Principal’s Blog 002. A Special Thanks and Important School Updates.

Hello, and welcome to the second of my monthly Principal's Blog posts. I will be sharing a new blog post on the first Friday of each month and in this post I will provide a special thanks, an update of the school’s development, community consultation and information about our “Parent Info” video to go live on Friday May 15 during our Live Online Parent Info Session.

Thank you

I would like to acknowledge three donations that have been made to the Richard Gill School in our early stages. The first thank you is to Barbara Robinson and her late husband Gerald, who generously donated $50,000 to the school. This has been of immense importance in establishing the school and ensuring the successful beginnings of this branch of Richard’s legacy.

The second thank you is to Catherine Davies who has donated a Steinway and Sons Baby Grand Piano and its delivery costs to the school, in memory of her late husband Sam and of Richard. It is proudly placed in our foyer and is an excellent instrument that will be enjoyed by our staff and students for many years to come.

The third thank you is to Matthew Goss and the Association of Directors of Music in Independent Schools (ADMIS) who provided a $1,000 donation to the school, in acknowledgment of Richard’s ongoing involvement with the ADMIS Conferences and as a mentor of many teachers involved in the network.

It never ceases to amaze me the far-reaching impact Richard had on all those he met, from all walks of life, in Australia and across the globe. If you would like to make a donation to the school and contribute to the musical and academic future of our students, please email admin@richardgillschool.org.au to speak with me personally.

School Registration Update

The Richard Gill School has recently moved into the second phase of the NESA (NSW Education Standards Authority) registration process and is now working closely with the organisation to put the finishing touches on this formal process to officially be recognised as a school in NSW.

Community Consultation

On Thursday April 9 I personally delivered approximately 230 letters to local residents surrounding the school site at 157 Maitland Street, to provide an opportunity for formal feedback to the school about our proposed development. I’d like to thank the nine residents who responded, some of whom I’ve spoken with directly, others whom I will respond to very soon. My intention is to address each concern as best I can in consultation with the Muswellbrook Shire Council.

School Development

We are close to lodging our official DA application, having received reports from (what seems to be) countless consultants including arborist, acoustic engineers, traffic, building, mechanical, structural, hydraulic, ecology, electrical, contamination, storm water, landscape, fire safety and social planning… have I forgotten any!? In regard to community consultation, I will endeavour to dissect appropriate information from these reports to address the survey responses recently received.

One of the rare upsides of the COVID-19 pandemic is that the State Government is prioritising building applications in an effort to keep the economy moving, which may result in the school’s construction being completed ahead of schedule (currently on track to be completed by December 2020).

Recruitment

We are currently in the process of preparing to advertise two full-time teaching positions to commence later this year, one related to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) and the other our first classroom teacher position. Teachers and friends/family of teachers, stay tuned!

Recruiting an outstanding infants teacher is extremely important for our school and community, as this person needs to be just right. We are looking not only at their musical strengths and teaching experiences, but at their ability to truly engage and connect with our youngest students. I am sure you will agree, this needs to be an incredibly special person indeed.

With two soon to be school-aged children of my own, I consider the recruitment of these critical staff to be of the utmost importance.

Enrolment

Enrolments for 2021 are now being accepted. Our prospectus, enrolment form, parent info (NESA) and fee information can be found here.

Parent Information Session Update

A very exciting “Parent Info” video is currently being produced and will be shared with parents via our Live Online Parent Info Session event, which will be followed by a “Live Question and Answer” session via Zoom. Stay tuned for a separate email relating specifically to this event.

Parents may also wish to access the 2015 Parent Guide to the NSW Primary Syllabuses which I’ve made available on our Documents page of the website.

Final Thoughts

I thought I’d share something heart-warming to finish this post. I have recently stumbled across an incredibly musical and adorable family producing videos on YouTube and Facebook during lockdown. They have about 30 videos on their YouTube channel which all promote a love of music, singing, performing, composing and improvising with their young children; exactly what is at the heart of Richard Gill School! If you have a few spare minutes, check this out!

We pray that you stay safe and stay home. We look forward to spending time with you so come sing and dance with us! #StayHomeSaveLives #SpreadLove #WilsonWor...

Yours in Music,

Chris English - Richard Gill School Principal