Queensland Independent Schools Parents Network

PATHWAYS | A great student profile story from University of the Sunshine Coast about resilience and the sometimes non-linear journey between school and your dream career.

Congratulations Liam on all of your achievements!🌟

At 14, Liam Andersson left school and found himself adrift...filling time, he “hung around the skate park a lot”, filming videos with his friends who were budding pro-athletes. More than a decade later, he stood at the podium to deliver the graduand speech as a psychology (Honours) graduate.

How exactly does a high school dropout, turned film-maker, end up here? Well, it's a journey shaped by personal experience and it's anything but linear.

To read the full story, hit the link below.

https://www.unisc.edu.au/about/unisc-news/news-archive/2026/july/how-liam-paved-his-own-path-from-high-school-dropout-to-psychology-honours-graduate

COLLABORATION | We have been delighted to attend the ICPA Aust - Isolated Children's Parents' Association 55th annual national conference, held this year at St Hilda's School, Gold Coast.

ICPA's annual conferences - both state and federal- are a wonderful opportunity for schools, parents and education stakeholders to connect and hear directly from rural and remote families about current child care, schooling, transport and technology challenges that are impacting them.

Thank you to the ICPA federal council and the ICPA QLD INC - Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association Queensland convening committee for their wonderful hospitality over the last two days.

Pictured L-R: QIS Parents Network's Executive Director Amanda Watt, St Margaret's Anglican Girls School's Nicole Devlin and Lesa Craven, Independent Schools Queensland International Education and School Governance and Operations Advisor Angelin Achari.

AI & SCHOOL PHOTO POSTS | The eSafety Commissioner has released new advice to address increasing concerns in school communities regarding the weaponisation of publicly available images and videos harvested from school social media accounts and websites.

“Between January and March this year, we received more than 100 reports about anonymous accounts targeting schools and school staff, including AI-generated dance videos, face swaps, memes and fabricated stories about principals and teachers. Almost all involved imagery harvested from school social media accounts or websites,” eSafety said in a statement.

“Much of the reported material, including staff headshots used to create fake videos or teacher ratings, appeared on anonymous TikTok and Instagram accounts. Several of these accounts had hundreds of followers and many of the posts were open to comments.

“We also know of a significant number of recent cases involving AI-generated child sexual exploitation material (deepfake image-based sexual abuse) occurring in school settings,” Ms Inman Grant said.

“Behind each of these reports are real people – teachers, school staff and students – who are facing humiliation, reputational damage and distress.”

The advisory offers practical advice to schools on supporting impacted staff and students, while also building on eSafety’s nationally consistent advice provided through its comprehensive Toolkit for Schools.

https://www.esafety.gov.au/newsroom/media-releases/school-photo-posts-vulnerable-to-emerging-ai-threat

PLAY ON SPORTS VOUCHERS | Parents and carers - don't forget to log on and secure your vouchers - the next round is open today...

🎉 Play On! Sports Voucher applications are now open!

Eligible Queensland families can now apply for up to $200 to help children aged 5-17 years participate in sport.

Vouchers can be used with registered Play On! activity providers across Queensland.

👉 Apply now: https://bit.ly/3RrKpx4

2PM TODAY | A reminder for our followers about the AusAlert national test impacting mobile phones today, Monday 27 July, 2026.

Staying safe with AusAlert | ausalert AusAlert may increase risk for people experiencing violence, especially if they live with someone who uses violence. Alerts may expose safety devices.

'YOU'RE PART OF SOMETHING BIGGER' | Independent school families are choosing, contributing and making sacrifices — and Independent Schools Australia (ISA) says it is time their voices were heard in the national education debate.

Read more about the new national campaign launched today which is elevating parent voice and highlighting the increasing number of families choosing an independent education for their child.

Read more about the campaign:

National campaign launched to give independent school families a stronger voice - Queensland Independent Schools Parents Network Independent school families are choosing, contributing and making sacrifices — and Independent Schools Australia (ISA) says it is time their voices were heard in the national education debate. ISA has today launched a major new national campaign to put parents, school choice and affordability at t...

