LATHAM PRIMARY SCHOOL

Annual School Board Report

2018

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This report supports the work being done in the ACT Education Directorate, as outlined in Strategic Plan 2018-21: A Leading Learning Organisation.

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© Australian Capital Territory, Canberra, 2018

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Contents

Reporting to the community	1

Summary of School Board activity	1

School Context	2

Student Information	3

Student enrolment	3

Student attendance	3

Supporting attendance and managing non-attendance	3

Staff Information	4

Teacher qualifications	4

Workforce composition	4

School Review and Development	4

School Satisfaction	5

Overall Satisfaction	5

Learning and Assessment	7

Performance in Literacy and Numeracy	7

Early years assessment	7

NAPLAN	Error! Bookmark not defined.

Outcomes for College Students	Error! Bookmark not defined.

Post School Destination	Error! Bookmark not defined.

Financial Summary	8

Voluntary Contributions	9

Reserves	9

Endorsement Page	10

Members of the School Board	10

Reporting to the community

School report to communities in range of ways, including through:

Annual School Board Reports

a (5-year) School Improvement Plan (formerly School Strategic Plan)

annual Impact Reports/ Annual Action Plan Reports

newsletters

other sources such as My School.

Summary of School Board activity

During 2018, the Board farewelled a parent and a teacher representative and welcomed new representatives to the Board. New members made a seamless transition which has enabled progress on key activities to continue.

In 2017, the Board commenced planning for a School Building Masterplan with a view to providing a framework for future development and refurbishment of the school building to ensure that the educational needs of the Latham community can be met into the future. Stage 1 of this was completed during the year.

Concurrent to the development of Stage 1 of the School Building Masterplan, the Directorate commenced planning for a well needed upgrade to the school administrative area. This upgrade will provide greater accessibility for all as well as make better use of the space for the provision of administrative services for the school. Throughout this process, the Directorate and school have worked closely together to ensure that the planned upgrade would be consistent with the vision developed in Stage 1 of the School Building Masterplan. We look forward to seeing the upgrade to the school administrative area come to fruition during 2019.

Other building activities included a refresh of the senior LSUA classroom, to ensure that the environment continued to support the learning outcomes of current and future students, and the installation of additional storage in the principal’s office and some classrooms.

Throughout the year, teachers have been working hard in specialist project teams on key learning aspects and school life in general. This has resulted in the promotion of key learning assets that are consistently utilised across all years. Students can describe these learning assets and understand that they provide the foundations skills for learning in all areas. The Cultural Integrity Team have also worked closely with students and the local indigenous community to develop a Latham Primary School Acknowledgement of Country. This is an inspiring piece of work which beautifully reflects the school community. The Latham Primary School Acknowledgement of Country is proudly on display at the entrance to the school.

During the year a number of IT platforms were also trialled to enable parents greater connectivity with their child’s learning. It’s anticipated that this trial will result in a consistent platform being implemented throughout the school in 2019.

In the future, the Board looks forward to continuing work with the Latham community to improve student engagement and educational outcomes in an environment that meets the needs of the Latham community.

