Welcome back to Term 4. I hope everyone had a restful break and has returned refreshed for the term ahead.

In the final week of Term 3, I attended St Patrick’s Primary School, Gordon’s whole-school production of Rock Bottom. What a fantastic evening and a delight to see the joy on the students’ faces. I was particularly impressed by the amount of dialogue and choreography they had mastered, and by the huge audience that turned out to support a small school community. Well done to all the students and staff involved in creating such a terrific celebration.

This week, we officially announced the opening of a new Catholic primary school in Winter Valley, scheduled to welcome its first students in 2028. I had the opportunity to discuss the opening on 3BA with Brett Macdonald this morning. This is an exciting milestone to expand Catholic education in one of Ballarat's fastest-growing communities and the school will become the 56th school within the DOBCEL network. The school’s name will be announced in the coming months and recruitment for the inaugural Foundation Principal, to commence early 2027, is underway. 

As you would be aware, we remain in negotiations with the IEU regarding the next EBA. There are a two important points I want to emphasise:

• Catholic Education Employers’ commitment to pay parity dates back to the 1990s, and that commitment has not changed. We believe our staff deserve these pay increases.
• The significant challenge is that, for the first time in many years, these increases are largely unfunded with no substantial additional support from either State or Federal governments. In view of this, it is disappointing to hear reports of IEU representatives visiting DOBCEL schools and stating that these pay increases are fully funded by State and Federal governments: this is not consistent with the financial reality we are managing. Put simply, it is like your rent or mortgage increasing by 30% over four years while your income increases by only 12%. The funding gap has necessitated close scrutiny of the CEB budget and all school budgets for 2027 and beyond. I am particularly grateful to our principals, admin officers, business managers and CEB staff who are working hard to address this significant financial challenge.

We are also very concerned about the possibility of changes to Victorian legislation that currently protects the level of state recurrent funding provided to non-government schools. The VCEA is strongly advocating for this protection to remain in place, without which our school funding could be reduced by millions. The VCEA now has agreement from the Liberals and Nationals that the current funding formula will be retained, guaranteeing state recurrent funding for non-government schools at no less than 25 per cent of per-student recurrent funding for government schools. 90 per cent of Catholic schools receive less than $5,000 a year in fees, providing an affordable choice for 160,000 school families. The VCEA is calling on the ALP State Government to match the commitment made by the Liberals and Nationals. Please refer to the full VCEA Statement here. 

The term ahead holds some important milestones for a number of our school communities. St Aloysius Primary School, Redan will be celebrating its 150 years of Catholic education and St Patrick's Primary School, Camperdown, will be marking 140 years of Catholic education. We will also be taking time to recognise and celebrate the extraordinary contribution of St Mary’s Primary School, Clarkes Hill to the community over the past 80 years. This term is sadly the last at St Mary’s and we will be honouring the generations of students, families, staff, priests and nuns who have shaped the rich histories of the Clarkes Hill community. 

Thank you for your ongoing commitment to Catholic education and to the students and families we serve. As Bishop Mark Freeman shared with the DOBCEL staff last week, I encourage you to look for opportunities to walk paths of peace together - overcoming ideas of “us” and “them” to advance together towards fullness of life for all. May your Term 4 be marked by hope, joy and purpose. 

With best wishes,
Tom Sexton
Executive Director