Despite a busy first couple of weeks, I have been enjoying my new role as the Head of Boarding! It has been fantastic getting to know the students, watching the ‘old’ girls welcome the new ones and just seeing everyone settling into the new year, in both Boarding and the school.
During the transitional period, it is perfectly normal to feel homesick; in fact, we have seen a few tears in our home. But I cannot speak highly enough about our older girls, including the Boarding Council, who have made the new girls feel welcome, reassured them about Boarding life and made sure they are part of the St Brigid’s College Boarding Community.
On our first week, we had a fabulous ‘Welcome Weekend’ which was to help the whole community settle into the new year. We also had a lovely picnic at Kings Park, with most of the girls taking part in an impromptu cricket game. But as the temperature increased, we decided to visit the Kalamunda Water Park on one of the weekends and ended the day with a fun disco night. Finally, the girls from the different Houses made a banner for the year, with each one showing some contributions from everyone. I want to thank the House Mums and the Boarding Council for all their work in making all of our weekends’ activities a success.
I also want to thank the students (and parents) for the resiliency they have shown, as we are constantly adjusting to the different rules and conditions due to COVID-19. We are keeping a balance between trying to do things as we would normally do and keeping everyone safe. Please be assured that every decision is centred around those two premises. So I thank everyone for their patience and acceptance in these uncertain times.
Over the year, there are many activities that the Boarders can get involved in. If your daughter feels bored, we are always ready to help her to find an interest/hobby/passion; please encourage her to come and talk to me or the House Mums about it. Before the Hockey and Netball seasons even start, some of our students are already doing Basketball, Kick Boxing, Gymnastics, Cricket, Horse Riding, and many more! We are always happy to drive the girls to their activities if it is in the local area. Though there are other ways we can help with transportation, such as organising lifts from their day-student mates. We also offer free weekend activities and a few others that do have a small cost; the girls are welcome to sign up every Monday. We have found that students who get involved and stay busy are more likely to enjoy the Boarding life, and also less likely to get into trouble.
Overall, it has been a great start to the year, and thank you to everyone for welcoming me into the St Brigid’s Boarding Community.
Judith Cumpsty
Head of Boarding
