Dear Parents and Carers,
As we wrap up 2025, it’s time to reflect on the strong progress across our strategic focus areas that are guiding our school improvement journey at Subiaco Primary School. This year has been shaped by collaboration, innovation and a shared commitment to providing the very best learning environment for every child at our school. The Business Plan is a four-year journey and underpinned by strong change management principles.
As we come towards the end of the second year of the business plan, the School Board and staff are well informed about the progress we are making, however, it’s also important for the wider community to be aware of all we are doing and achieving to continue building our reputation as a school of excellence and innovation. The Annual Report will be released next year with even more detail but here is a snapshot of some key achievements for the year:
Centre for Excellence in the Explicit Teaching of Literacy
Subiaco Primary was selected to participate in the Department of Education Centre for Excellence in the Explicit Teaching of Literacy Program across Semester 2, 2025, and continuing into Semester 1, 2026.
Our Centre for Excellence team is made up of the principal and three highly skilled classroom teachers - Nicole Simons, Jessica Rawson, and Lia Maroni, who were selected for their expertise, leadership capability, and strong instructional practice.
This work has included:
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Deep professional learning for classroom teachers
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Targeted implementation coaching
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Whole-school alignment in structured literacy practices
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Strengthening early literacy foundations and upper-primary instructional rigour
This partnership places Subiaco Primary as a leader in evidence-informed, high-impact literacy instruction, and ensures sustained improvement across the school.
FORM Creative Schools
In 2025, Subiaco Primary deepened its partnership with FORM Creative Schools, with Jennie Richardson (Year 4) and Gemma Hayley (Year 4/5) leading two outstanding creative learning projects. Their participation has brought new approaches to imagination, design thinking, arts integration, and student-led inquiry across their classrooms. This work will continue to influence the broader school as we move into 2026 with two new classes and Creatives.
Public School Review – Term 2, Week 3
In 2025, Subiaco Primary School participated in the Public School Review, which evaluates how effectively schools create and sustain the conditions for student success through:
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Engaging relationships and partnerships
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A positive learning environment
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Effective leadership
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Quality teaching
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Strategic use of resources
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Analysis of student achievement and progress
We are extremely proud to have achieved an outcome of Highly Effective across all domains, resulting in a three-year review return. This is a testament to our staff’s consistent and exceptional commitment.
TheirCare OSHC
Commenced at the start of 2025 and has been an excellent addition to our school community. They are now supporting over 100 students regularly. Planning and approvals are in place for the new Undercover Area enclosure, scheduled to commence during the Dec/Jan 2026–27 holidays, significantly expanding the capacity and comfort of the service.
ICAS Participation
Subiaco Primary recorded its highest ICAS participation ever, with 100 students taking part across multiple subjects. This reflects our community’s strong culture of academic curiosity and challenge.
Junior and Senior Playgrounds
Our long-awaited senior and junior playgrounds have been an absolute highlight this year. Watching our students race toward them with excitement has been pure joy, and it’s clear these new spaces have already become the heart of our playtimes. The laughter, teamwork, and creativity they inspire make every effort worthwhile, and I’m genuinely thrilled to see how much our children love them.
Director General Visit – World Teachers’ Day
On World Teachers’ Day, we were honoured to host the Director General of Education.
Students from Pre-Primary through to Year 6 bravely stood before all staff and spoke about why their teachers were “awesome” at every year level. Their heartfelt and humorous words captured the spirit of our school and deeply moved everyone present.
Subi Blooms
We proudly partnered with the City of Subiaco for Subi Blooms, with our students contributing artwork and floral installations displayed throughout the community. This continues our strong commitment to connecting student creativity with the broader Subiaco community.
Telethon & Community Giving
Our school community enthusiastically supported Telethon again, contributing through student-led initiatives.
We also celebrated a vibrant Book Week Parade and a highly successful Book Sale, promoting literacy and fun across the school.
Year 6 Graduation
Our Year 6 students are preparing to celebrate their primary school journey with:
a formal Graduation Ceremony at the Subiaco Arts Centre and a river cruise, marking the end of their time at Subiaco Primary.
School Board Election
The School Board election was successfully conducted this year, and we look forward to working closely with our newly elected members as we continue to strengthen our strategic direction.
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Farewelling Staff
Next week, we will be farewelling several staff members who will not be with us at Subiaco in 2026. Each of them has contributed greatly to our school, and we wish them all the very best in their next chapter.
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Miss Jessica Johns-Putra has been appointed to a permanent role at Hollywood Primary School.
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Mrs Rachael Robertson has also secured a permanent position nearer to her home.
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Mrs Emma-Louise Harrison has accepted a teaching/deputy role at another school and may return to Subiaco in 12 months.
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Ms Rachael Taylor is moving on to new opportunities as she expands her career.
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Mrs Olivia Copland is preparing for the exciting arrival of her baby in just two weeks’ time!
We thank each of these staff members for their dedication and service, and we send them off with our warmest wishes for the future.
As well as farewelling staff who are moving on to new roles, we also acknowledge several long-standing members of our Subiaco Primary community who are leaving us at the end of this year. Their impact across many years has been extraordinary, and we are deeply grateful for everything they have given to our school.
