Connected Catholic Communities Symposium

About this event

This year’s Symposium theme - Connected for Impact - continues our journey of exploring and advancing opportunities to build impactful partnerships, both within and beyond the school gate.

We invite all parent bodies, parishes, Catholic School Agencies and schools, social services and health providers from across NSW to join us as we continue this important conversation at the 2025 Connected Catholic Communities Symposium.

How might we transform our work and the services we provide to our students, families and staff to ensure vibrant and flourishing communities?

In 2022, Catholic Schools NSW embarked upon a bold initiative to respond to the outcomes of the Australian Plenary Council which call on those responsible for Catholic education, including parents and parishes, to identify and respond to the diverse needs and distinct circumstances of Catholic schools in Australia today. 

This initiative is called Connected Catholic Communities.

In 2025, we know that our schools have never been called to do more and be more, to support the students and families who seek enrolment.

How is your school community engaging with and responding to the increasingly contextual complexity of students’ and families’ lives? 

Meeting students and families where they are is an opportunity for collective success both within and beyond the school gate. The Symposium in August will continue the conversation on how we can further connect for impact! 

Session topics on the day will include:

• our collective impact on school connectedness
• building strategic partnerships  
• extended service school model
• practical tools and resources to support implementation
• case studies from our own communities and beyond

We need to be bold and audacious – and we need to step into the needs of the community and the way modern families see our schools and what they need from them.

INTRODUCING YOUR KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Anne T. Henderson 
Senior Consultant, NAFSCE Washington, DC 

CSNSW is extremely excited to host Anne in Australia! 

Anne has been a strong and passionate advocate for unravelling and enriching the relationship between families, schools, and communities, for over 40 years. Since 1981, she has steadily tracked research and effective practice on how engaging families can improve student achievement and life prospects, especially in diverse and low-income communities. 

Anne serves as a Senior Consultant at the National Association for Family, School and Community Engagement (USA) and a prolific author, Anne's best-selling book Beyond the Bake Sale: The Essential Guide to Family-School Partnerships has left an indelible mark on education. 

Her latest work, Everyone Wins! The Evidence for Family-School Partnerships and Implications for Practice, which we shared with attendees at the 2024 Symposium, delves into the research on the effects of parent and community engagement on student achievement. 

Cath Garrett-Jones
Executive Director, Council of Catholic School Parents NSW/ACT

Cath is an experienced education and family engagement professional who is passionate about listening and responding to the needs of families. With over 20 years as a secondary teacher and 10 years as a diocesan family engagement officer, Cath brings deep knowledge and insight to her leadership of CCSP as a collaborative and forward-thinking Council.

The CCSP is a valued partner of CSNSW and we are very pleased to have Cath share her extensive knowledge and experience with us. Cath is passionate about building the capacity of our parents and carers to engage more deeply in their children’s learning. She is equally enthusiastic about supporting schools to developed and build their ability to engage with families to ensure meaningful connections that contribute to strong partnerships, enhancing learning for our children and young people.

Cath’s leadership is marked by vision, impact, and a strong commitment to inclusion. She represents parent voices on key advisory and ethics committees, including NESA and the Non-government Schools Advisory Council, and works tirelessly to ensure Catholic school communities remain connected, responsive, and family-focused.

Learn more about the CCSP.

Paul Milgate 
Manager, Strategy and Partnerships Strategy and Transformation, DLCS

Paul is a Senior Catholic education leader who is mission-led with extensive experience enabling and driving system wide change programs to build system and school capacity to uplift student and community outcomes. He is highly skilled in strategic planning and alignment, and establishing and supporting strategic external partnerships in areas of high need. Paul collaboratively led the development of the Family Connect Service for all schools in the Lismore Diocese. This year CSNSW is privileged to have Paul sharing his expertise and passion with the Connected Catholic Communities Project through the Extended Services School Model workstream. 

with 

Les Hems
Principal, Right Lane Consulting

Les is a career long social impact professional and is recognised as an expert in social planning, social infrastructure, strategy development and implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and social impact measurement.

Geoff Miller
CSNSW, Funding and Demographics Specialist

Geoff is a highly experienced data and analytics professional with a proven track record in developing data driven strategies and delivering actionable insights. He is supporting this project with his expertise in demographics and educational measurement. 

WHAT DOES A CONNECTED CATHOLIC COMMUNITIES SYMPOSIUM LOOK LIKE?

Access the 2024 Symposium HERE    Watch the 2022 Symposium HERE   Explore emerging themes HERE 

LOOKING FOR ACCOMMODATION?

Symposium delegates can have 15% off Best Available Rate for rooms at the Symposium venue, Amora Hotel Jamison, for the 13 and 14 August (Checkout 15 August), if booked prior to Tuesday 31st July. 
Learn more and book HERE.