St John's
Heidelberg
Our School
St John's Catholic Parish Primary School
Welcome to St John’s Primary School – a school with a long and proud tradition with an excellent reputation in the community.
At St John’s, students benefit academically from programs based on sound educational principles and practices. The curriculum is shaped by the Victorian Curriculum and Horizons of Hope. Our Religious Education program is based on the To Know Worship & Love texts for students.The learning experience is also enhanced through a comprehensive Literacy program, additional needs program, Mathematics extension groups, Reading Recovery, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics), Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program (SAKGP), Inquiry based excursions and incursions, Inter-school sport, visits from the Life Education Unit, community involvement, a Playgroup for preschoolers and a Before and Aftercare program. In addition, we provide opportunities for individual and group musical instrument tuition, out-of-school-hours tennis coaching and Kelly Sports program.
Parent engagement is an important part of our school and parents are invited and encouraged to participate in the life of the school through the School Advisory Council, the PIC (Partners in Community) program, the Parish Pastoral Council, Student Led Conferences, Parent/Teacher Interviews and Parent Engagement in the Learning opportunities.
We welcome the opportunity to partner with parents in the responsibility and privilege of developing their children spiritually, academically, physically and emotionally.
School History
St John's Catholic Parish Primary School
Our History
St John's Catholic Parish Primary School
St John’s Catholic Primary School, located in Heidelberg, is situated in the northeastern corridor of Melbourne, approximately 13 kilometres from the CBD and within the City of Banyule municipality. With a history dating back to 1851, it is one of the oldest continuously operating Catholic schools in Melbourne. The school proudly celebrates its diverse community, comprising families from over 30 cultures.
Historical Perspective
St John's Catholic Parish Primary School
In 1836, Joseph Tice Gellibrand and a party of men from the Port Phillip Association became the first Europeans to explore the area. In the following year, government surveyor Robert Hoddle surveyed the area and created three Parishes. He named the central Parish, which now covers Ivanhoe, Heidelberg and Watsonia, the Parish of Keelbundora, an Aboriginal word for "round, brackish swamp". This was later renamed " Heidelberg " by Richard Browne because it reminded him of his "ever-remembered, ever-regretted" Heidelberg in Germany .
St John’s Church and then the school were established to cater for the farming communities in the area. Heidelberg village soon grew, complete with hotels, post offices, general stores and police stations. It supported a range of small industries and in time, miners, labourers, trades people and small farmers settled into the village. The discovery of gold in the early 1850s brought a huge influx of hopefuls to the area. However, compared to the rich fields at Ballarat and Bendigo, finds were scant and scattered and soon petered out.
The estimated population in the school area in 1856 was approximately 555.
In July, 1871 a new school building was built – the current Library.
1910 was an important year in the history of St John’s school. It was in this year that the Sisters of Mercy first arrived. Their mission was to set up the district’s first Catholic Secondary School (Our Lady of Mercy College) and the sisters’ other role was to manage and conduct the primary school.
The area also has a significant European cultural heritage.
The painters of the Australian impressionist, such as Arthur Streeton, Tom Roberts, Frederick McCubbin, and Walter Withers (names of our House teams) as well as architects and urban landscapers including Walter Burley Griffin , are associated with the area.
The area also has close links with the birth of the Australian Art Movement and groundbreaking artists such as Albert Tucker and Sydney Nolan who lived and painted in the area during the 1940’s and 50’s. Sydney Nolan's first art exhibition was held nearby in Burgundy Street.