Long-Serving Staff Farewells
Mrs Leith Elliott (since 2018)
Our wonderful Art teacher, Leith, is finishing up at Subiaco and embarking on a new adventure with her family in Brisbane. Her creativity, passion and ability to inspire students have brought so much colour and imagination to our school. She will be dearly missed.
Ms Sharon Gowans (since 2017)
Our incredible Special Needs Education Assistant, Sharon, is taking Long Service Leave and relocating to Sydney, with the possibility of returning. Sharon has supported countless students with genuine care, attended camps, and contributed wholeheartedly in every role. Her kindness and dedication have made a significant impact on Subiaco Primary.
Retirements
We also farewell four much-loved staff members who are retiring after many years of service.
Mr Brendan Egan (since 2009)
Brendan is retiring after many wonderful years teaching across multiple year levels, and most recently sharing his passion for sport. His good humour, energy and commitment have brought enormous joy to our students. He is looking forward to time with his grandchildren and new adventures outdoors.
Mrs Robyn Heyworth (since 2001)
Robyn is retiring after over two decades at Subiaco, supporting students and staff across a wide range of year levels. Her dedication to managing our reading resources has been invaluable to learning. Robyn is excited for long walks and maybe the occasional beer, with more time to enjoy the next chapter. As a Subi local, we hope to still see her around.
Mrs Michelle Jones (since 2014)
Michelle has been a familiar, caring presence at Subiaco, supporting many year levels through relief work and, most recently, her Wednesdays in Kindy. With her own children past Subi students, she has long been part of our community. Her calm, reliable support will be greatly missed.
Mrs Jodie (Buzz) Busby (since 2013)
Jodie, affectionately known as Mrs Buzz, is retiring after many years of contributing across numerous year levels while raising her family and returning to teaching. Her warmth, enthusiasm and commitment have touched so many students, families and colleagues. She will be missed dearly.
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2026 at Subiaco
Next year, our specialist learning areas (Years 1 – 6) will slightly shift with the introduction of STEM - Design and Technologies and Digital Technologies being taught from Year 1 - 6 by Ms Jennie Richardson. After 22 years in the classroom teaching, Ms Richardson is excited to step into a specialist STEM role next year. Her passion for STEM began a decade ago through an Australian National University program with Questacon and the CSIRO, which inspired her to lead STEM learning in her schools ever since.
Over the past ten years, she has created makerspaces, coached teachers, and supported students to tackle real-world problems through Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics. She values STEM for its ability to help every child succeed and build essential skills like collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking. In 2020, Jennie received the Sangora Foundation Innovative Teacher of the Year Award, which enabled her to learn from leading STEM educators around the world.
Ms Richardson looks forward to developing a program where students feel confident to imagine, design, and explore. Whether coding robots, using iPads, or building simple prototypes, she hopes students will experience the joy of bringing ideas to life and grow as resilient, curious problem solvers.
Visual Arts will return to classroom teachers. This is a shift, and the staff will work together to plan how we teach and report on Art in a manageable, supported way. Music will be taught by the music specialist, Frank Cianfagna throughout Term 1 while Andrew Angel completes his probationary year at St Hilda’s. If Andrew does not return to Subiaco, the position of Music Teacher will be advertised through JobsWA. The remainder of our specialist teachers will continue in their current subject areas.
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Moving Forward
Historically, Subiaco experiences a surge in enrolments when the school office re-opens in January, so although we have completed planning and student class placement based on our current numbers with some room for growth, class lists will continue to be provided to parents just prior to the school year starting, on Friday, 30 January. This ensures we have time to respond to unexpected enrolments and modifying class structures should the need arise. On the Friday afternoon prior to school starting, parents will be sent a list with every student and their new classroom location and teacher from the year level relevant for their, on Compass. Students will return to school on Monday, 2 February, 2026.
We have the Year 6 Graduation events over the next few days, and I am very much looking forward to celebrating and farewelling these wonderful young people. A huge thank you to our Year 6 P&C Graduation committee who have worked hard on creating the Graduation Yearbook and to Chris Shorter for the massive amounts of organisation he has put in for the ceremony in the Subiaco Arts Centre and the three hour river cruise aboard the MV Captain Stirling. Thank you also to our Year 5 parents who have organised a morning tea following the ceremony and thank you to our Year 6 teachers who work very hard with rehearsals and a lot of extra duties to ensure a great end to the year for our Year 6 students.
If you are leaving us at the end of 2025 and you are not a Year 6 leaver - farewell and thank you for your contribution to Subiaco. I wish you and your children every success in the future.
We have an incredibly hard-working staff at Subiaco who I feel privileged to lead. I thank them for all they have done throughout the year in their various roles. From our gardener to our cleaners, front office, education assistants, teachers, chaplain, school psychologist and executive leadership team, they have all given so much to support the growth of our students and one other. All the achievements listed earlier in the newsletter only happen due to the distributed leadership model in place, with teacher leaders, middle leaders and senior leaders collaborating to move the school forward.
They consistently go above and beyond, and I am very thankful to each and every staff member. I am sure you will join me in expressing your appreciation and wising them a restful break.
We have three last special school events commencing this afternoon, and again on Monday and Tuesday afternoons – the fabulous Edu Dance concerts!! I hope to see you there.
Have a wonderful holiday break and an even better Christmas. To those who celebrate, I hope Santa spoils you. May the break be restful, and please stay safe if you are travelling. Thank you for a fantastic year.
Warmly,
Heather McNeil
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