taken a clear position on enrolments.
No parent or guardian who wishes their child to receive a Catholic education at St Patrick's will be denied the opportunity to do so because of financial circumstances.
If you have concerns about your financial situation, please contact Jenny Hawkins directly (principal@spmurrumbeena.catholic.edu.au) so that we can explore confidential financial support arrangements to enable your child’s ongoing education at our school.

To facilitate your planning, we will respond to applications as promptly as possible given our own constraints during this time.
We are absolutely committed to working with our families as we get through these challenging times.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding these arrangements, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Thank you for your continued support of the St Patrick's community.
This support will enable us to continue to provide rich and engaging learning activities, and strong pastoral support for all of our students.

Term 2 commencement

At this stage, Term 2 is still scheduled to start on Tuesday 14 April 2020 with a pupil-free school closure day. The form of the commencement via online and/or onsite learning for some or all students has not been finalised by the Minister for Education as yet. As more specific advice becomes available from the Department of Education and Training, the CECV (Catholic Education Commission Victoria) will update all Catholic schools and I will update you as soon as possible.

Continue to stay safe with your families in the coming week. Please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns. The staff and I look forward to reconnecting with you in Term 2 in one form or another.

Every blessing for the Easter period,

Jenny Hawkins

Principal

Tips for parents and carers on how to keep families safe online during COVID-19 from the 

e-safety commission

We recognise that staying safe online is something many parents and carers are concerned about and that privacy and protecting young people should be a priority.
Given the changing environment, eSafety is focused on providing the most up to date material about maintaining online safety. The e-safety homepage now has a direct link to their latest information relevant to COVID-19. You can also sign up to their newsletter to keep up to date as new resources come online.

SOME GOOD NEWS... At Last "Child care (Before, After and Vacation Care) will be made available for FREE for families during the coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced." Around one million families are set to receive free care during the coronavirus pandemic under a plan from the Morrison Government that will help deliver hip pocket relief and help the before & after school and vacation care sectors make it through to the other side of this crisis. WHAT THAT MEANS FOR OUR FAMILIES From the week beginning 6 April 2020 until the week ending 28 June 2020 (with a potential further 3 months extension), parents will be able to send their children for free to any TeamKids service. This package will help support families during these difficult times. IS IT SAFE TO COME TO TEAMKIDS? Yes! The Prime Minister also clarified that there is "no risk to children going to school or child care" based on clear and consistent advice that the government has received. At TeamKids, the health and safety of the children and our team is our top priority.  We have implemented specific COVID-19 risk minimisation plans for our services and will be strictly enforcing our Illness and Infectious Diseases policy. HOW TO CLAIM YOUR FREE CARE Simply book in as you usually would and you will immediately be eligible. WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR FREE CARE? Quite simply, EVERYONE. As per the guidelines, we will prioritise enrollments for the parents who need it most - parents still working, parents who are struggling to provide safe care for their kids at home, vulnerable children, THEN parents who have already taken their kids out of care and finally parents who hadn't previously had their kids in child care. *Please note: this information is current as of Thursday 2nd April 2020. This information may be updated as more information continues to be provided by the Australian Government and Department of Education. TeamKids are OPEN and approved as an essential service. We are here for families who need care during the Autumn Holiday period.  We will be providing Holiday Programs at a select number of venues for families who need to continue working during this important time and for families needing a much-needed break.

Important dates for Term 2 2020

Important Note due to government recommendations, 14th April is now a school closure day for staff to update Home Learning resources. Term 2 is due to commence on Wednesday 15th April until advised otherwise as per the message above.