Newsletter

Year 12 Graduation Assembly

The Year 12 Class of 2022 Graduation Assembly will be held at 1.50pm on Thursday, 22nd September in the College Multi Purpose Building. A brief afternoon tea will follow this special assembly.

Parents and family members are invited to attend, however numbers of visitors will be limited due to seating arrangements in the Multi Purpose Building. Please RSVP here.

Please arrive 10-15 minutes prior to the event to sign in and be seated ready to start on time.

We are excited to be able to host this occasion and look forward to welcoming parents/carers on the day.

Our goal at Belmont Christian College is to develop and nurture relationships with students, teachers and parents, always with a God-centred focus. Without authentic relationships, individuals simply don’t thrive in any setting. As Christians, our relationship with Jesus and how this is demonstrated to each other is paramount, particularly with our students always watching the authority figures around them. Our students’ wellbeing, growth and enrichment are in the hands of not only their parents but, of significant importance, all staff and teachers they encounter daily. Of course, it is always encouraging to be reminded that at Belmont Christian College, we desire that children grow in their knowledge and relationship with God. 

James 1:17 tells us that every gift is from God. We all have different talents and God-given gifts, but they are all important and can be used for God’s kingdom. We are called to support and nurture children to grow in each of their gifts academically, socially, emotionally and physically in accordance with God’s will. 

This week’s Primary School Musical 2022, ‘Ali Baba and the Bongo Bandits’ was a perfect example of the outplaying of God’s gifts and abilities in our students. They upheld the spirit of what it means to work interdependently, and they honoured each other through the creative process. What a fantastic privilege to serve Christ as He continues to guide us in encouraging, supporting and loving our children. The show certainly lived up to its name by presenting a treasure-trove of fun, laughter and personal growth. Many, many thanks and congratulations to everyone involved!

Please enjoy the following reflective quotes from some of our students about the musical:

“I used not to be able to dance in front of people, but now I am more confident.” – Year 4 Student

“I would definitely recommend this musical to other schools because not only is it funny, it is really enjoyable to watch because you don’t know what is going to happen next.” – Year 5 Student

“In my opinion, the thing that makes a musical fun is that it does not matter if you have forgotten a line, they will just simply tell you, and there is no criticism of anyone. Yes, every school should do a musical because you learn to encourage, persevere and help each other.”  – Year 5 Student

BCC Prayer Warriors

Prayer and a daily reliance on the goodness of God is at the heart of our College. To this end, our Prayer Warriors team gathers on the last Monday of each month from 8:45am – 9:30am to share, pray and connect with other parents. With restrictions now eased, please join us onsite as we commit the College and our community to God in prayer.

Please sign-in at the College Office.

For more information please contact Wendy Robinson wendy@wendyrobinson.com.au or phone 0409987939.

Everyone is welcome to join in. We look forward to growing our Prayer Warriors group throughout the year. 

Volunteers to Pray for Year 12

We are wanting to cover the Year 12 students in prayer as they prepare for the HSC and their final months at BCC. We know that our God is faithful and He has a plan for each of them. We are praying for their studies, but also that they grow in revelation of God’s faithfulness and understanding that when we are weak, He is strong.

If you would like to volunteer to commit to covering two Year 12 students in prayer from now until the end of HSC exams (mid Nov), please email wendy@wendyrobinson.com.au.

Here are some suggestions for what ‘covering the two Year 12 students in prayer’ looks like:
(a) When praying for your own children, include a prayer for these two young people.
(b) Every time you drive into the College grounds, ask for God’s blessing and favour on them (can be prayed in your mind, doesn’t have to be prayed aloud).
(c) Every time you wash your hands, ask for God to give them a sound mind, the mind of Christ, and strength to do each day well.
(d) Ask God to give you a specific scripture to pray for them.
(e) Ask God what He wants you to pray for them.

Prayer Points

~ Primary Musical – Ali Baba and the Bongo Bandits final shows today
~ Year 12 as they complete their final term and Trial Exams
~ Executive in their roles and as they appoint new staff
~ Good health for the BCC community from all sicknesses
~ Students who are struggling with their health, both mentally and physically
~ New students and staff as they settle in and feel part of the BCC community
~ All students to finish the term well
~ Our students to know a real sense of belonging, are led to believing in Jesus as the Life-Giver and are becoming all He has purposed for them
~ Continued prayer for Executive and Board members as they lead the College with their Strategic Plan for Kingdom Education here at BCC

Prayer Requests

In deeply challenging times such as these, we find our rest in the unchanging nature and faithfulness of our Heavenly Father.

