Centenary celebrations, productive conversations and an inclusive education

I expect many of you will have been following the recent decision of the state government to remove the payroll tax exemption for independent schools in Victoria. This additional tax burden which will commence in July 2024, has emerged without any prior consultation or notice, placing a significant financial burden on independent schools including Carey.

As further details are revealed from the Government, we will carefully assess the implications of this tax as we prepare our budgets for the 2024 academic year. We remain steadfast in our commitment to provide a quality education, whilst being mindful of the impact of any potential fee increases on the school community. I will keep families informed as we learn more about this emerging situation for our school and the sector more broadly.

Centenary celebrations

The centenary celebrations have continued this term with the wonderful Musicals Through the Years concert. What a showcase of past and present Carey talent. Staged at the incredible Forum Theatre, over 120 past and present students performed a range of numbers from Carey’s 39 years of Senior School musicals. There was a very positive and excited vibe in the crowd celebrating musical theatre and catching up with old friends. I commend the many staff, alumni and students who worked so hard to make this a stunning success. I thank too, the Community Engagement team along with our performing arts and music staff for their enormous hard work invested to bring this event to life.

I look forward to seeing many of you at the upcoming events, Centenary Celebration Service, Whole School Gala Ball, Centenary Music Concert and Centenary Sports Dinner.

Looking forward

I am in the process of attending each of the Parent Association meetings to discuss and answer questions on the School’s Strategic Direction. I have been delighted to have the opportunity to continue the co-creating of the school direction with each of these groups whose endorsement of vision and projects has been very affirming. I look forward to continuing these dialogues with our parent community in the months and years ahead as we evolve the Carey experience to meet the needs of our students now and into the future.

Many of our Year 10 students have just returned from the first 20-day Zero programs in Queensland. The feedback from our students and staff on these programs has been extremely positive and we are drawing strongly on this to continue to refine the experience for others in years to come.

More information about Zero will be provided to Year 10 2024 parents on 13 July at the information evening.

Equal Opportunity Act exemption

This week, all parents and guardians will have received an email from the School in regards to our exemption from the Equal Opportunity Act 2010. This exemption has been granted to Carey for the past 20 years and allows us to ensure we can maintain an even gender balance across the whole school, enabling us to provide an inclusive environment for all students.

VCAT requires Carey, along with a number of other co-educational schools in Victoria, to reapply for this exemption every five years. We are pleased to see the positive feedback to the notice we have already received from across the community, including alumni, current parents and guardians and future parents and guardians.

We know that co-education is a significant factor in why many parents choose to send their children to Carey, and we strongly believe that it is an essential part of developing the whole child.

If you'd like to learn more about the benefits of co-education, this article on our website will outline the reasons the exemption from the Act is so important. You can read more about the exemption here, and if you have any queries, please contact Julianne Brandon, Director of Community Engagement.

Jonathan Walter
Principal