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The Goals, Targets and Key Improvement Strategies for the next School Strategic Plan have been formulated as part of a rigorous process. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who assisted with the review process and for their input into the development of the new Strategic Plan. School Council endorsed the plan at their recent meeting. The new School Strategic Plan will be available on our website shortly.
Goal 1 – Empower every student to achieve their full potential and has four Key Improvement Strategies (KIS). These are:
Goal 2 – Improve the engagement and wellbeing of every student and has two Key Improvement Strategies (KIS). These are:
Goal 3 – Excellence in education that enhances pathways from kindergarten to Year 12 across the Footscray Learning Precinct and has three Key Improvement Strategies (KIS). These are:
KIS 1 – Improve teaching of Mathematics throughout the Footscray Learning Precinct.
KIS 2 – Improve student transitions into, through and post school across the Footscray Learning Precinct.
KIS 3 – Enhanced communication and engagement within the Footscray Learning Precinct community.
I warmly invite you to take our annual Term 4 Communication and Engagement Survey. This is a vital opportunity to share your experience and help us build a stronger school community for every student at Footscray High School.
Why is your feedback important?
Last year, more than 150 families took part, and we are aiming to exceed that number in 2025.
Thanks to last year’s family feedback, we have already actioned key improvements, including:
Please take 5-10 minutes to complete the survey by Thursday, 18 December. You will also be able to access the survey on Compass.
Click below to access the survey:
➡️ [Link to survey] ⬅️
We will report back on key themes and areas for development in the new year.
Thank you for your partnership.
Jillian English
Principal
On Friday, our English Language Centre students visited the Footscray Fire Station for an engaging and hands-on learning experience. Students enjoyed a guided tour of the station and had the opportunity to explore the fire trucks, equipment, and even try using the fire hoses.
They also learned important information about fire safety, making the excursion both enjoyable and educational.
It was a fantastic day for our ELC students, and we thank the Footscray Fire Station team for their warm welcome.
Parents and students of years 8-12 in 2026, please remember to enrol for the Instrumental Music Program in 2026 using this form.
While the fee has risen to $500 per year for 2026, an early bird discount brings the fee down to $400 for those who enrol by December 12. Students wishing to continue or join for the first time use the above link, but for those who will be in year 7 in 2026, please use this form.
The Barkly Community Band is in the middle of a very busy performance schedule. They are visiting four Primary schools, one each Friday, starting from November 14, to perform at assemblies. The first one, at Yarraville West PS, was received very enthusiastically by the audience.
Both the Barkly and Pilgrim Community bands are also booked to perform at the Meet the Homegroup Teacher event on December two. Well done to the students who have been working hard under the direction of Mark Gusman (Barkly Community Band) and Nick Costanzo (Pilgrim Community Band) with help from Piri Jakab von Szengelice (voice) and Marc Matthews (brass).
The Barkly Community Band also hosted a half day workshop with musicians from Brunswick Secondary College. The lunchtime concert they put on in the Barkly Music room at lunchtime showed what a big sound can be enjoyed with such a large number and variety of instruments.
Well done to the Footscray High School Year 7 boys for making the Regional Finals at the Geelong Lawn Tennis Club. The team competed with determination, grit, and outstanding sportsmanship throughout the day. The team consisted of The two Finn’s, Aiden, William & Harrison. Although they narrowly missed making the final, they represented our school with pride.
That wraps up tennis at FHS for 2025 — an incredible year with our teams winning 5 out of 8 possible division finals. It’s been a real privilege to guide all the teams this season.
I’ll be away next year, but I wish everyone an amazing year of tennis ahead.
– Robbie Spencer
The Intermediate Boys Hockey team played two games on the day. They won the first match against Strathmore comfortably and put up an excellent fight against MSA, becoming the only team to score against them. They went down valiantly, 5–3. Throughout both games, all players demonstrated the school pillars of collaboration and endeavour through their sportsmanship and determination to perform at their best.
Well done to the boys in the lead up who attended multiple training and after school sessions. Best of luck to the boys stepping up into the senior team next year.
You Are Cordially Invited to the Junior Art / Tech Showcase
Footscray High School – Barkly Campus
Join us for an exciting exhibition showcasing the creativity and talent of our students!
Opening Evening
Date: Tuesday, 2nd December
Time: 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Location: Drama Room (BHDRAMA), Heritage Building, Barkly Campus
The exhibition will continue to be open after school on 3rd – 4th December from 3:30 PM – 7:00 PM
Featured Works Include:
Year 7 & 8 Art, Year 9 Art: Painting and Drawing, Year 9 Visual Communication and Design, Year 9 Photography, Year 9 Media,
Year 7 & 8 Design Technology and Digital Technology classes, Year 9 Foods of the World, Year 9 Systems Engineering, Year 9 Wood Technology, Year 9 Game Making
We look forward to celebrating the creative achievements of our students with you!