As a Christian community we understand the significance and purpose of prayer. It is the heart-beat of our College. Together we boldly pray to our Father, through the work of His Son, in the power of the Spirit.

If you have a prayer request please complete the form here. We would love to pray for you specifically, and for your family, during this time of change.

“We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express” Romans 8:26b

Upcoming Important Dates

Primary

31.8 – 01.9 | Primary School Musical – Ali Baba and the Bongo Bandits
02.09.22 | CSSA Athletics Carnival
06.09.22 | CSSA Oztag Gala Day
12.09.22 | Paul Kelly Cup State Final
13.09.22 | AFL Champions League
14 – 15.09.22 | Year 4 Camp
13&16.09.22 | Australian Reptile Park Excursion (Beginners)
21 – 23.09.22 | Year 5 Camp
25.10.22 | Grandparents Day
25.10.22 | Book Week

Secondary

05.09.22 | Oztag Gala Day
06.09.22 | HSC Showcase
09.09.22 | CSSA Basketball Gala Day
14.09.22 | Museum of Human Diseases Excursion (Yr 12 Biology)
19-23.09.22 | Scuba Course (Yr 10 Marine Studies)
20.09.22 | CIS State Athletics
20.09.22 | Year 12 Mufti Day Fundraiser
22.09.22 | Year 12 Graduation Assembly
23.09.22 | Luna Park Big Day Out (Yr 12)

Whole College

09.09.22 | R U OK? Day
12.09.22 | Clue Production
16.09.22 | Year 12 Servant Auction
19.09.22 | Year 12 Servant Day
19.09.22 | Staff v Student Soccer Match
23.09.22 | Last Day Term 3

Our College Calendar is available on our website where you can be kept up-to-date with events throughout the year. Closer to the event parents and carers will receive communication via the Skoolbag App and/or email.

R U OK? Day

On R U OK? Day Friday, 9th September, Beginners to Year 12 students are invited to add something YELLOW ie. socks, jumper, hat, hair ribbons, hair spray etc. to their uniform.

It is to raise awareness for children’s mental health and encourage all of us to check-in with each other. No donation required.  

Are you looking for a little extra paid work?

We are looking for people to supervise the upcoming HSC exams held here at the College. The exams are from Wednesday, 12th October – Friday, 4th November 2022.

A paid Working With Children’s Check is required. These are easily attained through Service NSW.

If you are interested in finding out more information please contact Miss Melanie Melcum on melanie.melcum@bcc.nsw.edu.au.

Edstart

Alongside other fee payment options (e.g SentralPay), we are pleased to announce that Belmont Christian College is now also partnering with Edstart to provide flexible payment options to help manage school fees. Payment plans can fit around your budget and pay day.

Edstart is a specialist education payments provider with a platform specifically designed to make it easy for you to manage all education related expenses in one place. A dedicated customer service team will assist in structuring a plan that works best for your lifestyle.

The platform allows you to package school tuition fees, including any overdue balances.

You can choose weekly, fortnightly or monthly repayments on any date in line with your income.

● Spread your school fee repayments over 12 months or up to 5 years after your children finish school
● Choose your preferred day for when payments are made
● Option to pay via direct debit, debit/credit card or BPay
● Adjust your payments at any time

Families can set up their account at edstart.com.au/bcc. Families currently on a direct debit arrangement with the College will be required to cancel this once their account on the Edstart platform is active. If you have any queries, please contact Edstart on 1300 139 445 or chat with their team at contact@edstart.com.au.

Alternatively, you can contact Michelle Mazzantini at michelle.mazzantini@bcc.nsw.edu.au for a confidential discussion or visit our College website.

Entertainment Book Available Now

Entertainment Memberships are now 100% digital. Saying goodbye to the iconic Book wasn’t easy but the new Entertainment Memberships start anytime and are valid for 12 months from activation. Packed with thousands of substantial savings to delight and inspire, an Entertainment Membership is your pass to exclusive offers and quality experiences, activities and benefits. The digital membership is easy to download to start using instantly. New offers are added weekly for ongoing value all year round.

Benefits of the App include:

~ User-friendly: Instantly search and redeem offers or check out the Near Me tab to find offers, wherever you are.

