As a parent or carer, you are an important part of our school community. We offer a range of services to support you and your family.
Parents and Citizens’ Association (P&C)
Our Parents and Citizens’ Association (P&C) is made up of parents and carers, teachers and community members. The P&C meets regularly to contribute to decision-making, developing policies and management plans as well as fundraising.
Counselling for families
The school counsellor can assist when families undergo a trauma or big change. Contact us to make an appointment. For information in community languages, see school counselling service.
Outside of the education system, free telephone counselling services are available to support families who may be going through a difficult time.
- Lifeline – 24-hour telephone counselling service. 13 11 14.
- Mensline Australia – 24-hour telephone counselling service for men. 1300 789 978.
- Parent line – an advice and information service. 1300 1300 52.
Interpreting and translations
We will help you communicate with our school. If you’d like an interpreter for a school meeting, let us know and we will arrange one, if available.
If you don’t speak or understand English well and want to contact us, call TIS National on 131 450 and ask for an interpreter in your language. The operator will call the school and get an interpreter to help. This service is free.
For more information, listen in your language.
Visit the department’s translated documents section for important information that’s relevant for your child’s education in many languages.
You will be given a formal opportunity to discuss your child's progress at a parent-teacher meeting. However, if you have any concerns, don't wait for a parent-teacher meeting. Please make an appointment to discuss these concerns as they arise with the relevant teacher.
Oatley West Public School has an active and enthusiastic association of Parents and Citizens (P&C) which represents local citizens, parents and carers of children at our school.
The objectives of the P&C are to promote the interests of the school by bringing parents, citizens, students and teaching staff into close co-operation, to assist in providing facilities and equipment for the school and promote the recreation and welfare of the students at the school.
Our P&C successfully supports and enriches the quality education of our students through a number of activities. These activities are only possible with the continued support of parents and community members. Parents are encouraged to attend meetings and support functions and activities.
Parents as partners in the education process have a right and a responsibility to play an active role in the education of their children. Our P&C enables parents and citizens to meet together to determine the needs and aspirations of the school community.
Our P&C meets on the tuesday of week 2, week 6 and week 10 of each term in the multi purpose room at 6:30pm. Meetings include receipt of correspondence, reports of various activities, a personal report by the principal, updates on relevant educational issues, allocation of funds and general business where matters of interest concerning the school and education are discussed. Reports from sub committees are also presented. Our P&C annual general meeting is held once a year where executive roles are filled for the year ahead. Minutes of each meeting are kept by the secretary and distributed to financial members. A brief overview of each meeting appears in the school newsletter.
P&C fund raising, largely through our community festival, has provided an upgrade to our school facilities including building additions and improvements, new seating and landscaping. The money is also used for school equipment (such as electronic white boards), i-Pads and sport resources. Our P&C have funded an early intervention program for many years to assist students with learning support.
We encourage all our parents and carers to join us at our meetings to hear what is happening at our school, join in the discussion to further improve our school and be involved in its direction. P&C meetings provide a forum for parents to learn about the activities at the school, raise concerns and have input into the decisions affecting their children. Bring along 50 cents to your first meeting to become a financial member from the following general meeting. Being a financial member of our P&C means when a decision is taking place on a relevant issue, your vote will be counted. Financial membership last from one annual general meeting until the next annual general meeting is held.
Being a P&C member doesn't mean you have to attend all meetings. We do meet often, but we try to keep meetings brief yet informative. We understand people are busy. If you can't make a meeting, this is understandable. Simply email an apology to our secretary. You will still receive minutes of meetings and be informed of the latest school and P&C news.
We would love to hear from you with any questions or suggestions, our email address oatleywestpublicschoolpc@outlook.com
In addition to the P&C executive, our P&C also has a group of sub-committees which provide facilities, services and support to the school and our children. Being part of a sub-committee is a great way to be involved with our P&C, meet other Oatley West Public School parents and support our school and children.
The following sub-committees operate as part of our P&C :
Community festival
Grants committee
Hopscotch cafe (canteen)
Music council
School banking
Uniform shop
P&C PSSA & Performing arts policy & application P&C PSSA & PA Policy & App (PDF 241 KB)
Further Background
The P&C is an incorporated body and is an affiliated member of the P&C Federation. Further information about the P&C Federation can be found at www.pandc.org.au. The P&C is governed by its Constitution together with the current by laws. Documents can be downloaded for viewing.