Motto	Together in Faith - Learning for Life
Address	24 Grogan Street, MOSSMAN 4873
Postal Address	PO Box 327 MOSSMAN 4873
Phone Number	(07) 4098 1631
Fax Number	(07) 4098 2267
Email Address	secretary.mossman@cns.catholic.edu.au
Web Site	http://www.staugs.qld.edu.au
Total Enrolments	180
Year Levels Offered	P-6
Student Population	Co-Educational
Principal	Paul Rayner
Parish Priest	Fr Joby Jose
Parish Number	(07) 4098 2001

About our School

St Augustine's Primary School, Mossman, shadowed by the magnificent Mt Demi, is situated 76 kilometres north of Cairns within a rural farming community on the edge of the naturally beautiful Daintree Rainforest and the lush green vegetation of Mossman Gorge. In addition, the popular beaches of the tourist town of Port Douglas are only 16 kilometres to its south.

Mossman Gorge, being home to the Kuku Yalanji Aboriginal Community, is the ancient site of many local Aboriginal legends. Acknowledgement of Country is an important ritual at every school gathering and assembly as is the celebration of NAIDOC Day and the children are well versed on the stories and legends of the area. The invitation to local Indigenous Elders to speak to the St Augustine's community is a welcome event.

St Augustine's prides itself on being a Catholic Learning Community built on the traditions of the Sisters of Mercy who commenced the school in 1934. Over the years the school has grown considerably and older buildings have been refurbished. The original Sisters of Mercy Convent now houses the computer lab and administration facilities. With a school enrolment of approx. 187 students St Augustine's is inspired by its founders and espouses its motto of 'Together in Faith - Learning for Life'.

At St Augustine's Catholic Primary School the staff, students and parents work together to make the school's Mission Statement a lived reality in the lives of its community members. We are committed to celebrating our Catholic faith and Christian values through involvement in school, parish and the wider community.

The McAuley Performing Arts Centre, the Centre Undercover Area, the School Library, Diverse Learning Centre, the STEM Lab and the construction of the new Sport shed and new Junior Undercover Area have greatly enhanced St Augustine's School. These facilities provide our teachers with teaching and learning spaces to use in the delivery of a 21st Century education which promotes digital technology, innovation, exercise and healthy living and creativity. They are indeed 'state of the art' learning facilities.

St Augustine's staff are called to reach out to others by creating a learning environment open to all. Our school aims to foster an enjoyment and passion for learning and we are dedicated to educating the children we are privileged to care for, for a future of Life Long Learning through a holistic approach based on Gospel Values and the Mercy Charism.

Characteristics of Student Body

• 181 students  ( 95 male & 86 female)
• 16.6% Indigenous students
• 48.6% students identify as Catholic
• enrolment trend is generally increasing attendance rates from 2014-2019 with a dip in 2018.
• 74.7%% of students have an attendance rate greater than 90%
• 44.4% attendance for students who identify as either Aboriginal &/or Torres Strait Islander have an attendance rate greater than 90%
• 25.3% students have an attendance rate less than 90%
• Retention rate = 95.5%

School Annual Improvement

1. Catholic Identity

• By the end of 2019, St Augustine's Community will engage with the ECSI surveys and develop our knowledge of the ECSI scales and underpinning theology.

• By the end of 2019, St Augustine's staff will devise strategies that will nurture a Post Critical Belief to assist in developing a Recontextualised Catholic Dialogue School

2. Writing

• By the end of 2020, 88% of students will demonstrate a learning gain of 0.55 in writing conventions and text structure.

3. Data

• By the end of Semester 1 2019 all teachers develop the capacity to use BI tiles: 1. Analytics and 2. Comparison to create differentiated groups for writing/reading/numeracy.

Distinctive Curriculum Offerings

At St Augustine's School, our students are being prepared to meet the demands of a changing world through the promotion of excellence and 'High Expectations' in education. At our fortnightly Friday afternoon assembly, all students are invited to proclaim that which they are about every day at St Augustine's School - the living out of the school motto - Together in Faith, Learning for Life. The motto and mission of the school are not mere words, but a lived reality in the everyday life of our students, staff and parent community.

