Our School
Meet the Principal
Welcome to our School.
I am delighted to welcome you to Langwarrin Park Primary School. We have a vibrant, nurturing learning community where students are encouraged to strive for their best in everything that they do.
We support the academic, social and emotional development of every student and work hard to ensure that our learning environment is inclusive and respectful.
At LPPS we foster strong and productive partnerships with parents, creating many opportunities for parents to be involved in classroom support and activities. We encourage you to work closely with us so that you have as much information as possible about the curriculum programs that we run and the policies and processes that support our daily work. We greatly appreciate the role that parents play in supporting the learning needs of our students and making our school a great place to be.
We are justifiably proud of our teaching and learning program which focuses on the core areas of literacy and numeracy while at the same time offering students a rich array of subjects to stimulate and engage. These include:
- Language Other than English (LOTE) – Indonesian Language and Culture
- Health and Physical Education – which includes an impressive Water Safety and
- Swimming program using our on-site swimming facility (YMCA/Kings)
- Visual and Performing Arts
- Music
- ICT – Digital Technologies
- Integrated Studies – incorporating Science, History, Geography and Civics and Citizenship.
It is a privilege to be the Principal of such a great school and I am very proud of our students and our dedicated teaching staff. Please contact the office if you would like further information or a school tour.
Richard Barren
Principal

Staff
Principal
Mr Richard Barren
Assistant Principal (Curriculum)
Mrs Kym Gilchrist
Assistant Principal (Student Wellbeing)
Ms Debbie Haddow
Classroom Teachers
F01
Mrs Kristel Capuana
F02
Mrs Lauren Jackson
F03
Mrs Kellie Rose
Level Leader
F04
Mrs Rebecca Moulton
1/13
Mrs Kim Zerafa
1/14
Mrs Sharna Dean-Wright
Whole School Inclusion Leader
1/15
Mrs Lisa Dempsey
Level Leader
1/16
Ms Sarah Keane
2/17
Ms Kristen Whitehead-Bell
2/18
Ms Ashlee Exner
2/28
Miss Tobi Hailey
2/29
Mrs Danielle Barrett
Level Leader
3/22
Mrs Jess Cooper / Mrs Rowena Blake
3/23
Miss Kayla Wainwright
3/24
Mrs Brenda Petkovic
Learning Specialist
3/25
Ms Nicole Byrne
Level Leader
4/19
Miss Meggie Andrews
Level Leader
4/20
Miss Cleo Georgakopoulos
4/26
Mrs Simone Henschel
5/9
Mrs Brooke McInnes
Learning Specialist
5/10
Mr Richard Emerson
5/11
Mr Luke Moran
Level Leader
5/12
Ms Merilyn Thompson
6/5
Miss Amy Milne
6/6
Ms Fay Hanifah
Level Leader
6/7
Ms Jackie O’Neill
6/8
Ms Cassy Moss
Specialist Teachers
Art/Technology Centre 1
Mrs Melissa Hamilton (T,W,Th)
Art/Technology Centre 2
Ms Sarah Bailey (M,T,Th,F)
Music 1
Mrs Di Pendlebury (M,T,W,F)
Music 2
Mrs Erica Eichner (T,F)
Physical Education 1
Mrs Sue Burt
Physical Education 2
Mrs Franca Peluso (T,W,Th)
Performing Arts
Mrs Jennifer Barnett (M,T,W)
LOTE
Mr Jarrad Rose (M,T,Th,F)
Tutoring Learning Initiative
Mrs Sue Anderson
Numeracy Intervention Specialist
Mrs Jo Smith
Learning Specialist Support
Ms Taigan Evans
Education Support
Facilities Manager
Mr Ron Skidmore (M,T,F 1/2)
Business Manager/Personnel (Edupay)
Mrs Susan Guest
Accounts Receivable
Mrs Shona Byrnes (W)
Accounts Receivable
Mrs Bridgit Dooley
Office Manager
Mrs Joyce Stocker
General Office/First Aid Officer
Mrs Fiona Smith
Integration Aide
Mr Travis Shakes
Integration Aide
Mrs Trudi Paydon (M,T,Th,F)
Integration Aide / Speech Assistant
Mrs Kerryn Cornelissen
Integration Aide
Ms Natasha Devereaux
Integration Aide
Ms Naomi McMaster
Library Manager / Community Connections
Mrs Kate Mowat
Computer Network System Technician
Mr Malik Ahmad
Grounds Maintenance
Ms Carol Hopper (M,T,W,F)
Maintenance / Grounds Support
Mr David ‘Bluey’ Geddes
THRIVE Positive Education Co-ordinator
Ms Sarah Roney (T)
Student Wellbeing Officer
Mrs Luana Lane (T,Th,F)
Network Inclusion Leader
Mr Adrian Burrage
Network Speech Pathologist
Ms Fiona Biss
Psychologist
Ms Meaghan Morley
Social Worker / SSS Leader
Ms Karli Ray
School Sculpture
The LPPS Sculpture – ‘Achievement’
In 2002 John Ahearne, an artist studying at Frankston TAFE, was commissioned to design a large scale sculpture for the school. The inspiration for his work ‘Achievement’ came from the world famous Bradshaw Paintings discovered in the Kimberley region of Western Australia in the 1900s.
These ancient cave paintings were discovered when Captain Joseph Bradshaw and his brother rode west from Central North Australia in search of new grazing land for their cattle. The terrain became so rough somewhere north of the Prince Regent River, in the heart of Kimberley, that he and his brother became lost and stumbled upon a group of caves. When they explored them they found a series of incredibly sophisticated paintings which have become known as the Bradshaw Paintings.
The paintings were not recent creations but originate from an unknown past period. When the first settlers occupied the area, the Aborigines told them that the Bradshaw Paintings were “before their time”. According to legend, they were made by birds. It was said that these birds pecked the rocks until their beaks bled, and then created these fine paintings by using a tail feather and their own blood. This art is of such antiquity that no pigment remains on the rock surface, it is impossible to use carbon dating technology.
Fortuitously, in 1996 Grahame Walsh discovered a Bradshaw Painting partly covered by a fossilised Mud Wasp nest, which scientists have removed and analysed using a new technique of dating, determining it to be 17,000 + years old. This discovery lends solid support to Grahame’s theories about the true antiquity of these works of art. They are considered to be amongst the most Ancient Rock Paintings of Earth?
The artist John Ahearne, noting that the Bradshaw figures were examples of how ideas, messages, stories could be illustrated two dimensionally through simple forms, created the cluster of thin three dimensional forms which look as they have moved from the cave walls into life! The forms are meant to be touched and our students relate very well to the five figures which symbolise striving for ACHIEVEMENT through collaboration and cooperation.
The sculpture takes pride of place in the central courtyard of Langwarrin Park Primary School.
The information and visuals on the Bradshaw Paintings was compiled from the Bradshaw Foundation. Have a visit and find out more about the paintings that acted as the inspiration for our school’s magnificent sculpture.