School Context

Latham Primary School is situated in the Belconnen area in the west of the city of Canberra. Opened in 1972 it currently has a school population of around 270, in the primary years (kindergarten to year 6) and a further 66 students in our preschool. This community school caters for families living in the suburb of Latham. At Latham Primary School our motto is 'Living to Learn'. We believe that all students and adults have the ability to be lifelong learners. In collaboration with the community, we encourage students to see themselves as global citizens who embrace learning through a quality education, whilst instilling a sense of belonging for all. We aim to provide students with an engaging and relevant curriculum with a strong focus on literacy and numeracy where the learning process is just as important as the content. Learning how to learn and developing personal learning assets in today's rapidly changing society is an essential element of what we offer at Latham. We are committed to the development of the whole individual. The emphasis in our preschool and primary programs is to ensure that the students develop a strong sense of morality, integrity and responsibility towards others which we reinforce through our school values of Respect, Resilience, Collaboration, Positivity and Motivation and the Learning Assets of Thinking, Researching, Collaborating, Communicating and Self-Managing. We believe in fostering a strong personal relationship with our students, our community and our fellow staff members. The extensive curricular and co-curricular program provides students with a balanced development of the intellectual emotional and physical elements of life. This enables our students to reach their potential both as a learner and as a member of the community. At Latham Primary School the Arts is an area of focus recognised through an engaging program where all students have access to dance, drama and music. In addition we have a ukulele band for students in years 5/6 and a vibrant choir that performs at school, district and ACT events. Latham students also have access to a specialist Physical Education program with further enrichment opportunities through a range of representative sports. All students from preschool to year 6 have access to a specialist Japanese program which incorporates elements of language and culture. Students with leadership potential and aspirations can realise these through participation in the Student Leadership Team, House Captains, the 'Green Team' and the 'A Team'. The students' learning environment is supported by a multi-age philosophy which recognises that age alone does not determine a child's current abilities. There are two Learning Support Units (Autism specific) as well as a welcoming library, hall and multipurpose building which houses the Arts and the Japanese room. There is a purpose-built kitchen adjacent to garden beds and a large worm farm. Our students and staff compost and recycle to promote a sustainable school environment. The multipurpose building, known as the Cottage is also a community hub with space for parent gatherings and meetings. Latham Primary School has a well-established community and volunteer program. A variety of enrichment opportunities are offered at Latham. Some are made possible due to our volunteer programmes such as Mecanno; others involve external agencies such as the Instrumental Music Program and the Belconnen Community Services, and some are provided by our own staff such as our fortnightly enrichment afternoons.

Student Information

Student enrolment

In 2018 there were a total of 269 students enrolled at this school.

Table: 2018 Student enrolment

Student type	Number of students
Male	147
Female	122
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander	8
LBOTE*	46

*Language Background Other Than English

Source: Analytics and Evaluation, December 2018

Student attendance

The following table identifies the attendance rate of students by year level during 2018. Student attendance rate is the percentage of school days attended by students in each year level at the school. Student attendance is measured over two school terms; that is from the first day of the school year for students in term 1 to the last day of term 2.

Table: 2018 Attendance rates in percentages*

Year level	Attendance rate
1	91.0
2	93.0
3	90.0
4	92.0
5	90.0
6	89.0

Source: Analytics and Evaluation, December 2018

* Attendance data for 2018 have been derived from a school administration system in the process of implementation. Care should be taken when comparing these data with data from previous years and from other jurisdictions.

Supporting attendance and managing non-attendance

All ACT public schools put into effect the education participation requirements in the Education Act 2004 and the responsibilities of schools in relation to compulsory education. The Education Directorate’s Education Participation (Enrolment and Attendance) Policy describes its position with regard to supporting attendance and managing non-attendance. A suite of procedures supports the implementation of the policy. Please refer to https://www.education.act.gov.au/ for further details.

Staff Information

Teacher qualifications

All teachers at this school meet the professional requirements for teaching in an ACT public school. The ACT Teacher Quality Institute (TQI) specifies two main types of provision for teachers at different stages of their career, these are detailed below.

Full registration is for teachers with experience working in a registered school in Australia or New Zealand who have been assessed as meeting the Proficient level of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.

Provisional registration is for newly qualified teachers or teachers who do not have recent experience teaching in a school in Australia and New Zealand. Many teachers moving to Australia from another country apply for Provisional registration.

Workforce composition

Workforce composition for the year of reporting is highlighted in the following table. The data is taken from the school’s verified August staffing report. For reporting purposes it incorporates all school staff including preschools, staff absent for a period of less than four consecutive weeks and staff replacing staff absent for more than four consecutive weeks. It does not include casuals and staff absent for a period of four consecutive weeks or longer.

The Education Directorate is required to report Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff figures. As of June 2018, 101 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff members were employed across the Directorate.

Table: 2018 Workforce composition numbers

Staff employment category	TOTAL
Teaching Staff: Full Time Equivalent Permanent	16.00
Teaching Staff: Full Time Equivalent Temporary	3.60
Non Teaching Staff: Full Time Equivalent	7.29

Source: This data is from the 2018 August census date and is calculated using the parameters provided by the ABS.