Students recently travelled to Altona Beach to participate in a Life Saving Victoria’s education program as a part of their Health/PE curriculum. Students participated in engaging and practical exercises that could turn them into “everyday lifesavers” when in and around local waterways.
Making use of common items such as boogie boards and pool noodles, students were able to overcome a number of scenarios that grappled with aquatic hazards and life saving scenarios.
When students were not practising their life saving skills, they were having fun on the sand playing a myriad of beach games such as cricket, frisbee and volleyball, or enjoying the sunshine, digging a hole or collecting seashells.
Students spent their first day at VU, where they took part in a range of activities designed to set them up for success in their final year of school. The day included:
It was a fantastic start to the program and a great introduction to what students can expect in Year 12.
Formal Year 12 classes began on Monday 17 November and will run until Friday 28 November, giving students a valuable head start on their Year 12 studies.
A couple of our junior language classes have been selected in a pilot program to connect with Jonan Gakuen School students (Osaka, Japan) for a 20 minute language exchange over 4 weeks. In a cutting edge Program, students can see each other in real-time and can email messages using a phrase palette. Thank you to CEO, Frank Noda, Palaygo, Language Discovery Group for providing this unique opportunity.
Our Year 7s have been hard at work in the kitchen, crafting their very own onigiri—a delicious and iconic Japanese lunch staple—as part of their Food unit.
A huge congratulations to Alex, winner of Most Traditional Onigiri, and to Casia, who wowed everyone with the Most Creative Onigiri. Oishii! Their creations didn’t just look amazing, they tasted incredible too!
Well done to all our budding chefs for bringing this unit to life and experimenting boldly with salty and sour flavours!
After some delay, our quilt is finally finished. In 2024, dozens of staff and students sewed a cat for our quilt project. Fabric, patterns and a sewing machine were set up in the Kinnear library and all were invited to contribute (including sewing lessons if needed). The resulting 56 cats were then pieced into a quilt, complete with tins of catfood on the reverse. This will now be sent to the Very Snuggly Quilt Auxiliary who distribute quilts to each child at the Royal Children’s Hospital.
2026 will see a new quilt project on offer in Kinnear Library. No sewing experience is necessary, just a creative spirit and a spare few minutes.
Can you find the white cat on our quilt?
The 2026 Kinnear Senior Booklist is currently available online from the JP Books website: jpbooks.com.au
This is one combined booklist for all 2026 Year 10, 11 & 12 students and contains all the required resources listed for each subject.
Please read through the ordering instructions on the right of the page before placing orders and be sure to select your preferred collection or delivery option. Note that orders placed before December 15th 2025 will receive free home delivery (the $2.50 processing fee remains).
Junior booklists for Barkly and Pilgrim students will become available on Monday 1st Dec.
On Tuesday, the 19th of November, 7C and 7I had the opportunity to visit The National Gallery of Victoria and learn about the different Art Movements through viewing significant artworks from both the Australian and European collections.
Students presented to their classmates and were able to discuss and analyse and be inspired.
This was a great opportunity for them to be introduced to Melbourne’s most significant Art gallery and they will bring this knowledge back to school to use as inspiration for their future artworks to create.
Year 9 Art students from Barkly campus had the privilege of visiting the prestigious Archibald Prize portrait exhibition at Geelong Art gallery.
Students viewed portraits in a variety of different styles and materials by Australia’s most accomplished portrait painters and were able to learn about and analyse the varied artworks of significant Australians.
Students were also able to enjoy a lovely day out in regional Geelong and came away inspired and excited for the artworks they will create in response to this exhibition.
This year we introduced a new topic, Medieval Europe. Students cemented their learning with a newspaper assignment that allowed them to explore the content and historical skills in an engaging manner. They wrote advertisements, opinion pieces, articles and witches’ predictions and formatted it using digital design software into a newspaper that was hot off the presses and ready for the Medieval village. Students responded positively to the assignment, displaying high levels of engagement and enjoyment.
There were so many fantastic submissions, with clever features. Here are just three examples: Cael, Tahmid and Oscar from 8H. All demonstrated in-depth knowledge, engaged with all required historical concepts and presented their ideas in a creative manner.
– Josh Morris-Drohan and Kathryn Ross, Year 8 Humanities team
Join Body Safety Australia for an interactive sessions strategies to support young people in the digital space, addressing consent and respectful relationships.
The session will provide timely information for parents and carers in
preparation for the National social media delay, set to roll out in December.
This free webinar will cover:
This session is suitable for parents, carers and grandparents of teenagers.
Registrations essential – book your free spot here.
Kind regards
FHS Wellbeing & Inclusion Team
FHS got into the spirit of Halloween, with students and staff across all our Campuses dressing up as their favourite characters. They then all got their chance to show off their work in the Halloween Parades.