History
St. Thomas’ was officially opened in 1970 with Sr Therese Condon from the Sisters of Sion as Principal and fewer than 100 children enrolled in Grades Prep to 4. There were only 6 classrooms, Staff Room and Office, but only 5 classrooms were used. Boys in Grades 5 and 6 attended St. Patrick’s College in the years to 1978.
The school quickly grew and soon it was necessary to add additional classrooms, first a double classroom (our present Library), followed by a new block with large Open Area, and in 1984, 4 more classrooms with 2 withdrawal areas, a new tuckshop and a storeroom. A multi-purpose Hall was erected in 1999.
Numbers reached a peak of 370 students around 1984.
St Thomas’ is one of two Catholic primary schools in the township of Sale. We have approximately 320 children at our school, with a large percentage having working parents at the local RAAF Base and onshore and offshore workers at the ESSO Gas Plants. St Thomas’ was officially opened by Fr Dan McCarten in 1970, with Sr Therese Condon from the Sisters of Sion as Principal. Our school, in its short history, is held in high regard in our community, with the school being an active participant in a variety of community-based activities. Our school has modern facilities that cater for each child’s learning needs. The children are lucky to have over ten acres of playing fields for a range of sporting activities. St Thomas’ has a structured curriculum with literacy and numeracy blocks each day. We have small class sizes with teacher aides in each room. St Thomas’ prides itself on its Catholic ethos, quality curriculum and pastoral care of all within the school community. It is a place where Christ and the Holy Spirit are truly alive and active.