School Review and Development

The ACT Education Directorate’s Strategic Plan 2018-2021 provides the framework and strategic direction for School Improvement Plans (formerly School Strategic Plans). This is supported by the school performance and accountability framework, ‘People, Practice and Performance: School Improvement in Canberra Public Schools, A Framework for Performance and Accountability’. This framework has school improvement at its centre, with the National School Improvement Tool (NSIT) as its core feature, providing support to achieve high standards in student learning, innovation and best practice in ACT public schools.

Prior to 2016 all ACT public schools participated in a four-year cycle of school review and development. In the fourth year schools underwent an external validation process. In 2016 this changed to a five-year cycle with an External School Review at the end.

Our school will be reviewed in 2020. A copy of the most recent validation report can be found on our school website.

School Satisfaction

Schools use a range evidence to gain an understanding of the satisfaction levels of their parents and carers, staff and students. In August/ September of this reporting period ACT schools undertook a survey to gain an understanding of school satisfaction at that time. This information was collected from Staff, parents and students from year 5 and above (with the exception of students in special schools) through an online survey.

Overall Satisfaction

In 2018, 86% of parents and carers, 100% of staff, and 79% of students at this school indicated they were satisfied with the education provided by the school.

Included in the survey were 16 staff, 14 parent, and 12 student items which are described as the national opinion items. These items were approved by the then Standing Council on School Education and Early Childhood (SCSEEC) for use from 2015. The following tables show the percentage of parents and carers, students and staff who agreed with each of the national opinion items at this school.

A total of 30 staff responded to the survey. Please note that not all responders answered every question.

Table: Proportion of staff in agreement with each national opinion item

National opinion item	Proportion of staff
Teachers at this school expect students to do their best.	100
Teachers give useful feedback.	97
Teachers at this school treat students fairly.	97
This school is well maintained.	87
Students feel safe at this school.	90
Students at this school can talk to their teachers about their concerns.	97
Parents at this school can talk to teachers about their concerns.	100
Student behaviour is well managed at this school.	90
Students like being at this school.	97
This school looks for ways to improve.	97
This school takes staff opinions seriously.	90
Teachers at this school motivate students to learn.	100
Students’ learning needs are being met at this school.	93
This school works with parents to support students' learning.	100
Staff get quality feedback on their performance	97
Staff are well supported at this school.	90

Source: 2018 School Satisfaction Surveys, August/September 2018

*Prior to 2018, the item wording and placement was slightly different.

A total of 165 parents responded to the survey. Please note that not all responders answered every question.

Table: Proportion of parents and carers in agreement with each national opinion item

National opinion item	Proportion of parents and carers
Teachers at this school expect my child to do his or her best.	95
Teachers give useful feedback.	83
Teachers at this school treat students fairly.	88
This school is well maintained.	91
My child feels safe at this school.	93
I can talk to my child’s teachers about my concerns.	93
Student behaviour is well managed at this school.	72
My child likes being at this school.	94
This school looks for ways to improve.	89
This school takes parents’ opinions seriously.	81
Teachers at this school motivate my child to learn.	88
My child is making good progress at this school.	85
My child's learning needs are being met at this school.	83
This school works with me to support my child's learning.	82

Source: 2018 School Satisfaction Surveys, August/September 2018

*Prior to 2018, the item wording and placement was slightly different.

A total of 69 students responded to the survey. Please note that not all responders answered every question.

Table: Proportion of students in years 5 and 6 in agreement with each national opinion item

National opinion item	Proportion of students
My teachers expect me to do my best.	99
Teachers give useful feedback.	87
Teachers at my school treat students fairly.	73
My school is well maintained.	94
I feel safe at this school.	86
I can talk to my teachers about my concerns.	86
Student behaviour is well managed at my school.	77
I like being at my school.	80
My school looks for ways to improve.	97
Staff take students’ opinions seriously.	76
My teachers motivate me to learn.	83
My school gives me opportunities to do interesting things.	94

Source: 2018 School Satisfaction Surveys, August/September 2018

*Prior to 2018, the item wording and placement was slightly different.