~ Memberships start anytime: Flexible start date, Memberships are valid for 12 months from when you activate.

~ Multiple devices: You can still share your Membership with your family. Encourage your partner and kids to download the App so they can access valuable savings when out.

~ Convenient: The App means that as long as you have your phone, you have your Membership too (no more lugging around the book).

~ Easy gifting: We’ve made it simpler than ever to gift an Entertainment Membership – simply purchase from your chosen fundraiser and the gift Membership will be delivered instantly to your inbox.

The following activities and services are offered by external providers which may be beneficial to your family. These services focus on strengthening student wellbeing or academic capacity. While these services are not explicitly from a Christian worldview, they do provide insights based on human wisdom and evidence based research. However, personal discretion as to whether these services align with your own beliefs will be required. Such services are NOT fully endorsed by the College, but are made available for families to make their own judgement and decision. 

Resilient Kids Conference

Belmont Christian College is pleased to provide our whole College community with a free virtual pass to the Resilient Kids Conference on Saturday, 8th October for parents, educators, youth leaders and anyone working with young people.

At the heart of the conference is a desire to offer parents and educators support, teaching and resources to encourage and equip them in their roles as they assist in the nurture of our precious children.

The RKC team gathers Australia’s top experts on a variety of issues that are affecting our young people today, and brings them to you in one place on one day. 

For your FREE virtual pass, please keep any eye on your College email inbox for details or contact our Head of Wellbeing for K-6, Mrs Leoni McNeill on leoni.mcneill@bcc.nsw.edu.au or for Years 7-12, Mr Nate Miller on nate.miller@bcc.nsw.edu.au. You will also have access to the content for 8 weeks in case you are unavailable on the day.

Bookings are essential and limited so register early.

Let’s Talk Body Confident Children and Teens

How to Help Your Child Get Ready for the Exam Room

Elevate Education will be holding a webinar on Wednesday, 7th September at 6:30pm covering: What your child should be doing in the final week before any test or assessment, how to establish a good routine for the night before and how to optimise exam-room performance.

CSSA State Athletics Carnival

A team of sixteen Secondary School students travelled to Sydney Olympic Park Athletic Centre to compete in the CSSA State Athletics Carnival. The day saw some strong performances from students in both the track and field events. 

The Boys and Girls Senior relay teams were highly competitive with each leg of the relays having smooth changes and both teams coming home strong. The Girls Senior team narrowly missed second place in their heat, whilst the Boys Senior team came from further back in the pack in a thrilling finish to place third overall. This sees them progress onto the CIS Athletics Championships.

It was heartwarming to witness the sportsmanship and community amongst our students as they supported each other in their events. Equally impressive was their support for Para-athletes from other schools, clapping and cheering as the athletes completed their running races. 

Congratulations to the following students who have qualified to represent CSSA NSW at the CIS Athletics Championships by placing in the top 3.

Amos Maddison – Under 15 Boys Shot Put – 1st
Alex Campbell – Under 13 Boys Javelin – 1st
Liam Estall – Under 18 Boys 100m – 2nd
Kidha Gray – Under 17 Boys 100m – 2nd
Open Boys Relay 4x100m – Joshua Wolfenden, Kidha Gray, Rouke Ellemans, Ethan Cowling – 3rd

Mrs Robins

Girls Water Polo Came and Try it Day

Girls Making Waves is back and heading for Newcastle! This is a great opportunity available through Water Polo NSW for girls aged 13-16 and 7-12 years old.

⁠Former Olympic representatives, Mel and Bec Rippon, will be running the program. It will be held at Lambton Pool on ⁠⁠Sunday, 11th September 2022.

12:00pm – 1:30pm age 7-12 years
2:00pm – 3:30pm age 13-16 years

If you’ve never played before or it’s been a couple of years and you are interested in giving water polo a go in a fun, safe environment – register your interest here.

Only $10 for a super session with some superstars in the game of water polo.

Contact Mrs Donaldson for further information.

Individual Student Achievement

Victoria Robinson was back in the pool in Brisbane 2 weeks ago, competing for NSW in the week-long, School Sports Australia (SSA) National Swimming Championships.

Victoria competed in the Para 100m Backstroke, finishing 5th and broke her Personal Best time by one second.

She then went on to claim a Bronze medal in the 50m Backstroke and followed it up with another Bronze in the Girls Open Mixed handicap relay.

