I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge that this year has been another challenging year. It got off to a rocky start. We had to make changes quickly to meet the evolving world of online and remote learning. While this was an unconventional start to the year it provided opportunities for collaboration, improved ICT skills and communication and importantly kept our students and community as safe as possible.

Throughout the year the focus of student improvement has always remained. At Pimpala we are committed to supporting students to achieve and improve academically, socially and emotionally. This would not be possible without our community and families. Thank you, as always, we could not have has such a successful year without your ongoing support.

The resilience and responsibility which our students have consistently demonstrated has been exceptional. Their willingness to try new things and challenge themselves to improve is commendable.

I would like to personally thank all of the staff for their dedication to the students and their education this year. Their passion for the education of our students has never wavered and we are all very proud of the growth in our students this year.

We had a very exciting final two weeks of the term with our End of Year Celebration in Week 8 and Graduation and Final Assembly in Week 9.

The End of Year Celebration was absolutely amazing, it was fantastic to see all of the students perform and to have our community together to celebrate the end of the year. I loved the enthusiasm of the students and the audience.

The Graduation was fabulous, our graduates spoken very eloquently and exemplified all of the qualities we would expect of our students. I was incredibly proud to present each of them with their graduation certificates. We had a delicious dinner at St Francis Winery and after the students got an opportunity to let their hair down and have lots of fun dancing, we had some very tired people at the end of the night.

I would like to welcome Elise Nankivell who will be joining Pimpala as our Student Wellbeing Leader. Elise is a very experienced educator with a strong focus and commitment to supporting students and families. She is very excited to meet with you all in 2023.

We are farewelling some of our staff this year.

Emma Shillum will be teaching at Noarlunga Downs Primary School.

Lauren Whitbread will be teaching at Paringa Park Primary School.

Kate Viney will be teaching at Flagstaff Primary School.

Heidi Kudler will be back in 2023 as a Temporary Relief Teacher and we cannot wait to have her back.

Susan Banks (Kaye) will also be returning in 2023 as a Temporary Relief Teacher as she loves us far too much to actually leave us.

Thank you to all of the staff that have positions at other schools next year, it has been wonderful to have you teach our students this year. We wish you all the best for 2023 and beyond.

Richard Kemp will be moving to Ascot Park as their Deputy Principal. We truly appreciate all that Mr Kemp has done for us over many years and in many roles. He will be missed and we wish him all the best in his new role. We know he will do an amazing job.

If you need to get in contact with the school over the holidays email is the quickest way. There will be administration staff onsite from 9 January 2023 if you need to call.

I wish you all a safe and happy holiday break. I am looking forward to summer finally starting and getting to enjoy the sunshine with my family.

I cannot wait to see you all in 2023. It is going to be another great year.

Kind Regards

Belinda Finlay-Smith

Principal