These results, as well as the continual review of school performance, contributed to the evaluation of our Strategic Plan and the development of Annual Action Plans. The Strategic Plan (or School Improvement Plan) is available on the school website.

Learning and Assessment

Performance in Literacy and Numeracy

Early years assessment

Students in kindergarten undertake an on-entry assessment of their early reading and numeracy skills using the Performance Indicators in Primary Schools (PIPS) program. Student results are reported against five performance bands at the end of semester 1 and 2. Below are the results for this school.

Table: Latham Primary School PIPS 2018 mean raw scores

Agency	Reading start	Reading end	Mathematics start	Mathematics end
School	51	122	40	56
ACT	49	124	39	54

Source: Analytics and Evaluation

Results are not reported when there are fewer than five students with results. This rule is applied for reasons of statistical reliability, as well as to protect the privacy of students in small schools.

The following table shows the mean scores achieved by students at this school compared to the ACT for this reporting period.

Table: Latham Primary School 2018 NAPLAN Mean Scores

Test Domain	Year 3 School	Year 3 ACT	Year 5 School	Year 5 ACT
Reading	400	441	479	518
Writing	375	411	435	460
Spelling	368	410	468	494
Grammar & Punctuation	396	438	482	510
Numeracy	395	416	481	494

Source: Analytics and Evaluation

Financial Summary

The school has provided the Directorate with an end of year financial statement that was approved by the school board. Further details concerning the statement can be obtained by contacting the school. The following summary covers use of funds for operating costs and does not include expenditure in areas such as permanent salaries, buildings and major maintenance.

Table: Financial Summary

INCOME	January-June	July-December	January-December
Self-management funds	175530.75	153933.93	329464.68
Voluntary contributions	6122.00	2086.00	8208.00
Contributions & donations	6018.51	3900.00	9918.51
Subject contributions	1645.00	40.00	1605.00
External income (including community use)	3487.58	8985.93	12473.51
Proceeds from sale of assets	0.00	0.00	0.00
Bank Interest	2415.16	2807.49	5222.65
TOTAL INCOME	195219.00	171673.35	366892.35
EXPENDITURE
Utilities and general overheads	20969.07	48722.95	69692.02
Cleaning	40010.18	42165.77	82175.95
Security	0.00	0.00	0.00
Maintenance	45593.83	34742.46	80336.29
Administration	2535.56	2075.41	4610.97
Staffing	4334.55	36808.50	41143.05
Communication	2884.13	3232.98	6117.11
Assets	3671.74	3382.74	7054.48
General office expenditure	9415.43	18842.68	28258.11
Educational	9316.32	23743.80	33060.12
Subject consumables	2015.00	0.00	2015.00
TOTAL EXPENDITURE	140745.81	213717.29	354463.10
OPERATING RESULT	54473.19	-42043.94	12429.25
Actual Accumulated Funds	92060.82	112100.82	107100.82
Outstanding commitments (minus)	-16.32	0.00	-16.32
BALANCE	146517.69	70056.88	119513.75

Voluntary Contributions

The funds listed were used to support the general operations of the school. The spending of voluntary contributions is in line with the approved budget for 2018.

The funds received for Voluntary Contributions in 2018 were $8,528.00. These funds are spent through our Educational Supplies GL Code.

Reserves

Name and Purpose	Amount	Expected Completion
School Master Plan – For our admin upgrade and main school master plan. This was created to bring our school up to date with more modern architecture and to enable better learning spaces and a more functional admin area.	$19,727.00	2020/2021

Endorsement Page

Members of the School Board

Parent Representative(s):	Justin Kerslake	Sharon Brookes	Robbie Coombs
Teacher Representative(s):	Sharee Harrild	Lynette Johns
Board Chair:	Justin Kerslake
Principal:	Liz Bobos

I approve the report, prepared in accordance with the provision of the ACT Education Act 2004, section 52.

Board Chair Signature:	Justin Kerslake	Date:	24 / 05 / 2019

I certify that to the best of my knowledge and belief the evidence and information reported in this Annual School Board Report represents an accurate record of the Board’s operations during this reporting period.

Principal Signature:	Liz Bobos	Date:	24 / 05 / 2019