Catholic Education, Diocese of Cairns
Queensland, Australia
Motto | I have come so that you may have life and have it to the full - John 10:10 |
![]() |
Address | 18 Balaclava Road, EARLVILLE QLD 4870 | |
Postal Address | 18 Balaclava Road, EARLVILLE QLD 4870 | |
Phone Number | (07) 4054 2566 | |
Fax Number | (07) 4054 2426 | |
Email Address | secretary.earlville@cns.catholic.edu.au | |
Web Site | http://www.olhoc.qld.edu.au | |
Total Enrolments | 554 | ![]() |
Year Levels Offered | P-6 | |
Student Population | Co-Educational | |
Principal | Verity Beames | |
Parish Priest | Fr Martin Kenny | |
Parish Number | (07) 4054 1171 |
About our School For over 50 years Our Lady Help of Christians has served the Cairns community by providing quality Catholic education in the Mercy tradition to the sons and daughters of those families seeking a Catholic education. OLHOC is first and foremost committed to providing a quality education for all students. The school is a distinctive Catholic community that provides a quality learning environment and challenges all members to make a difference. At its core OLHOC has the values of Respect, Justice, Community, Empathy and Forgiveness. Students of OLHOC strive to embody these values in both word and action. OLHOC seeks to provide a safe and supportive learning environment for all. With a current enrolment of 554 students OLHOC offers a very well-resourced educational program to all students. Extra curricula programs support the development of student's gifts and talents across a variety of pursuits including academic, sporting and cultural areas. OLHOC has a long history of valuing success and this is evident across many fields of endeavour. Our Lady Help of Christians is a school committed to ensuring that all students receive a high quality education in order to reach their potential and make a difference. Learning is supported by committed and well-resourced staff who have a desire to see all students grow in their learning. By using research based practices together with high levels of technology, student learning outcomes are maximised for all students.
Characteristics of Student Body
"Vision to excite and empower learners to enjoy, shape and enrich our changing world, inspired by the Gospel of Jesus Christ..." At OLHOC we believe that the essential focus of our school is the overall development of each child according to the needs and potential of the individual. As such, we strive to provide a curriculum that will enable the child to grow in the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values necessary to become a spiritual, well integrated, secure, self-disciplined person, confident and able to contribute to the betterment of themselves, society and the environment in which we live. The learning and teaching community at OLHOC seeks to inspire high expectations for learning that maximises engagement, progress and achievement for each student. We are committed to cultivating a culture of learning. We set high standards and expectations for all students, where teachers and staff believe that all students can learn and excel. Curriculum, instruction and assessment are aligned with standards and essential academic learning requirements. Staff frequently monitor learning and teaching to apply differentiation strategies for students who are exceptional learners; this includes enrichment opportunities and those students who require further development. Our Lady Help of Christians offers a supportive learning environment. Students feel respected and connected with staff, allowing them to engage in learning. We encourage family and community involvement and recognise its value in supporting the progress of each learner. Our Lady Help of Christians School is comprised of students 52% male and 48% female students from a range of cultural backgrounds. The attending students come from many parts of the Cairns area, but largely from within the school's geographical context and Cairns' southern corridor.
Learning and Teaching is the core activity of our school. Quality learning and teaching at OLHOC aims:
School Annual Improvement
Improving Student Achievement and growth in reading Strategies Enhancing Catholic Identity In 2018 we will enhance the Catholic identity of the OLHOC school community. Strategies
Distinctive Curriculum Offerings Distinctive Curriculum Offerings include:
Extra Curricular Activities Student Leadership opportunities that include:
Social Climate Our Lady Help of Christians draws upon its Mercy charism to make explicit its Catholic Identity. The school community regularly and frequently seeks to celebrate its faith through prayer and liturgy. It seeks to celebrate significant community events, including Mothers' and Fathers' Day, ANZAC Day, NAIDOC and Grandparents Day, within an explicit Catholic context. The school explicitly displays, and is driven by the Gospel values of Respect, Empathy, Justice, Forgiveness and Community. The school also actively promotes action for social justice particularly supporting a number of Catholic Agencies. This action often combines education, prayer, and fundraising. Our Lady Help of Christians School has a very caring and welcoming atmosphere. Visitors to the school regularly comment on the polite, helpful manner in which they are treated and spoken to by the students. A full time school counsellor is available to work with students who require some additional support to manage concerns and difficulties they have in their lives. The school's staff are proactive in responding to issues which come to light, involving the school's leadership team as required. Students are supported to initially develop the skills to manage general friendship issues themselves in an appropriate manner, and to pass on information to staff when issues become too difficult to manage or they feel they need extra support. OLHOC continue to participate in the National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence providing students with a voice to share their learnings around the role of an upstander and responsible digital citizenship skills. The school encourages parents to be involved in the education of their children, including the social development of their children. Our Lady Help of Christians School works collaboratively with an Out of School Hours Care facility for students after school until 6pm. The Out of School Hours Care facility also offers a vacation care service and a morning care facility.
