About

Welcome

Welcome to Derinya Primary School. Our school is a large thriving government school located in Frankston South with an enrolment of approximately 896 students. We have 39 straight classes and we have over 70 dedicated, passionate staff who are committed to continually maximising the potential and wide ranging achievements of our students in a safe, caring and happy environment. We live our overarching school values daily which include;

  • Respect
  • Resilience and Optimism
  • Humour
  • Kindness
  • Integrity
  • Responsibility

Our values are explicitly taught, highlighted and acknowledged in various ways. We are very proud of our students who are respectful to all visitors, staff and each other.

We deliver an education with both academic and social and emotional learning being of equal importance.

Our approach to teaching and learning is a balance of both explicit instruction and guided inquiry. We have an ongoing awareness that we are preparing our children for the workforce of the future and must continually learn and develop our practice accordingly. Literacy and numeracy are key areas with critical and creative thinking, cultural understanding and sustainability also being of high priority.

Our engaging specialist programs include;

  • Visual arts
  • Performing arts
  • PE
  • Japanese and
  • Science.

A multitude of co-curricular programs and initiatives enhance the learning opportunities of students, engaging them in a diverse range of activities both within and beyond the classroom, school and world. Innovation and creativity are celebrated and there are many opportunities to develop student leadership. Learning enhancement and enrichment occurs throughout the school as necessary through tutoring, education support staff and a variety of high abilities opportunities.

The school plays an important role in the Frankston South community celebrating strong links with our wonderful parent body and local networks. Through the tremendous work of the School Council, our Parents Association – the Community Connect Team, staff and students, a harmonious, engaging and productive learning community is nurtured.  Our annual Derinya Art and Craft Exhibition features highly on the Victorian Arts Calendar. At Derinya, our community works collectively to achieve our potential and create a positive, vibrant centre of learning. The growth of the school is testament to its success.

At Derinya we see the environment as the ‘third teacher’. A place where learning is both supported and celebrated. We are proud of our extensive facilities which include a purpose built languages centre, Kitchen Garden, Maker Space, Stadium and stunning outdoor play spaces.

Derinya Primary School is a wonderful environment for children to ‘learn and grow’ with a supportive and dedicated staff and community.

If you are interested in coming to our school please book a tour online or call the office for further information.

Warm regards,

Nadine Pye
Principal

Vision Statement

We strive to develop compassionate global citizens through shared values and high expectations who think creatively and are responsible and caring life long learners.

Acknowledgement of Country

We wish to acknowledge the Bunurong People as the Traditional Owners of the land on which we come together and pay our respects to elders past and present.

Staff

Executive Team

Nadine Pye
Principal

Stuart Charles
Assistant Principal

Cory Stevens
Assistant Principal

Administration Team

Lynn Sanders
Business Manager

Mandy Douglas
First Aid Officer

Tina Ramsay
Office Manager

Kellie Jovic
Administration/First Aid

 

Foundation Team

Alice Roberts, Stacey Jones, Rebecca Uccello, Zoe Richey, Shelley Alderman, Kellie LeCerf

Year 1 Team

Ally Duncan, Rebecca Anderson, Christina Ellis, Rosslyn Rosenberg, Ashlee Grant, Samantha Allen

Year 2 Team

Samantha Walsh, Anna Macrae, James Neale, Rosslyn Rosenberg, Samantha Beckhouse, Spencer Daly

Year 3 Team

Lisa Male, Anita Presti, Mark Everard, Julianne Neylan

Year 4 Team

Tamara Greene, Zoe Summerfield, Katrina Sands, Abby Chernishoff, Briony Beaver, Eliese Catterick

Year 5 Team

Kasey Black, Kim Walker, Jayne Potts, Derek Williams, Cheryl Hanley, Sarah Dalgleish, Elizabeth Catford, Rebecca Harun

Year 6 Team

Leah Clarke, Hally Dalton, Joel Wylie, Stephanie Guest, Andrew Henry, Monica Waterworth, Nicole Trevaskis

Education Support Staff

Back Row: Holly Dalton, Kim Walker, Kimberley Nero, Anne Grant, Anna McCrae, Rebecca Harun, Robyn West, Emma Dalton, 

Front Row: Sam Moriarty, Cheryl Handley

Specialists Team

Therese Sakamoto, Elle Taylor, Jaclyn Morgan, Louise Jenkins, Helen Trend, Lindi Morrison, Susan Grostate

Kitchen/Garden Specialist

Kim Nero

Technician

Sam Moriarty

History

Derinya Primary School first opened its doors to students in February 1971 under the leadership of Principal Angus McPhail. There were 8 teachers and 214 students at the school, most of whom relocated from neighbouring schools. Of the 214 students, 50 of them were new Preps.

Originally called Overport Heights, the name was changed to Derinya following confusion between Overport Heights Primary School and nearby Overport Primary School. The name was chosen from a short list and means ‘an egg, new life’. Other potential names on the list included Brownlow Heights and Sweetwater Primary School.

Derinya had five different Principals in its first five years, before the arrival of Principal Barbara Hogg followed by Rod Tacon who led the school from 1977 through to the late 1990s. Mrs. Jenny Roth stepped into the Principal position in 2001 and led Derinya for the next twenty years.

As we look back on the first 50 years of Derinya Primary School, we see a school that has constantly grown and evolved to suit the needs of local community. The buildings and grounds have continually evolved over the years and the student population has consistently grown from that initial 214 to around 900 today.

Student Leaders

Derinya Primary School offers many opportunities for student leadership both formally and informally. At the end of year 5, students are given the chance to submit a written application for a variety of leadership positions that are held for their year 6 year. These include: School Captains, Learning Leaders, Wellbeing Leaders and the full range of subject based leadership positions. The student leadership body is supported by the Student Voice Team.

When decisions need to be made about school facilities, programs and fundraising, our Student Voice Team (SVT) lead the way. Every student, from F-6 gets to use their voice and have their say in lessons guided by the SVT members. These ideas are by kids, for kids. We use fair voting to help us make decisions and to make sure everyone’s ideas are heard.

Each year, the SVT works on 4 student-voted projects in the areas of fundraising, school facilities, sustainability and student learning. We know that we can make the greatest impact by working together and the feeling of achieving our yearly goals is absolutely amazing.

School Council

Welcome to the start of the new school year in 2023. I would like to extend a warm welcome on behalf of the School Council to the Derinya Primary School community. In particular we would like to welcome all the new families and students attending this wonderful school for the first time in 2023.

As a school council our aim is to represent the wider community and uphold Derinya’s values of friendship, responsibility, respect, integrity, humour, optimism and resilience. Our objectives are to:

  • Assist in the efficient governance of the school
  • Ensure that its decisions affecting students of the school are made having regard, as a primary consideration, to the best interest of the students
  • Enhance the educational opportunities of students at the school and ensure the school and the council complies with any requirements of the Education and Training Reform Act.

We trust that your experience at Derinya will be one that sets the foundations for a lifetime of learning for your children and builds a sound platform for community connections well into the future. The Derinya community has a proud history of fostering participation and there are many opportunities to get involved. From Community Connect, fund raising, DKD, working bees or helping out with class excursions, our community functions best through collaboration. We would love you to get involved and share in our enthusiasm in celebrating the wonderful vibrant community Derinya is. For more information please contact the staff in reception.

Danny Alcock
(School Council President)
On behalf of Derinya School Council