St Patrick's
Port Kembla
Port Kembla
A Catholic Parish Primary School
Please find below, some frequently asked questions to assist our parents and carers, as well as prospective families. You can also see more about what we offer students and families at St Patrick's.
If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact our school office
Looking for more parent and carer resources to support your child through their Catholic education journey? Visit the CEDoW Parent & Carer Resources site.
Enrolments are accepted all year round, but the best time to enrol your child is at the beginning of the year (Term 1) – the year before your child is due to commence school.
Enrolment interviews are held in May, with formal offers of placement emailed at the end of June.
At St Patrick's Catholic Primary School, Port Kembla, we have much to offer our students and school community.
We work in partnership with parents to provide a quality, Catholic education for our students. We aim to nurture each child’s faith experience while recognising and catering for their individual needs and challenging them to grow, adapt and positively engage in their learning.
At St Patrick's, you and your child can expect:
Please see our What We Offer page or Contact Us for more information.
You are most welcome! Please contact our office to make an appointment to meet with the principal, or book a time for a tour of the school grounds and buildings.
Our school office opening hours are between 8:15am and 3:30pm.
School begins at 8:45am. Supervision begins at 8:15am. Parents are asked not to drop children off before 8:15am as there is no supervision in the playground.
The school day concludes at 2:55pm and parents are expected to collect their children as soon as possible after this time. If parents are running late of an afternoon, please call the office and let staff know to avoid children's anxiety.
Please see our Term Dates and Bell Times page for more information.
There are many co-curricular activities on offer at St Patrick's!
All students are encouraged to participate in co-curricular programs on offer. These programs develop students’ confidence, talents and sense of responsibility.
Opportunities include:
Find out more about the co-curricular activities available for students at our Co-Curricular Opportunities page.
At St Patrick's, we believe that all members of the community have the right to a learning and working environment free from intimidation, humiliation and harm. We all share a responsibility to create a culture of caring which will not tolerate bullying. We believe that bullying must be taken seriously and is not acceptable in any form. In witnessing Christian values we reject ideas, beliefs and behaviours, which marginalise or victimise people.
For more information, please see our Anti-Bullying Policy. Please also refer to the Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong's Student Pastoral Care and Wellbeing Policy.
You can find further anti-bullying, wellbeing and online safety resources on our Online Safety and Anti-Bullying Resources page.
Students are able to catch one of the Premier Illawarra school buses operating to the west in Kemblawarra, Warrawong, Lake Heights and Berkeley; and to the south in Primbee and Windang areas.
The following information for our school bus routes and timetables is provided by Premier:
Please Note: The School Student Transport Scheme (SSTS) gives eligible school students free or subsidised travel between home and school on NSW public transport, including buses and trains. For more information and to apply for a school travel pass for your child, click here.
Yes, we do offer organised on-site 'Out of School Hours Care' (OSHC) services, operated by Aspire OSHC. Services available include before-school care, after-school care and vacation care.
Aspire OSHC is a family-owned service that's dedicated to providing quality care for the future leaders of our communities.
Find more information on our Out of School Hours Care (OSHC) here.
The canteen is outsourced through Fresh Start Canteens, who operate on Thursdays and Fridays.
Volunteer parents and friends run the canteen on a Wednesday.
Money raised from the canteen goes towards school IT equipment, apps and STEM resources.
Read more on our Canteen page.
The St Patrick's school uniform is currently available to purchase at Lowes Warrawong. Uniforms can also be ordered online from Lowes.
For more information on the St Patrick's school uniform, visit our Uniform page.
Please see our Fees Information page for more information.
If you are experiencing financial hardship and are unable to pay fees, please discuss the situation with our principal. Your situation will be treated with care and confidentiality, and an appropriate arrangement may be made for you.
No student will be refused enrolment because of a family’s genuine inability to pay fees.
We'd love to have you! St Patrick's strives to be a connected and welcoming community and we value the engagement of parents and families in the school life in any way they can.
This could be as simple as being interested and informed about school events and activities, supporting and/or participating in community events, school assemblies and school liturgies.
If you are able, parents (and grandparents!) can also actively engage in their child/ren’s learning by:
Please note: Given our commitment to safeguarding children, volunteers will first need to organise a Working With Children Check (WWCC) – information and forms can be found on the CEDoW website.
All parents and families are also invited to become involved with our Parents and Friends (P&F) Association, who work collaboratively to support school and parish initiatives, underpinning the delivery of quality education in the best Catholic tradition. Beyond the obvious benefits associated with engagement in the planning of school social and fundraising events, involvement in the Association helps parents to become better informed about important school initiatives.
For more information, please visit our Parent Engagement page.
Staff members work to ensure engagement of parents and the community in a variety of authentic ways within the school.
While parental involvement in class-based activities varies across learning stages, it is encouraged at all class levels. Parents can be found on a daily basis in classrooms supporting student learning in Reading and Literacy programs and in Craft activities.
Please note: Given our commitment to safeguarding children, volunteers will first need to organise a Working With Children Check (WWCC) – information can be found on the CEDoW website.
If you have a concern or would like to raise any issue regarding your child’s learning and wellbeing, our staff welcome the opportunity to speak with you about your child.
We ask that you contact your child’s classroom teacher in the first instance. The best way to do this is by:
If the matter is urgent please contact the school office on (02) 4275 5500.
If you need to speak to your child’s teacher, we ask that you do this by:
If the matter is urgent please contact the school office on (02) 4275 5500.
The Lighting the Way Together Parent-School Partnership Framework outlines for parents and the school, the principles and expectations of the partnership that is formed when a child is enrolled in a Catholic systemic school in the Diocese of Wollongong such as St Patrick's. It will be introduced and implemented in schools throughout the school year.
Download a copy of the Parent-School Partnership Framework and read more about this important partnership at www.dow.catholic.edu.au/partnershipframework
Parents and carers can access the St Patrick's Compass Parent Portal here and log in using their login details.
For more information on Compass, view our Parent Information document.
For further information or enquiries, please contact the school office.
Interested in enrolling at St Patrick's? We'd love to welcome you to our school!