Parent Engagement
Parent Satisfaction Parents indicate that they choose to send their children to OLHOC because of the school location, reputation and the quality of the staff. Academic Excellence and Catholic Ethos are also valued highly. Parents believe that the school is a welcoming and caring community where everyone is treated with respect. OLHOC provides high quality services to parents and students and treats students from all backgrounds with respect.
Data Last Updated Mon 24 Jun 2019
Qualification Highest level of attainment | Doctoral / Post-doctoral | Masters | Bachelor degree | Diploma | Certificate |
Number of staff with this qualification | 0 | 3 | 26 | 2 | 2 |
Workforce composition |
Headcount | FTE (Full-time equivalent) |
Teaching Staff | 37 | 34 |
Non-Teaching Staff | 25 | 17.63 |
Indigenous | 1 | 1 |
Total funds expended on teacher professional development$32700
Teaching Staff Involved in Professional Development100%
Major Professional Development Initiatives
Average staff attendance rate for the school year, based on unplanned absences of sick and emergency leave for periods up to 5 days97%
Percentage of teaching staff retained from the previous school year82.00%
Staff Satisfaction The staff believe that OLHOC encourages students to develop a love of learning within a welcoming, professional environment. Staff acknowledge they are provided with the Professional Development to do their job well and appreciate being part of a great team who work towards clearly stated common goals. They recognise teams work productively to deliver quality education outcomes for students.
Data Last Updated Wed May 22 2019
Prep | YR 1 | YR 2 | YR 3 | YR 4 | YR 5 | YR 6 |
95.34% | 94.36% | 94.6% | 94.05% | 93.2% | 94.72% | 95.05% |
If a student is absent, parents are required to contact the school by 9am. Notification can be made via the following ways:
Daily absences that are unexplained are monitored by the school and contact via Blink messages are sent to any families in the first instance and then followed up with a phone call as appropriate. Blink messages are sent after 9am.
Absence records are maintained on the school database. Absence collation is reported to parents on the semesterly School Reports and identified with Families at Semesterly Parent/Teacher interviews. Ongoing absences either for extended periods and/or unexplained are followed up by the Senior Leadership Team.
Catholic Education Services conducted a School Results Survey with students of Our Lady Help of Christians School (Earlville) in 2018.
Our Lady Help of Christians School provides educational services to students from 388 families.
Survey responses were received from 150 out of a total of 163 eligible respondents.
Our Lady Help of Christians School recorded an overall satisfaction score of 80% (4.02 out of 5)
Data Last Updated Tue Nov 19 2019
Reading | Average Score for the school | 448.1 |
Average Score for Queensland | 437.8 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 97.4% | |
Writing | Average Score for the school | 456.1 |
Average Score for Queensland | 410.5 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 98.7% | |
Spelling | Average Score for the school | 468.9 |
Average Score for Queensland | 432.9 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 100% | |
Grammar and Punctuation | Average Score for the school | 422.3 |
Average Score for Queensland | 406 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 100% | |
Numeracy | Average Score for the school | 440.6 |
Average Score for Queensland | 413.1 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 98.7% |
Data Last Updated Thu May 30 2019
Reading | Average Score for the school | 538.5 |
Average Score for Queensland | 517.1 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 100% | |
Writing | Average Score for the school | 496.7 |
Average Score for Queensland | 469.4 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 97.5% | |
Spelling | Average Score for the school | 539.6 |
Average Score for Queensland | 511.1 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 97.5% | |
Grammar and Punctuation | Average Score for the school | 523.7 |
Average Score for Queensland | 497.9 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 100% | |
Numeracy | Average Score for the school | 520.6 |
Average Score for Queensland | 501.2 | |
% students at or above the national benchmark | 98.8% |
Data Last Updated Thu May 30 2019
Australian Government recurrent funding$916,162
State/Territory Government recurrent funding$110,244
Fees, charges and parent contributions$58,060
Other private sources$27,230
Total gross income (excluding income from government capital grants)$1,111,696
Income allocated to current capital projects$6,052
Income allocated to future capital projects and diocesan capital funds$0
Income allocated to debt servicing (including principal repayments and interest on loans)$4,618
Subtotal$4,717
Total net recurrent income$4,717
Catholic schools in the Diocese of Cairns meet their annual reporting requirements under the Education (General Provisions) Act 2006 (the Act) Section 423 (1) by updating their information on this section of the Cairns Catholic Education website. Information contained in each section of the report relates to the previous calendar year. The required information is published by 30 June each year, excepting post-school destinations data for Year 12 completers which is published by 30 September.