It’s been a big few months for Victoria, with this event following Victoria competing at the Australian Age Championships in Adelaide, winning the Lake Mac Sports Star with Disability Award, and being selected in the NSW Para Development Squad.

Congratulations Victoria on your results and for continuing to raise the bar for yourself and your peers here at BCC.

Mr Robins

HSC Showcase

Parents/Carers are invited to attend our HSC Showcase where we celebrate the hard work and creativity of our Year 12 Creative Arts, and Technology and Applied Studies students. 

The night will showcase the HSC Major Works from students in Visual Arts, Industrial Technology, Software Development and Design, as well as performances from our Year 12 Music students.  

Light refreshments will be provided by the Year 11 Hospitality class.  

For catering purposes please RSVP below:

Book Quiz Champions

On Thursday, 18th August BCC had the pleasure of hosting the Hunter and Central Coast Combined Christian Schools Book Quiz. This is a fun book trivia competition which provides opportunities for students to interact with others who have an interest in books and reading. Stage 3 and Stage 4 teams from Charlton Christian College, Wyong Christian Community School, Greenpoint Christian College, Hunter Christian School and Maitland Christian School travelled to compete in the Learning Hub at BCC. The students involved spent many hours preparing for the quiz, including lunchtimes, weekends and school holidays, reading and studying from a long list of specified authors and novels.

A great day was enjoyed with many new friendships made between the schools. Our BCC team did extremely well, taking out first place for the first time in the 6 year history of the competition. Congratulations to our Book Quiz teams!

Code Camp

Code Camp is being held here at the College again these holidays! With DJ Camp, Animation Camp, YouTube Creators, Coding Camps, Drone Camp and BRAND-NEW Minions Animation Camp, there’s something fun for everyone!

To book visit: www.codecamp.com.au/belmont

2023 Chromebook Requirements

A reminder that all students from Years 5 to 10 are required to have a school-approved Chromebook.

It is anticipated that a Chromebook purchased for Year 5 will be used for three years, with an
upgrade made for Year 8. Once students are in Year 11, they may choose to continue using their
Chromebook or utilise another computer that meets Belmont Christian College’s policy requirements.

If your child needs a Chromebook for the start of 2023 we strongly suggest ordering very soon as there are extended wait times due to COVID-19.

Chromebooks must be purchased through the College’s approved provider and will include the required
software, licencing, and warranty to enable use on the College network. Devices will be delivered to the College, and you will be notified when they are available for collection. To purchase a Chromebook, please visit https://belmontcc.orderportal.com.au.

Please note Chromebooks purchased from alternative sources are not permitted as they do not meet the requirements for use at the College. It is important to take particular note of this stipulation.

Please contact chromebooks@bcc.nsw.edu.au if you have any questions regarding your purchase.

Thank you for your support as we partner together in providing excellence for your child’s education at Belmont Christian College.

If you have any queries about the College uniform, make sure you visit our dedicated Uniform page on the College website. Alternatively, get in touch with our uniform partner, Alinta Apparel.

Uniform Requirements and Pricelist

Please click below to view the uniform requirements and current pricelist.

Uniform Shop Hours

Uniform Fitting Appointments

Universities Admission Centre Supper Night

Southern Cross University Parent Information Night

Download the Sentral Parent Portal App

You may be aware that the College uses the Sentral Parent Portal as a means of communication with parents/carers. Our future plan is for BCC families to use the Sentral Parent App for all communication between College and home, ensuring everything you need to know is all in one place. 

We are currently testing the Activity Permissions feature in the Sentral Parent App which allows parents/carers to easily give permission for their child to attend school Activities/Excursions. This will be introduced soon. We believe that it will add to the convenience of the already existing features listed below:

• Book Parent-Teacher Interviews
• Receive Student Academic Reports
• View Student Timetables
• View Wellbeing Information
• Pay Tuition Fees 
• Message Teachers
• Submit Student Absences
• View the College Newsletter

* Note the Calendar feature is not fully functioning as yet. However, parents/carers can access the Parent Calendar through ‘links’ within the Sentral Parent Portal App.

We encourage parents/carers to download the Sentral Parent Portal App by searching ‘Sentral for Parents’ in the App Store on your smart phone and ensure that notifications are enabled within the App. Set up instructions can be found here. If you have any trouble registering please email our IT department sentral@bcc.nsw.edu.au and they will step you through the process.