Riverwalk News – Week 3 Term 1 2026

Welcome Back to the 2026 School Year

Welcome back to the 2026 school year at Riverwalk Primary School. It has been a really positive start, with students settling quickly into their classrooms and routines. It has been especially lovely to see our new students and Foundation children come through the gates with such confidence. We are already seeing great independence and resilience across the school, and I’d like to extend a very warm welcome to all new families joining our Riverwalk community, with a special welcome to our Foundation students.

I’d also like to welcome the new staff who have joined Riverwalk this year. A reminder that our Meet and Greet with teachers will be held on Thursday at 2:30pm, followed by our annual House Picnic. This is always a great opportunity to connect with staff and other families. Further details have been shared via Compass.

Communication is really important to us at Riverwalk. If you have any questions or concerns about your child, your child’s classroom teacher should be your first point of contact and can be reached via Compass. For urgent matters, please contact the school directly by phone. Our Communication Policy is available on the school website if you’d like further guidance.

School Council Nominations Opening Soon

Our School Council plays an important role in helping guide the direction of Riverwalk Primary School and supporting our students’ learning and wellbeing.  Further information about the nomination process will be shared with families shortly. We encourage interested parents to consider nominating and becoming involved in our school community.

Key Dates:

2026 Term Dates

• Term 1: 27 January (students start 28 January) – 2 April
• Term 2: 20 April – 26 June
• Term 3: 13 July – 18 September
• Term 4: 5 October – 18 December

Pupil Free Days

• Term 1: Tuesday 10 March
• Term 2: Monday 8 June
• Term 3: Thursday 6 August
• Term 4: Monday 2 November
• Term 4: Friday 4 December

SunSmart – Term 1

Term 1 is a SunSmart term. Students are expected to wear their school hat whenever they are outside. Please ensure your child brings their hat to school each day.

The Importance of Being at School

Every day at school counts. Regular attendance helps students build strong learning habits, develop friendships, and feel connected to their school community. Missing school can mean missing important learning experiences that are difficult to catch up on, even when absences seem minor. We encourage all students to attend school every day, arrive on time and be ready to learn.

Thank you for your continued support as we begin another great year at Riverwalk Primary School.

Regards,

Barry Devlin

Principal

Key Dates 

19th February 2026 House Picnic 3:30pm – 5:30pm

19th February 2026 Open Afternoon 2:30pm – 3:15pm

24th February 2026 District Swimming

27th February 2026 Uniform Exchange 8:15am – 9:00am

5th March 2026 Division Swimming

2026 Parent Payment Arrangements

Parent payments can be made online via Compass through course confirmations, or in person at the school office/reception. If you have any questions or need support with payment arrangements, please contact the office and we’ll be happy to help.

Uniform

School hats are now available for purchase at the school office for $20, and reading satchels are available for $17. All other uniform items can be purchased from Noone Rushfords in Werribee.

Student Late Arrivals

Students who arrive at school after 9:00am must present at administration before going to their Learning Group. This ensures that their attendance is marked accordingly and they receive a Welcome Pass to provide to their learning group Teacher when they arrive at class.

Early Pick Ups

If you need to pick your child up early from school, please let us know in advance by calling the office on 9742 9700 or sending us an email at riverwalk.ps@education.vic.gov.au

This helps us ensure your child is ready to leave when you arrive and minimises disruptions to learning.

To support a calm and focused learning environment, we will be avoiding PA announcements for early pick ups.

Please note:

Children cannot be called for early pick up during break times:

o 11:00am – 11:30am

o 1:30pm – 2:15pm

If you need to collect your child during these times, please contact the office ahead of time so they can be ready and waiting.

Parents who arrive during break times without letting us know in advance will need to wait until the break is over before their child can be collected, as we are unable to locate children out in the yard.

Student Absences

In order to meet legislative requirements, we must ensure that our attendance data, which is provided daily to the Department of Education and Training, is up-to-date and accurate. We ask all families for the same day notification of student absences via compass. Instructions on how to report your child as absent on compass have been attached to this post. If unsure or unable to submit via compass please email riverwalkps@education.vic.gov.au or call 9742 9700.

All unexplained absences will automatically receive an SMS notification at 9.45am
daily reminding you to report your child’s absence.

Unexplained Student Absences

All student absences must be logged in Compass. If your child does have absences that are unexplained, they can be seen on your Compass Parent Portal. If you are unsure how to process these on your parent portal, please reach out to administration for assistance.

Annual Privacy Reminder For Our School Community

Our school collects and uses student and parent personal information for standard school functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ privacy policy and the Schools’ privacy collection notice.

Our Photographing, Filming and Recording Students policy, describes how we collect and use photographs, video and recordings of students. The policy also explains when parent consent is required and how it can be provided and withdrawn.

We ask parents to also review the guidance we provide on how we use Google Workspace for Education safely at the school and what parents can do to further protect their child’s information. If after reviewing the guidance, you have any questions or concerns regarding your child using Google Workspace for Education, please contact the school.

For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ privacy policy: information for parents. This information is also available in eleven community languages:

• Amharic
• Arabic
• Chinese
• Dari
• Gujarati
• Mandarin
• Somali
• Sudanese
• Turkish
• Urdu
• Vietnamese

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