Principal’s Message
Welcome to St Andrew’s Catholic Primary School Malabar, a two streamed primary school in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. Our motto, ‘We follow Jesus’, is a strong statement of our belief in Jesus and our commitment to his teachings about kindness, compassion, gentleness and service to others.
St Andrew’s continues the welcoming, accepting and nurturing traditions of our founding religious orders by:
- Giving witness to our faith and the Gospel values
- Recognising and valuing the dignity of each person
- Providing an authentic education that is supportive, challenging and empowering
- Enriching and inspiring active partnerships with our local and global community.
St Andrew’s community is great to be a part of and l hope that through this website, photos and video, you can see what a great school community we have at Malabar. I look forward to meeting you and your child soon.
Mr Phillip Tax
Principal
History
St Andrew’s Catholic Primary School Malabar was opened in 1915 with seventeen pupils, and the school was staffed until 1931 by the Sisters from The Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. The Sisters of the Order decided to cease their involvement in the Long Bay area to focus on financing their Missionary endeavours in New Guinea. They offered their land for sale in 1929. The Gunnedah Sisters of Mercy purchased a large tract and provided training for the school. With the land acquired the parish school and church expansion resumed. The new school was opened in 1932 with 74 students.
Today, St Andrew’s has over 420 students and ‘Our Little School on the Hill’ has greatly expanded.
Values
St Andrew’s values are based on those from one of the founding orders, the Sisters of Mercy and Catherine McAuley. Catherine gives us a model for faith-filled action, centred on prayer and reflection in our busy lives. She is a living example of how our hearts, ‘can always be in the same place centred in God’. At St Andrew’s we try to live out the Mercy values of generosity, compassion and love.
Mission
The four pillars of our mission statement are the following:
We give witness to our faith and Gospel values by;
- Participating in meaningful prayer and liturgical celebrations that enhance personal connections and relationships with God.
- Interacting with others through a Christ centred approach.
- Delivering a curriculum that enhances our Catholic life, doctrine and traditions.
- Embracing and reflecting on symbols that connect us to our faith community.
We recognise and value the dignity of each person by;
- Acknowledging and celebrating every child’s wants and achievements.
- Fostering responsibility, respect and resilience amongst all members of the community.
- Building positive relationships founded on trust that value the uniqueness of all.
- Knowing the needs of our students and celebrating and supporting their special gifts.
We provide authentic education that is supportive, challenging and empowering by;
- Reflective and thoughtful planning and delivery across the curriculum that caters for student needs
- Involving students in their learning decisions and encouraging risk-taking
- Having high expectations for educational excellence.
- Engaging students in a variety of flexible teaching and learning strategies that are meaningful and connect learning to real-life experiences.
We enrich and inspire active partnerships with our local and global community by;
- Working together to achieve the best for each child.
- Fostering relationships between parish and school.
- Collaborating with other schools and organisations.
- Forming connections to promote and encourage good citizenship.
The community of St Andrew’s is caring and supportive. The students and families in the school actively support fundraising and social activities throughout the year to provide assistance to various charities including St Vincent De Paul and Caritas Australia.
Parish: St Andrew’s Church
Parish Priest: Fr John Knight
- Saturday Vigil: 5.00pm
- Sunday: 9.00am
- Tuesday: 9.00am
- Wednesday: 9.00am
- Friday: 9.00am
Reconciliation:
- Saturday: 4.30–5.00pm
Other Services: First Sunday of each month there is an additional Mass in the Reconciliation Church 11 Yarra Rd, La Perouse at 11am arranged by the Aboriginal Catholic Ministry.