FREE PARENT WEBINAR SERIES - NAVIGATING BULLYING & CONFLICT | We are delighted to be partnering with Queensland's other peak parenting bodies and the Queensland Department of Education to bring you a free webinar series in August, focused on helping your child navigate conflict and bullying.

The webinar will feature clinical psychologist Andrew Fuller who will step families through this complex issue in three consecutive webinars:

📍Thursday 6 August 2026 6.30pm-7.30pm – How to help your child develop Emotional IQ, Social Confidence and Sustainable Friendships

📍Thursday 13 August 2026 6.30pm-7.30pm – Bullying Interventions

📍Thursday 27 August 2026 6.30pm-7.30pm – Tricky Conversations and Reducing Bullying, Anger and Conflict

Places are free, but registration is essential.

Register here: https://www.eventcreate.com/e/bullying-webinar-series-with-andrew-fuller
Download the event flyer and share with your friends and school community:https://parentsnetwork.qld.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/Bullying-Webinar-Series-with-Andrew-Fuller-Aug2026-flyer_fnl.pdf
Read more: https://parentsnetwork.qld.edu.au/2026/07/20/helping-your-child-navigate-bullying-friendships-and-conflic/

Independent Schools Queensland Catholic School Parents Queensland ICPA QLD INC - Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association Queensland Inc P&Cs Qld Independent Schools Queensland Catholic Education Queensland Queensland Department of Education John-Paul Langbroek Di Farmer MP

DISORDERED EATING | Nourish, Nurture, Notice - is a free Australian-made online program designed to help parents and carers recognise the early signs of disordered eating in young people and take action before things escalate.

If you're worried that your child might be struggling with disordered eating or body image issues, this program supports parents to spot those signs early; before they become harder to address.

The Nourish, Nurture, Notice Masterclass is just 30 minutes long and is delivered by experts, clinicians, and parents who have lived this experience.

They’ll equip you with practical knowledge, real-life stories, and the tools you need to protect your child’s well-being.

You can access the masterclass here: https://edfa.org.au/nourish-nurture-notice/masterclass/

COMPLEX PARENT ENGAGEMENT | It was a privilege for QIS Parents Network to visit Y SCHOOLS, who are part of our 'Mastering Parent Engagement' program this year, alongside Kerri Sheppard (Executive Principal, The BUSY School.

Our shared focus is building a working group centred on complex parent engagement, while creating a valuable network for teams navigating new frontiers in their work across Special Assistance Schools (SAS).

SAS organisations play a critical role in today’s education landscape, supporting young people who have disengaged from mainstream education and helping them re-engage through flexible, trauma-informed approaches.

The growth of the SAS sector is significant, highlighting the scale and importance of this work.

What stands out most after conversations with these teams, is their commitment to bringing parents along on the journey; particularly those who may have experienced educational disadvantage or trauma themselves.

This work requires deep relational practice, innovation, and leadership that thinks beyond traditional models.

Our working group aims to:
🔹 Strengthen approaches to complex parent engagement
🔹 Share practice and learning across SAS contexts
🔹 Provide a strong network for collaboration and support

A sincere thank you to the Y Schools team for their time and for the tour of their Junior and Senior Moreton campuses.

We are excited about what we can build together in this space moving forward.

📸 Pictured (L–R):
Robert Bita – Regional Principal (Y Schools), Kym Waters – QIS Parents Network Parent Engagement Program Advisor, Correy Chiappetta – Head of Moreton Campuses (Y Schools), Kerri Sheppard – Executive Principal (Busy Schools)

If your SAS school is interested in joining upcoming conversations or connecting into this network, please reach out: 📩 [email protected] or [email protected]

Independent Schools Queensland

THE SCHOOL HOLIDAY JUGGLE | "School holidays arrive on schedule, every term, 12 weeks a year. Working parents get a maximum of 4 weeks of annual leave. The gap is a huge structural barrier that quietly assumes someone is always at home to manage the load,'' this post from The Parenthood says.
"Families patch it together every 10 weeks with vacation care, grandparents, favours from friends, whatever flexibility a job allows. When that runs out, it means unpaid leave or cutting back hours."