Student Well Being

Welcome to St Andrew's Anglican College - My name is Catherine Green and I am the Deputy Head of Primary. My main role in the Primary School is to ensure our students, parents and staff are being looked after to the very best of our ability so I extend an invitation to all parents to contact me if you or your child has an issue which may be impacting on their learning or overall wellbeing. Of course, in most cases, the classroom teacher would be your first point of contact if you have any concerns but I am here as a further support person to you, the students and staff if required. My office is located in F Block (F3) and my direct phone number is 5471 5543. My email address is This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Within the Primary School at St Andrew's we work extremely hard to create an atmosphere which is safe and supportive for each and every student. We firmly believe that for a child to achieve their very best both in and out of the classroom they must be happy. Whether your child is a new student here at St Andrew's or has been here for a quite a while it is important to notify either the class teacher or myself if your child becomes unhappy at school. We will then do our very best to identify the underlying reasons for this and work to resolve the issues. At these times it is important that home and school work closely together.

For the past five years we have been implementing the 'You Can Do It program' across the Primary School. By developing specific skills in the areas of Organisation, Getting Along, Persistence, Confidence and Resilience we are creating more successful learners and happier students. The benefits of this program are evident everyday. We are visited by the YCDI characters often in the Primary School and we were very excited when Oscar Organisation visited us after Chapel this morning.  Every day the students in the Primary School have an opportunity to earn themselves a YCDI raffle ticket. These tickets then go into a weekly draw which occurs straight after our Chapel service each Friday. The proud winner earns themselves a certificate and small prize. 

You can access all of the Parent Guides from here -

Organisation Parent Guide

Getting Along Parent Guide

Persistence Parent Guide

Confidence Parent Guide

Resilience Parent Guide

The staff in the Primary School are quick to identify the social - emotional needs of the students in their care and these needs are addressed through small group and individual programs. For example the Seasons for Growth program is offered to our students who have experienced loss through separation, divorce or death and social skills groups are organised when needs arise. This year's Seasons for Growth program will be commencing later this term and will be led by trained faciltators.

Occasionally there will be incidents in the playground or in the classroom which involve conflict between students. Sometimes this conflict can be ongoing and may actually be identified as bullying. It is important that there is a clear understanding of what defines bullying and what is not deemed to be bullying. The College has a P-12 Student Care Policy, a summary of which you will find in the Student Diary. For a full version of this important policy please click here.
Also in the Student Diary is a copy of the College Community Agreement. This agreement is signed by both students and parent upon enrolment and then at the commencement of each new school year. It outlines the expectations of a St Andrew's Anglican College student with regards to behaviour, academic effort and participation in College events.

Student Care Policy

At our Primary Staff Meeting a few weeks ago the staff spent an extensive amount of time reviewing the Student Care Policy and discussing the responsibilities the College, staff and students have in this area. An important part of this policy is the identification of behaviour which may be deemed as bullying and the different forms of bullying:

“Bullying is the repeated domination of a less powerful person by a more powerful person and occurs when someone, or a group of people, upset or create a risk to another person’s health and safety, or their property, reputation or social acceptance. This can take the form of physical, mental or emotional domination.

Bullying can take many forms and can be both psychological and physical. It can be DIRECT or INDIRECT. Some of the forms of bullying are:

• Direct physical bullying eg hitting, tripping, pushing or damaging property
• Direct verbal bullying eg name calling, insults or verbal abuse.
• Damage to a person’s property or violation of privacy e.g. cutting clothes, hiding possessions, defacing property.
• Nonverbal put-downs e.g.finger gestures, rolling eyes, staring.
• Indirect bullying  e.g spreading rumours, practical jokes, social exclusion, mimicking
• Cyber-bullying which involves the use of email, text messages or networking sites (Cyber-bullying, or e-bullying, is a reasonably recent type of bullying. It can be particularly harmful because it can happen anywhere and at any time and can be viewed publicly.  Thus young people who are the victims of cyber-bullying have no place where they feel safe.  If the bullying is of a serious and threatening nature then obviously it becomes a legal issue and students and parents should seek advice by reporting the matter to both the College and to the police).”

Parents also have responsibilities which are outlined in the Student Care Policy and also below:

Parents should:

• Watch for signs of distress in their child, such as, unwillingness to attend school, a pattern of headaches or stomach aches, equipment that has gone missing, request for extra pocket money, damaged clothing or bruising.  Early contact is essential at this point.
• Take an active interest in their child’s social life.
• Report to the College’s Bullying Contact person (Sharon Lollback or Lisa Martoo)or any other member of school staff if they know, or think, their child is being bullied
• Keep a written record if the bullying persists:  Who, What, Where and When?
• Advise their child to tell a trusted teacher.
• Tell their child that there is nothing wrong with them.
• Do NOT encourage their child to hit back or respond verbally.
• Ensure they do not model bullying behaviour in interactions they have with the College staff and administration.
• Ensure their personal feelings about another member of the College community do not negatively influence their child’s perception of that person and/or their children

It is imperative that we all work together to ensure our students and your children are safe and happy. Please feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss this matter further .


Catherine Green
DEPUTY HEAD OF PRIMARY