From the Chair

Whether it’s the new normal or possibly the great unknown, we stand together ready to embrace another year of educating young women and connecting our community.

The St Margaret’s community continues to grow. We started 2022 with just under 900 students in the secondary school and just over 400 students in the primary school. I extend a very warm welcome to all our families and, in particular, our new families beginning their St Margaret’s journey. The association with St Margaret’s and the friends you and they will make can truly shape your life now and beyond the school gates. When I think of the St Margaret’s community, the one word that consistently comes to mind is goodwill. There are many good reasons the school has come through the past two years so well; one key reason I believe is the amount of goodwill our community members have for and show towards one another. Whether it’s between staff, between students, staff and parents, staff and students, the school and the community, this positive goodwill is one of the cornerstones from which our good work is done. The challenges during the pandemic, while at times trying, have also seen us flourish. All of us on a personal level and as a community have had to dig deep – and I think we should all be very proud of how those challenges have been, and will continue to be, met. For example, when the Queensland Premier announced changes to the start of the school term this year, St Margaret’s leadership team was quick to galvanise. They strategised as to how to continue to deliver our educational program to the same high standard and to keep our community as safe as possible. As a result, we started the term as scheduled and were excited to finally welcome everyone on campus in Week 3. Plans such as these rely on the goodwill of all in our community. Decisions are made ‘on balance’; that is, they may not suit everyone, but as a community, we endeavour always to be and do our best under the prevailing circumstances, which are sometimes not even within the school’s control. Sadly, we have perhaps, in recent history, never seen our communities, cities, states and country more divided, but the St Margaret’s community – through whatever it has taken (be that hard work, mental and physical gymnastics, perseverance and resilience) – has not just survived, it has thrived, and I believe that goodwill has been a key feature in all of this. And we will thrive into the future as we have in the past. At the end of the school year, we were thrilled to learn of the strong results of our graduating cohort. They are presented elsewhere in the Flyer, but I would like to congratulate the class of 2021, their teachers and their parents on these achievements. Over the past year, the school has been exploring an updated Master Plan. It’s an exciting time – St Margaret’s is in a strong position and it’s very gratifying to be planning its best next steps by considering how an optimal Master Plan can ensure our students flourish – which is, after all, our raison d’etre.

Over the holidays, the school has been very busy building and updating new facilities, including two new classrooms on Circular Drive, a new science lab, new bathroom facilities, a learning support centre and more. Presently, the master planning committee is working in a number of streams, looking into the future of education and how students will learn. We are considering all facets, such as education, extra-curricular, traffic, environment, boarding, all, of course, underpinned by the ethos of the Sisters. While the end result will be a master plan developed by architects, every element of our plan will serve a well-considered, well-researched multi-pronged strategy that will orchestrate the school’s resources in a way that truly supports each student and their family during their journey at St Margaret’s. One key focus of the plan is the next major building project. We look forward to bringing you the completed Master Plan towards the end of this year. I wish you all a prosperous and productive year of learning and living at St Margaret’s.

Debbie Smith

Chair of School Council