Update from the Chairperson

As Chairperson of the College Association I would like to take this opportunity to update you on a number of things the Association has been involved in and to report to you some feedback from the annual college survey of students, staff and parents.

The Association has been active to support the College in improving the delivery of education to our student group and in particular we have been active in pursuing upgrades to the College facilities. We have seen a new ducting system in the Trades area, the purchase of a new college bus and the newly renovated R Block facility. Plans have also now been approved for the Science area refurbishment in 2019 with $3.5M allocated by the Government.

We have supported the College with the launch of the new Strategic Intent, 2018-2021 plan in early November and hosted the Minister for Education at the College with a walk around for him to see first-hand the standard of our facilities. In addition, the Association is working with the school management team on a plan to access additional funds to improve our College heating/cooling, flooring, ceilings, paintwork and furnishings. Costings are being prepared in the coming months.

School Surveys 2018

The results from the annual college survey are now available and I want to share some observations from that. Overall the results are very positive but there are some areas for improvement. The parent participation in the survey was disappointingly low with only 39 completing it, which is well down on recent years and expectations. We as an Association would like to improve the involvement of, and interaction with, parents.

Positive results (i.e. an average rating of greater than 8 out of 10 parents agreed) from the parent survey include:

• Student behaviour is well managed
• Teachers are motivating and challenging children to learn
• The school is well maintained and organised
• Students like being at school
• My child will complete grade 12
• The school helps my child consider future careers and pathways
• The school works with parents to support their child's learning

On the down side parents indicate that they feel neutral about being part of the school community. This is an area the Association wants to work on and will be looking for opportunities to improve this in 2019.

If you have any suggestions by all means let us know. The 2 years at Hellyer College for our young people are a relatively short but vital part of their development into adulthood. We encourage parents to take an interest in what is happening and support activities that are made available for you.

Please let us know if you want to see the full survey results.

Mark Smith
Chairperson, Hellyer College Association
hellyer.college@education.tas.gov.au