Our policies and reports
Our policies and reports help families understand how our school works. Our annual report and school plan show what we’ve done and how we’re improving each year. Our policies address attendance, absences, behaviour, uniform and how we respond to your concerns.
Annual school report
Each year, we share our progress in the annual school report. It gives families a clear picture of how our school is performing and how we’re supporting every student’s success. The report reflects our commitment to openness, accountability and continuous improvement.
The report includes:
- what we’re doing well and where we’re improving
- student achievement and academic progress
- our school vision and goals
- key highlights and milestones
- challenges we’ve faced and how we’re addressing them.
School excellence plan
Our school excellence plan (SEP) is a working document that shows our priorities in learning, teaching and leading. It explains our focus areas for improvement and how we plan to get there. We write our SEP with help from our school community so it reflects our shared priorities.
School plans and policies
Regular attendance is important to help students get the most out of their learning and open up opportunities for their future.
As a parent or carer, you play a key role in supporting your young person's attendance and are asked to notify the school within 7 days if your young person is absent.
For more information about compulsory school attendance, visit:
Attendance FAQs
Question |
Answer |
| Is regular attendance important? | Yes, attendance matters - all day, every day. Learning is at risk when attendance drops below 90%. |
| What time to I need to arrive at school? | All students are expected to arrive by 8.55am when the warning bell rings to move to Connect. |
| Where do I go when I arrive at school? | Students are expected to enter the school grounds and observe the PBL expectations for passive and active areas. |
| What happens if I am late to school? | Students arriving after 9am need to sign in at the student window at the school office. Please bring a note to explain why you are late. |
| Can I leave school before 3.20pm? | Yes, only if you have arranged for an early leaver’s pass and have a signed note with permission from your parent/carer. |
| Do I come to school if I am not attending an excursion? | Yes, alternate lessons are always organised on excursion days. |
| What if we are planning a family holiday during the school term? | Permission needs to be granted by the principal prior to extended leave. Go to: Documents and forms to download an Application for extended leave - travel form and return it at least two weeks prior to the leave. Visit our Extended Leave Application Procedure on this page to find out more. |
| Should I notify the school if my young person refuses to go to school? | Yes, you should contact the school and seek assistance as a matter of urgency. We have a very supportive wellbeing team who can help you and your young person. |
| What happens if my young person's attendance falls below 90%? | The parent/carer will receive a letter to notify them of the attendance concern. We value your support in working collaboratively with us to improve your young person's attendance at school. |
| How do I let the school know that my young person is absent? |
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| What information do I need to tell the school when my young person is absent? |
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| What are the justified reasons for a student absence? |
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| What if I believe my young person is at school and I receive a message to say they are absent? | Please reply to the SMS to inform us your young person should be present at school. Include the student's name and a brief statement such as Lisa Smith should be present 12/5/23. Please check. From Donna Smith. The office staff will follow this up and contact you with the outcome as soon as reasonably practical. |
| Why am I receiving so many text messages from the school? |
The school monitors attendance in a variety of ways and sends the following messages:
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| What if my young person becomes sick at school? | Your young person should notify their classroom teacher or the supervising teacher on playground duty. The teacher will give them a note to take to the first aid officer for assessment and at times, treatment. If your young person needs to be picked up we will notify you by phone. |
Our school has a school behaviour support and management plan (SBSMP). The SBSMP helps us create a safe, respectful and supportive learning environment for all students. It sets clear expectations for student behaviour. This includes how we respond to bullying and cyberbullying. We work together with our school community to shape the plan and review it each year.
The Department of Education’s Student Attendance in NSW Public Schools Procedure no longer allows schools to approve travel for an exemption unless there are compelling circumstances for the travel. A family holiday during term time unfortunately does not meet this criteria.
If you can provide compelling reasons for travel, permission needs to be granted by the principal prior to the extended leave.
- To apply for a Certificate of Extended Leave, go to: Documents and forms to download an Application for extended leave - travel form.
- Complete the first two pages of the form (pages 3 and 4 are for school use only)
- Outline the compelling reason for travel during term time.
- Attach/provide your itinerary or other supporting evidence of your travel.
- Return the form and any supporting documents to westwalls-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au or hand in the hard copy to the front office.
Note:
- Leave is for more than 5 school days: apply for a Certificate of Extended Leave.
- Leave is for 5 school days or less: provide dates and the reason directly to the school.
- Please submit the application at least two weeks prior to the leave.
- Applications for extended leave must be submitted and approved prior to the start of the holiday. The principal cannot approve applications after the holiday has commenced.
- Extended leave that is not approved will be recorded as unjustified for the period of leave.
In response to the NSW Government and Department of Education’s (DoE) Student Use of Mobile Phones in Schools Policy, our school has developed a procedure to guide the way mobile phones and personal technology are accessed by students during the school day.
The following procedure aims to increase focus in classrooms, remove distractions and to promote positive social interaction, while reducing the potential for negative incidents involving social media and online issues.
Our school uses the department's School Community Charter to ensure all of our communication is collaborative and respectful.
West Wallsend High School encourages interaction from participants on our Facebook page with the understanding that comments on the page show respect for other users.
Have a question about a policy or a report?
If you have a question about a policy or want to know how we respond to concerns, contact us. We're here to help.