Every meal served in St Vincent De Paul’s homeless shelter in Whitmore Square for the next financial year will be funded by a unique collaboration between three Catholic schools. The eastern suburbs schools – St Thomas' School Goodwood, St Joseph's School Kingswood and St Therese School Colonel Light Gardens – have developed a shared school uniform.
If the idea of bringing three schools together to share a common uniform isn’t challenging enough, the decision to source the uniforms from St Vincent De Paul is definitely thinking outside the square. After extensive consultation with parents, the schools agreed on a combined approach. Each school has its own badging applied to a unified base uniform.
Collaboration rather than competition has been a key focus of the schools for the past five years. What started as a loose coalition has grown into strong partnership. Other initiatives have included a collaborative school enrichment project which sees middle school students benefiting from shared learning; professional learning for staff; and shared strategic planning between the school boards.
These collaborative approaches paved the way for the shared uniform project.
“The uniform needed to look smart, be affordable, made of quality materials and be ethically produced,” says David Wark, CEO of St Vincent De Paul in South Australia.
“Another positive spin off is that our Catholic students are more visible in the local community because of our shared uniforms,” says Liz Thomas, Principal of St Thomas School.
“It is easy to be competitive, yet working together for the common good, while maintaining our independent bases, has strengthened all three schools,” Liz said.
The uniforms were introduced at pre-school and reception level this year and will be phased in over time. They are sold through Vinnies’ Hawthorn store.
Intergenerational playgroups are truly something special — an experience that enriches the lives of both the young and the older members of our community. These playgroups are more than just a space for children to play; they are a vital platform for different generations to come together, share wisdom, and build meaningful relationships.
