Frequently Asked Questions

Our school is based on a set of core values, which underpin our teaching and learning programs, our relationships with others and the management and governance of the school. We are a learning community that promotes a culture of learning for all of our members, which is key to developing a ‘love of learning’ and a ‘growth mindset’. Life long learning is learning that takes place on an ongoing basis from our daily interactions with others and with the world around us.

Lance Holt School offers a curriculum that is dynamic, exciting, rewarding and responsive to our student’s needs, capabilities and interests. We recognise that all students are individuals and have different abilities, learning styles and learning dispositions. We implement the curriculum with an emphasis on encouraging and supporting each student to achieve their potential. Students and staff are co-constructors in a collaborative learning community. Our school implements the Western Australian Curriculum www.scsa.wa.edu.au.

We believe that school is a place for learning, for playing, making friends and working together as participants in a community. It is a place where children have the right to safely take risks, try different activities and make mistakes, all significant parts of learning and growing. School plays a very important role in the wellbeing of children and their families. We seek to provide a place that is built on an ethic of care and hospitality where children feel safe, secure and supported in all aspects of their learning.

Parental involvement is an integral part of the Lance Holt School experience: the children love it and the school depends on it. The school community is diverse and we can all share different talents and interests. Contributions of time and effort are greatly valued and the school benefits enormously from them.

In the early years teachers love having parent help in the classroom and it enriches the program we can offer. Early years classes have rosters and parents are encouraged to put their name down to help. As a community school we anticipate that parents will take part in some of the things that keep the school running well. Fundraising and busy bees are a way of bringing in income and keeping our school maintained to the best possible standard.

The first port of call is to visit the school website for information on how to enroll. This can be found under Join Us.

Our students graduate from Lance Holt School with a love of learning and a strong sense of self and community. Our students are creative and critical thinkers who have well developed communications skills. Our student combine their strong academic skills with their well developed social and interpersonal skills to transition to high school as articulate and confident individuals.  Our students attend a wide variety of high schools to suit their individual needs and interests including Government, Independent and Catholic high schools. In the last five years students have graduated to attend the following Government High Schools in Gifted and Talented Programs:  John Curtin College of the Arts, Perth Modern, Shenton College, Applecross and Melville High School. Independent and Catholics schools our past students now attend include: All Saints College, CBC, Iona College, Santa Maria College, Kennedy Baptist School, Christchurch Grammar and Scotch College.  The Annual Report has detailed information on our student’s high school destinations.

Lance Holt School is an incorporated, not-for-profit educational institution with its own constitution. All of us—parents and teachers—are members of the Lance Holt School Association, which is governed and administered by the School Council. The council comprises seven parent representatives, one staff member, the coordinator and up to four co-opted members. Councillors are elected at the school’s Annual General Meeting.

The Coordinator is both the educational leader and the manager of school business. The coordinator has a range of tasks that are similar to those of a school principal or a CEO. The coordinator is responsible to the council for promoting educational policies within the school; the teaching and learning program; making sure community relations and the school’s public image are healthy; liaising with government and other official bodies; promoting health and safety policies; and, in consultation with the treasurer and accountant, looking after the finances of the school.

Our teachers report on student progress both formally and informally through parent/teacher interviews, written school reports and through Educa an online communication tool.

Children can commence in our Pre-Kindergarten program at three years of age. Contact the school to confirm which year your child could commence.

Lance Holt is a teacher who had a vision to establish a community school in 1970. The school has held on dearly to the original educational principles that Lance Holt advocated, including the importance of respecting children; the central role of the school in its community; and the vital balance between fostering the unique qualities of individuals as well as social and ecological responsibility.

Our school is located in the historic Westend of Fremantle surrounded by heritage buildings and close to Bathers Beach and the Fremantle Harbour. The school is a short walk (200m) from the Fremantle Train Station and to the local free “Cat Bus’ service.

During May each year children in Year 3 and 5 will be assessed in reading, writing, language conventions and numeracy as part of the Federal Government National Assessment Program for Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN). NAPLAN results are obtained from a limited testing situation and provide a ‘snapshot’ of your child’s achievements. The most information on your child’s progress will be that which your child’s teacher provides.

Schools should not be measured solely on the result of NAPLAN testing.

Much of what schools do including student wellbeing and care, enriching learning opportunities through co-curricular programs, formation of values and the creation of community – cannot be quantified.

As Lance Holt School is a small school with a very small cohort in each year, our results can vary widely from year to year so comparisons can be difficult. All of our students are encouraged to sit the NAPLAN assessment, even those with learning difficulties, therefore one cohort of students may perform very differently from another.

It should be noted that parents of our school community are highly engaged in learning, both their own and their child’s. Many of our parents have tertiary qualifications and as such our ICSEA score is very high. This ICSEA score places our school in the top band of schools in Australia for NAPLAN comparison.

When looking at the student performance for Lance Holt School in NAPLAN it is important to look at both the ‘Schools with similar students’ and ‘All Australian students’. Click on Compare to All Australian students.