Principal, Mr Graham Leddie
As many of you may have heard, Pope Francis has been facing health challenges in recent days.
As a faith-filled community, let us keep him in our thoughts and prayers, asking God to grant him strength, comfort, and healing. Pope Francis has been a guiding light for our Church, reminding us of the power of compassion, mercy, and service to others.
In this time of need, let us unite in prayer for his well-being. May God continue to bless Pope Francis and our entire school community.
Lent
Next week, we begin the season of Lent, a sacred time in the Church’s calendar that invites us to reflect, repent, and renew our faith in preparation for Easter.
Lent lasts for 40 days, mirroring the time Jesus spent fasting and praying in the desert before beginning His public ministry. It is a time for us to grow closer to God through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving (acts of charity and kindness).
Shrove Tuesday – A Day of Preparation
The day before Lent begins is known as Shrove Tuesday. Traditionally, this was a day for confession and preparation before the fasting of Lent. It is also commonly called Pancake Tuesday, as people would use up rich ingredients like eggs and butter before the Lenten season of fasting and simplicity. The College will be selling pancakes on Tuesday before school at the Junior School and at lunch at the Senior School and all proceeds will go towards Project Compassion, Caritas.
Ash Wednesday – The Beginning of Lent
Lent officially begins with Ash Wednesday, a solemn day of reflection. During our Ash Wednesday liturgy on Wednesday 5 March 12pm, we will receive ashes by sprinkling them on our heads.
This is an ancient practice and the fact that the ashes are not readily visible to others reminds us that our Lenten observance should be something personal known only to God and ourselves.
It also reminds us of our need for repentance and our journey back to God. The words spoken, “Repent, and believe in the Gospel” or “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return”, call us to reflect on our faith and how we can live it out more fully.
Parents are warmly invited to attend our 12 Noon liturgy or the Ash Wednesday Masses, led by Father Bernie for the local Parish, in our College Chapel at 7am and 6pm.
How We Can Observe Lent in Our School Community
As a Catholic school, we are encouraged to live out the three pillars of Lent:
- Prayer – Taking time to strengthen our relationship with God through personal prayer, attending Mass, and reflecting on Scripture.
- Fasting – Making sacrifices, such as giving up certain foods, technology, or habits, to remind us of Jesus’ sacrifice and help us grow in self-discipline.
- Almsgiving – Helping those in need through acts of kindness, charity, and service to others. This includes being more helpful in our family and community setting.
Throughout Lent, we will have opportunities as a school community to pray together, take part in charitable initiatives, and reflect on how we can grow in faith.
We encourage you to take this time seriously, setting personal goals to make Lent a meaningful and transformative season. Lent isn’t just a time of fasting but a time of taking up things like gratitude, kindness, compassion and forgiveness as we strive to follow the examples of Jesus and Blessed Edmund Rice.
May this Lent be a time of grace and renewal for us all. Let us journey together in faith, keeping our hearts and minds focused on the hope of Easter.
EREA NSW Student Leadership Networking Day
Yesterday, we had the privilege of hosting the EREA NSW Student Leadership Networking Day welcoming students from CBC Lewisham, Edmund Rice College Wollongong, St Dominic’s College Penrith, St Edward’s College Gosford, St Patrick’s College Strathfield & St Pius X College Chatswood.
Beginning with a meaningful Smoking Ceremony led by our Walawaani students and a welcome liturgy in the Chapel led by Ms Sue Walsh and students from all 7 NSW EREA schools.
Students then had the privilege of hearing from Waverley College alumnus, Sir Peter Cosgrove, who shared his insights on leadership.
He emphasised the importance of compassion, care, communication, and honesty, encouraging students to embody the core values of their school in all aspects of life. The questions from the floor were impressive to Sir Peter!
He certainly got the audience thinking deeply about their positive impact on others and the energy leadership requires.
This was followed by some group sessions from mental health workshops with ‘Talk to Me Bro’ (Mental Health provider) and some enlightening sessions from EREA alumni on the importance of lifelong leadership and seeking to make a difference:
Jack Brown – Former Vice Captain Edmund Rice College & ‘Talk to Me Bro’ founder
Michael Bejjani – College Captain 2022 St Patrick’s College
Andrew Mastroianni – Vice Captain 2016 Edmund Rice College
Adam Hegedus & Alexi Piovano – Waverley College 2015 & Educating the Future founders
Lachlan Grant – Waverley College Captain 2023 & Medical Student
Patrick Hoggett – Waverley College Vice-Captain 2021
Tanous Sukkar – Christian Brothers Lewisham 2021 Vice-Captain
A final workshop explored the need to “fill your own well” while supporting others. The day concluded with a powerful exchange of ideas, as each leadership team shared their one big plan for the year ahead.
Year 9 Ballroom Dancing
As part of our PDHPE and student wellbeing program, every Year 9 student took part in the Ballroom Dancing program, led by the esteemed Joan Carmody Dance Academy.
In collaboration with students from St Clare’s College, they attended lessons in preparation for a special evening of dance on Wednesday.
Congratulations to our Year 9 cohort for their outstanding presentation, manners, and enthusiastic participation.
It was truly impressive to witness 400 students listening, observing, and embracing this new challenge with such positivity. A heartfelt thank you to the staff who assisted in supervising this wonderful program from both schools, and to Mr. Patrick Darvill for his excellent coordination of the experience.
