Gordon Reid (Robertson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

St John the Baptist Catholic primary school in Woy Woy last year turned not 98 years old, not 99 years old, but 100 years old. I wish to congratulate the school community and the Catholic parish of Woy Woy Peninsula on this fantastic milestone. In the year 1922, the Sisters of St Joseph established a small Catholic school on the land near where the current St John the Baptist Church is located. This school was to ensure Catholic families in the region did not have to send their children further away to places like Cronulla or places like Manly. Fast forward to today, and St John the Baptist is a thriving primary school with 508 students, offering classes from kindergarten all the way to year 6 with an emphasis on Catholicism and Christianity, although not on the original site. It has now moved to a much larger location in south Woy Woy, boasting modern classrooms with flexible learning arrangements and the latest technology to give those young minds on the Central Coast and on the peninsula where I grew up the best start in life for their education. I wish to commend the diocese of Broken Bay, principal Nicole Davies, teachers, students and the wider Catholic community on the Central Coast for this celebratory occasion. Best wishes to the school for many more years ahead.

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