2018 Safeguarding Children Conference
03/04/2018
The Safeguarding Children’s Conference on April 28 is an annual event organised by the Professional Standards Office as part of the Cairns Diocese’s ongoing commitment to protecting all children. The Professional Standards Office has staff who are trained to deal with and respond to student protection matters, allegations of staff misconduct and parent complaints. The conference is open to all staff, parishes, volunteers and parents. Its aim has and always will be to ensure children in our ...
Read moreTJHC addresses Canberra Catholics
28/03/2018
In his final public appearance as CEO of the Truth Justice and Healing Council Francis Sullivan called on the Catholic community to support the Church leadership in its efforts to address the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Speaking at a public forum in Canberra on Thursday evening, Mr Sullivan said many of the Royal Commission’s recommendations relate to the future policies and administration of all institutions and it called ...
Read moreProtecting children must be at the centre of Catholic Church’s mission: head of new Catholic Church professional standards body says
21/03/2018
Ms Sheree Limbrick, head of the Catholic Church’s new safeguarding body, has told more than 85 members of the Toowoomba diocese’s clergy, religious and lay leadership that protecting children from danger in Church environments must be at the very centre of the Church’s mission. “If the safety of children and other vulnerable people is not at the very centre of the Catholic Church’s mission both here and in all other places around the world then something ...
Read moreCatholic Education Student Video Competition
15/02/2018
Cairns Catholic Education are currently running a student video competition! We are giving students the opportunity to win themselves and their schools a share in over $2000 worth of prizes. The competition is open to all ages, and to students from all of our schools. Applications have been extended, and will now close on the first day of term two – Tuesday 17th of April. Email sgriffiths1@cns.catholic.edu.au for more information and entry forms.
Read moreYear of Youth 2018
29/01/2018
The Australian Bishops have identified the liturgical year of 2018, beginning on the first Sunday of Advent (3rd December 2017), as a national Year of Youth. The Year of Youth invites the Church into prayerful discernment about the importance and life-giving presence of young people in the local Church and society. It calls for dialogue and active engagement focused on the reconnection and renewal of a new generation of young people in the life of the ...
Read moreQueensland election – political parties responses to priority issues in Catholic education
23/11/2017
The Queensland Catholic Education Commission asked five political parties contesting the Queensland election for their responses to priority issues in Catholic education. These issues are important for Catholic schools to be able to continue to deliver high quality, affordable education in effective contemporary learning environments. The table below summarises the parties’ responses to these key issues. (This table is available on the QCEC website) Issue ALP LNP One Nation KAP Greens Recurrent funding Continued support for the existing basket nexus funding mechanism according ...
Read moreSpirit of Catholic Education Awards 2017
18/07/2017
The Spirit of Catholic Education Awards have been announced for 2017! Congratulations to our Cairns Diocese recipient Ben Smith for his work at Mt St Bernard College in Herberton! Benjamin Smith Mount St Bernard College, Herberton (now at St Andrew’s Catholic College) It takes a brave, courageous teacher to stand up for the vulnerable and set about a plan to make a difference for indigenous students in the field of Mathematics. Yet such a plan has driven the ...
Read moreCommonwealth School Funding Update
21/06/2017
An update from Cairns CES Executive Director Bill Dixon on the new Commonwealth school funding plan and its likely impact on Cairns Catholic schools and Catholic schools nationally. Letter to Catholic Education Community re Funding
Read moreInfluenza Vaccination and Prevention Measures
18/05/2017
Queensland Department of Health has issued a request to disseminate information to schools so that staff and parents/guardians are informed, prepared and proactive as we enter the influenza season. The Department of Health advises: With the influenza season just around the corner it is an opportune time to actively encourage influenza vaccination. This year the vaccine covers two strains of Influenza A and two strains of Influenza B. The inclusion of a second Influenza B strain provides ...
Read moreCairns Catholic schools call for clarity, detail and certainty
09/05/2017Cairns Catholic schools have echoed national and state concerns regarding the lack of clarity in the new Federal Government school funding plan. Catholic Education Services Executive Director Bill Dixon said the sector had not been involved in meaningful consultation with the Commonwealth regarding the plan. “Our bottom line is we want to make sure our schools remain affordable for our families against a background that the local economy is still not as strong as it could be ...
Read moreRoyal Commission Hearings focusing on the Catholic Church
03/02/2017
From Monday 6 February, the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse will begin a three-week hearing focused on the Catholic Church. In particular, the hearings will focus on the current child protection practices within Catholic Church authorities in Australia, factors that contributed to the occurrence of abuse in the past, and past and present responses to reports of abuse. It is expected the Commission will examine what the Church has learned from the evidence ...
Read moreAdvancing Futures – New senior assessment and tertiary entrance systems in Queensland
25/10/2016
Changes to Senior assessment and tertiary entrance will apply from Year 11 in 2019. Read more in the ‘Advancing Futures – New senior assessment and tertiary entrance systems in Queensland’ brochure.
Read moreEB8 New Approaches – Agreed Statement (9 June 2016) & Letter from Durm O’Riordan re EB8 New Approaches (9 June 2016)
14/06/2016Following New Approaches bargaining in the Fair Work Commission between Catholic School Authorities and the Independent Education Union of Australia, in principle agreement has been reached on a number of matters. The parties will now work together to finalise a replacement agreement for the consideration of school staff prior to a final ballot being held. EB 8 – New Approaches EB 8 – Agreed Statement 9 June 2016
Read moreEnterprise Bargaining and Protected Industrial Action Update – May 2016
12/05/2016May 6, 2016: Catholic school employer representatives and IEUA representatives participated in a conference facilitated by the Fair Work Commission under the New Approaches program. The parties have been participating in this program with a view to moving towards resolving the current enterprise bargaining negotiations. As an outcome of this conference, the parties drafted an agreed framework for proceeding with the New Approaches program. To assist the process, all current and prospective protected industrial action will ...
Read moreHow do QLD and NSW Catholic teachers’ pay rates compare?
01/03/2016Contrary to claims by the Independent Education Union that teachers in Queensland Catholic schools are worse off than their counterparts in New South Wales, weekly wages for both are comparable, as the following table shows. Under the awards, to establish an hourly rate the weekly wage is divided by the prescribed normal hours of work – for State School Teachers it is divided by 25 hours and for Catholic School Teachers it is divided by ...
Read moreEnterprise Bargaining and Protected Industrial Action Update – February 2016
18/02/2016Catholic Education Services – Diocese of Cairns remains committed to good faith bargaining and reiterates its position that a 2.5% wage increase for all school staff backdated to May 2015 for School Officers and July 2015 for Teachers is a fair offer in the current economic climate and in the context of market conditions in Queensland. In further detail: The wage increase of 2.5 per cent is fair. The current CPI rate is 1.7 per cent, so this ...
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