House Swimming Carnival
Today, students from Years 7 to 12 took part in our first-ever House Swimming Carnival & Events Day. They competed in a round-robin format, engaging in swimming, tug of war, basketball shooting, dodgeball, and kick tennis.
A big congratulations to Brennan House for taking the top spot with 588 points. It was fantastic to see everyone having a great time under the beautiful sunshine!
NAPLAN Testing 2025
Our school will participate in NAPLAN Online from March 12-24, 2025. Students in Years 5, 7, and 9 will take the national literacy and numeracy tests. Students must bring fully charged laptops and headphones.
No excessive preparation is needed, as NAPLAN is not about keyboard or handwriting skills.
Students are not expected to study, and parents can support by encouraging their child to do their best and to read each question carefully. Teachers will ensure students are familiar with the test format.
Open Days March 2025
Whether you’re interested in our Junior or Senior School, this is your opportunity to experience life at Waverley College first-hand. We encourage all friends, family members, and prospective students to come and see the incredible opportunities available at Waverley.
Junior Campus (44 Henrietta St, Waverley NSW 2024)
- Open Morning: Tue, 11 Mar 2025, 9:45 am – 11:10 am
- Boutique Director Tour: Wed, 26 Mar 2025, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Senior Campus (131 Birrell Street, Waverley NSW 2024)
- Open Morning: Tue, 11 Mar 2025, 11:00 am – 12:45 am
- Boutique Principal Tour: Fri, 28 Mar 2025, 10:00 am – 11:00 am
To secure your spot, simply register via the link provided. We look forward to welcoming you!
Generations Breakfast
After the success of past editions, we are delighted to bring back the Generations Breakfast, taking place in our Senior School Library on Tuesday, 25 March.
This special event celebrates the enduring legacy of Waverley College families—where past students remain an active part of our community through their children, grandchildren, nephews, and other family members. It’s always inspiring to see generations of Waverlians continue their connection with the College, shaping each other’s educational journeys and strengthening our shared history.
We look forward to welcoming you to this wonderful morning of connection and tradition. If you haven’t RSVP’d yet, please do so here.
Old Boys Muster
We are thrilled to host the 2025 Old Boys’ Muster in partnership with the WCOBU on Friday, 21 March, atop the stunning Centenary Building rooftop. This year, we’re making the most of daylight savings and the warm autumn evening to welcome our esteemed alumni back to Waverley.
Join us for a complimentary Brazilian barbecue, refreshing drinks, and an evening of great company as we reconnect, reminisce, and celebrate the stories that have shaped Waverley College for generations.
If you still haven’t RSVP, please do so by clicking here. We look forward to seeing you!
Download the College App
As part of our efforts to streamline internal communications, we encourage all parents, carers, staff and students to download and use the Waverley College app.
The app provides a convenient and secure way to stay informed about college news, events and updates. You can:
- Receive important notifications and reminders
- Access college news and updates
- View upcoming events and calendar
- Connect with teachers, staff and peers
By using the app, you’ll be able to stay connected and up-to-date with college life, wherever you are.
Download the app now from the App Store or Google Play Store.
The 2025 NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge is now open!
The NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge aims to encourage a love of reading for leisure and pleasure in students, and to enable them to experience quality literature. It is not a competition but a challenge to each student to read, to read more and to read more widely.
The Premier’s Reading Challenge (PRC) is open to all NSW students in Kindergarten to Year 10, in government, independent, Catholic and home schools.
Please ask your sons to see Ms Mary Ryan (Literacy Coordinator) located in the Senior School Library to get started or to continue!
The new student experience site is here
- The NSWPRC student site allows you to search for books to read from the PRC reading lists, save them to read later, and add them to your reading log.
- You also have a more engaging PRC profile, which allows you to “level up” as you progress through the challenge!
Waverley College School Vaccination Program
Every year NSW Health works in partnership with Waverley College to offer the vaccines recommended for adolescents by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) in a school-based vaccination program.
In Year 7, children are offered the human papillomavirus (HPV) and diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (dTpa) vaccines and in Year 10 they are offered the meningococcal ACWY vaccine.
Since 2023, Waverley College has experienced a drop in vaccination coverage rates for both Year 7 and Year 10 students. There was a 5% decrease in the number of dTpa vaccinations in Year 7 and a 3% drop in HPV vaccination and Meningococcal ACWY vaccination in Year 7 and Year 10, respectively.
By getting your child vaccinated, it protects them and also protects the broader community from diphtheria and whooping cough, and particularly vulnerable people such as babies who are too young to be vaccinated, by helping to limit the spread of these diseases. The more people who are vaccinated in your community, the less likely the disease will spread.
Your child is likely to have received vaccination against diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis at their last childhood immunisation, around the age of four years. The adolescent dose of the dTpa vaccine is offered as part of the secondary school-based program, and is an additional booster dose to maintain effective immunity into early adulthood.
Vaccination Dates 2025
These are the dates that the NSW Health vaccination team will come to school and vaccinate your child, providing you have given consent.
Year 7: Monday 24 November, 2025
Year 10: Wednesday 11 June, 2025
Providing consent for your child to receive a vaccination at school
This NSW School Vaccination Program portal allows parents/guardians to provide online consent for their child to receive the routine vaccinations.
Please find the step by step guide to complete online consent for your child to receive the vaccinations onsite at Waverley College:
