Newsletter

Dear Parents and Caregivers

In recent weeks, we have all been conscious of a growing sense of tension in the world around us. Whether through the news, social media, or conversations in our own families and networks, it can be difficult not to feel the weight of uncertainty and, at times, division. One of the quiet challenges we each face is ensuring that this broader tension does not spill over into our own lives, shaping how we relate to one another in our families, our workplaces, and our school community.

For our school community, our Mercy values and our theme for the year, Welcome All with Love and Respect, offer us both an anchor and a direction. They remind us that while we cannot control all that happens in the world, we do control how we respond each day to each person and each situation. This is not about perfection. It is about intention. Catherine McAuley’s wisdom continues to guide us to “Let us take one day only in hand at a time. Resolve to do good today and better tomorrow.” In these words, we find both permission and encouragement: permission to be human in the face of complexity, and encouragement to keep choosing love, respect, and hope, in the small, daily interactions that shape our community and our lives.

We welcome the national fuel plan announced by the Federal Government on Monday and will continue to closely monitor information on fuel supply and any potential implications for our community. We have basic contingency plans developed and are prepared to strengthen these plans if and when there’s a need, in line with the national plan. We are fortunate to be located on major transport routes for all forms of transport, and we continue to encourage students to utilise public transport for their travel to and from school whenever possible. Please be assured that we will continue to monitor this situation and keep our community informed should any changes be necessary.

End of Term

There will be lots of joy on campus today as we finish Term 1 with our Easter Liturgy and the Interhouse Cross Country Carnival. After several years of rained-affected cross country carnivals, I know our competitive runners are keen to represent their Houses, and that our not-so-competitive cross-country runners will be out in force too, making participation and House spirit the main focus. Thank you to Ms Murdoch, Mrs Hiscox, Mr Simmons-Bliss and our Sport and Operations Teams for organising the event and the logistics for the day and to all staff in attendance.

As we reflect on the term that has been, we give thanks for a rich and vibrant beginning to the year. There have been many moments of significance and celebration across our community. From gathering for our Inaugural Mass to celebrate our school’s 165th anniversary and to warmly welcome our newest students, to key events including Open Day, Showcase Day, completing the term’s learning and assessment programs, and sporting highlights, including retaining the CaSSSA Swimming Championship and outstanding participation and results across our summer sport programs. 

These moments represent just a small glimpse of the extensive and enriching programs available to our students, and in looking at the photos below, I am reminded of the many benefits of our holistic learning programs and activities. 

During Holy Week, Christians around the world remember the final days of Jesus’ life - days that reveal the depth of God’s love and the meaning of faith lived through action. At All Hallows’ School, this story was powerfully brought to life in our recent Lenten Liturgy, Love That Rises: Walking the Easter Journey, which invited our community to reflect on Jesus’ respectful and compassionate relationships with those he encountered throughout his ministry.

From Palm Sunday, where Jesus enters Jerusalem in humility, to the Last Supper, where he kneels to wash the feet of his friends, Holy Week shows us a different kind of leadership - one grounded in service, dignity and love. 

Through the liturgy, students and staff witnessed moments from the Gospels where Jesus notices the overlooked, touches the untouchable, welcomes the outsider and responds to need with mercy and respect.

The journey to the cross reminds us that love is not passive. Jesus walks alongside those who are suffering, accepts help from others, and continues to choose compassion even under the weight of pain. The Resurrection then proclaims the heart of the Christian story: love rises, hope endures, and death does not have the final word.

For our community, Holy Week is more than a story we remember—it is a way of life we are invited to live. As the Lenten Liturgy reminded us, we are called to notice those who are burdened, to act with respect, and to carry the love of Christ into our daily interactions. In doing so, we allow the message of Easter to shape who we are and how we walk together as people of faith and hope.

I conclude with a prayer from today's liturgy:

Loving God, 
today we have walked the Easter journey, 
from the weight of the cross to the hope of the empty tomb.
We have seen that love does not stay silent or defeated, it rises. 
It restores, it welcomes, 
and it teaches us to live with respect for every person.
As we prepare for holidays, help us to carry that love into our own lives. 
May we notice those who are burdened and choose respect. 
May we speak words that bring hope where there is despair. 
May we welcome others with open hearts and see the face of Christ in all. 
Guide us to live with courage and faith, 
trusting that Your love is stronger than death 
and that Your light will always rise.
Amen.

Welcome All with Love and Respect

Our Year 8 students gathered for their annual Year 8 Liturgy, a prayerful celebration that brought our community together around the Gospel message of welcome. Grounded in the story of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1–10), students reflected on how Jesus notices those on the margins, calls people by name, and makes room for those who feel unseen.

This liturgy aligned closely with our 2026 school theme, Welcome All with Love and Respect, inviting each student to consider what mercy and hospitality look like in everyday school life - through words that build others up, choices that include, and actions that restore dignity.

A highlight of the liturgy was a simple but powerful act of commitment: each student documented a practical way they could show hospitality to others. Writing on a “place at the table” plate, students named small, achievable actions: inviting someone to join their group, sitting with a peer who is alone, listening patiently, sharing what they have, or choosing respectful language. These commitments were then brought forward and placed on the Table of Mercy, symbolising a community where everyone belongs.

We congratulate our Year 8 cohort for the reverence, leadership and care they showed throughout the celebration. May the intentions they recorded continue to shape our corridors, classrooms and friendships as we strive to welcome all with love and respect.

Exploring Welcome and Belonging during Harmony Week

As part of Harmony Week, students from All Hallows’ School joined peers from several Catholic schools for the Loreto Advocacy Form, generously hosted by Loreto College. The forum provided a powerful space for young people to reflect deeply on the themes of welcome, belonging and justice in our contemporary world.

Central to the afternoon was Huda’s presentation, which invited students to engage with lived experience rather than abstract ideas. Student reflections revealed a clear shift beyond surface‑level notions of “getting along” toward a more thoughtful understanding of listening, resisting assumptions and recognising the complexity of people’s stories. Many students demonstrated growing awareness of the distinctions between refugees, asylum seekers and migrants, and the importance of using language carefully and respectfully.

Encouragingly, students also reflected on privilege not as something to feel guilty about, but as a responsibility to stand with others, uplift voices and support action for justice. The forum affirmed the value of learning alongside others, listening before speaking, and allowing those with lived experience to lead the narrative.

Last Friday, our Year 7 Retreat invited students to step up with courage and kindness as they begin their high school journey. Through prayer, conversation and creative activities, the girls explored what it means to belong - within their House, their Year 7 cohort and the wider All Hallows’ community - recognising that new beginnings are best embraced together.

A highlight of the day was the sharing of “symbols of belonging”, created by students to represent welcome, friendship and the places where they feel known and valued. These symbols reminded us that stepping up is often shown in small, everyday choices: inviting someone in, listening without judgement, and acting with compassion so that all feel they belong.

The retreat concluded with a liturgy in All Hallows’ Chapel, where the community gathered around the theme of Belonging to a Circle of Friends.  As students brought forward House symbols and reflected on the hymn Circle of Mercy, we were reminded that we are all connected to the Mercy tradition and to the Sisterhood—rooted in faith, lifted in hope, and held in God’s loving care. Each Year 7 student was invited to consider what she will bring to the Circle of Mercy, and how she will step up this year to help others feel welcome and safe.