Mel Maria 2025 

Mel Maria Catholic Primary School is presently a four-stream primary school, which is a unique model within Catholic Education Western Australia (CEWA).  Enrolment gaps have meant Mel Maria relies on the co-responsibility afforded us by being a part of CEWA to continue to support the number of staff delivering four streams of each year level at the school.  I was tasked to explore the dual-campus management of Mel Maria. After a 16-month period of discernment I presented my recommendations to the CEWA Executive for consideration. 

Placing the child at the centre and ensuring any change will provide the very best pastoral and educational outcomes for students, CEWA Executive have now approved a structural change to the campuses. Mel Maria will have an Early Childhood Campus and a specialised Year 3 to Year 6 Primary Campus.

The new model sees Mel Maria Catholic Primary School undergo a realignment of classes and year levels. The Pater Noster Campus will be established as the Early Childhood Campus and the St Joseph Pignatelli Campus as the specialised Year 3 to Year 6 Primary Campus from 2025, after minor capital works have been undertaken. For your convenience, transport of students will be provided between the campuses, supervised by school staff, so parents will only have one local drop-off point.

The realignment allows for:

• An enhanced focus on the age-appropriate pastoral and learning needs of children.
• Specialisation in consideration of child developmental stages.
• Greater opportunities for teachers to work collaboratively and specialise in important areas, deepening teacher capability and student achievement.
• More accessible space across both campuses.
• Opportunities for additional programs offered to students across each campus.
• Appropriate allocation of resources at each campus to further enhance learning.
• Enriched relationships and involvement with both parishes.
• Retention of the strong traditions, culture and charisms of the school.

Mel Maria staff are dedicated to delivering Mel Maria’s vision of ‘Excellence in Primary Catholic Education’ and there has been strong support of the new model amongst school staff.  Staff consider the Positive learning environment offered at Mel Maria as the School's top strength, followed by the Caring school community, which echoes parent sentiment.

We look forward to bringing the vision for the future of the school to life with you and assure you that student outcomes together with the wellbeing of the families and students in our care remain our primary focus.

Update: New ECE Playground - Pater Noster Campus

Naturescape Adventure Playground - A  fantastic initiative at the Pater Noster campus has been designed with both fun and developmental growth in mind. Playgrounds that incorporate nature and adventure elements provide numerous benefits for children, some of which improve cognitive development, social skills, risk taking, sensory development and more.

 Coffee Cart Meetings

The school has organized parent coffee cart sessions aimed at disseminating information and addressing queries regarding the transition to the new model in 2025. PowerPoint presentations and recordings are available on the following website.