There exists a commitment by St Augustine's School staff towards the full  implementation of the Australian Curriculum. Teachers have worked tirelessly towards the completion of the planning documents aligned with the Australian Curriculum in all Learning Areas. St Augustine's School has been accredited documents in the curriculum areas of English, Mathematics, Science, Technology, HASS, HPE, Languages and The Arts.

Education of the whole person, through the "Second Steps" Program and the whole school practice of Kichido for social and emotional wellbeing is embedded in the school culture. Students are exposed to cultural pursuits through various extra curriculum performances, Dance and Arts Council workshops. Language and Sport  are provided by a specialist teacher. In addition, swimming lessons are provided by fully accredited AUS swim instructors and the whole school from P - 6 participate in Sports Carnivals (Cross Country/Athletics/Swimming).

As a Catholic Learning Community, the teaching of Religious Education is important as is the celebration of our faith for special occasions. Each year, whole school Masses are held for the Opening and Blessing of the school year, Pentecost, St Augustine's Feast Day and completion of the school year.Whole school liturgies are held to celebrate Ash Wednesday, Easter, ANZAC Day, Mother's Day, NAIDOC Day, Catholic Education Week, Remembrance Day and Father's Day. In addition, a special liturgy is held to celebrate the Year 6 Farewell to Primary School. A spirit of prayer is encouraged in all classrooms and formal prayers are taught in each class. The school and parish work cooperatively to support students who celebrate their sacraments of Reconciliation, First Eucharist and Confirmation. In our Parish, the Sacramental Program is a parish and family responsibility supported by the school. In 2019 school parish masses were held once a term.

Extra Curricular Activities

Social Climate

St Augustine's is an enthusiastic, friendly and committed school community. Together parents and staff aim to provide all students with a well balanced curriculum within a pleasant and safe environment in a culture of 'High Expectations'. We have a part time school counsellor available and an Indigenous Liaison Officer who assist staff in meeting student's social and emotional well being.

Year 6 students have  received special training  and inducted as Kichido leaders.

In addition, a Buddy System is formed with our Year 6 and Prep students and parents frequently comment on this at enrolment time as a positive aspect of the school in assisting our youngest students in getting to know our most senior students and feeling safe and supported by them.

Our After School Hours Care Program and Vacation Care Program are available to families not only from our school community, but from other local school communities. This is a growing service that caters extremely well to the needs of our working families. They have been and continue to be involved in the "Active After Schools" Programme.

Parent Engagement

This is regarded as an essential aspect of St Augustine's School Life. The school has developed its own school website. Please visit it at www.staugs.qld.edu.au. The school newsletter is digitally posted each fortnight on a Friday. Regular updates are posted through both the open and closed school Facebook accounts.

Parents are involved with:

• Whole School Dance Spectacular and Christmas Music Concert
• Guided Reading Groups
• Library helpers; sport team managers, coaches and parent assistants for all school and interschool competitions.
• Parent helpers in the classroom
• Fortnightly Assemblies
• Fortnightly End of Week School Prayers
• Celebrations of Liturgy of the Word
• Invitations to parents to class presentations and sharing of curriculum learning
• Tuckshop is on site with many generous volunteer helpers.
• School Board parent representatives
• Participation in P & F Association
• Undercover Angels who care for our centre undercover area
• Major School Fundraising - Easter Raffle
• School Newsletter
• Formal and Informal Parent Teacher Student Meeting times to discuss each child's learning journey
• Life Long Learning Awards and presentation evening each Semester.
• Family Barbecue and Disco at end of Semester
• Movie Nights
• Variety of surveys to inform school growth

Parent Satisfaction

MYP Corporation conducted a School Results Survey with parents of St Augustine's School (Mossman) commencing 15 July 2019 and concluding 5 August 2019.
St Augustine's School (Mossman) provides educational services to students from 127 families.

Survey responses were received from 65 out of a total of 187 eligible respondents. This equates to a response rate of 34.8%.

St Augustine's School (Mossman) recorded an overall satisfaction score of 77% (3.83 out of 5).

• Fair to good areas include: General, Student Protection, Catholic Ethos, Learning + Teaching, Leadership, Bullying + Behaviour Management, Resources, Improvement Processes.

Data Last Updated Tue 28 Apr 2020