Cardross Primary School was established in 1925 as part of a soldier settlement situated 15 kilometres south of Mildura and 5 kilometres west of Red Cliffs within a predominantly viticultural community.

Cardross Primary is a rural school with a current enrolment of 109 students and has a well developed history of community participation. Its facilities are the major focal point of the Cardross community. A high value is placed on parent participation and involvement to develop and implement programs that encourage a positive, caring atmosphere. It is expected that the children of Cardross will leave the school with the skills, self confidence and positive attitude to learning and life that will enable them to succeed.

Class structures are influenced by enrolments. In 2023, there is a Prep class, a year 1/2 class, a year 2/3 class, a year 4/5 class and a year 5/6 class. In 2019 the school underwent an $800,000 VSBA upgrade, with classrooms refurbished to operate as open, flexible learning spaces with an extra flexible learning space available for any class to utilise, particularly for video conferencing sessions.

There are currently five full time teachers, and a Tutor program is in place for students in need of additional support. Three specialists provide visual arts, music, library skills and physical education. A well-structured camps program is in place for all students, beginning with an excursion, dinner and sleep over at school for Years Prep-2, an overnight camp for Year 3 and a four day camp for Years 4/5/6. The Snow Trip, Roses Gap and Camp Illawonga are always memorable times for students as they finish their final years at Cardross Primary School.

The school is attractive and well maintained. An administrative area and four learning spaces are located within the main building and a Mod 5 with an attached outdoor learning space provides another open, flexible learning area. The grounds are extensive, covering four hectares and include an oval, basketball courts, sports storage, an asphalted area, sand pit, grassed areas, kitchen garden, chook shed and native bushland. An amphitheatre between the buildings provides a weather-proofed gathering space, assembly area and eating space. Staff have worked hard in recent years to ensure the school is a pleasant and welcoming environment for children and their families each day. The school is a focal point of the small community and the physical environment is an important component that everyone associated with the school community can feel proud of.

There are high levels of collective efficacy amongst staff and a shared belief that we all can have a positive impact on student achievement. Staff work in highly collaborative structures, where their collective expertise is used to lead the improvement of student outcomes. Staff strive as a group to constantly improve their practice through a positive attitude to ongoing professional learning, implementation of evidence based instructional strategies and a shared approach to planning, monitoring and assessment.

Irymple and Red Cliffs kindergartens feed into Cardross and the school provides a transition program for the following year’s Prep students in term 4. Year 6 students exiting the school mostly transition to the secondary colleges at Red Cliffs and Irymple and feedback is generally very positive about their transition.

There is an active parents group and a school council which meets regularly. Parents are very active in our school and provide support for the reading programs, the library, and participate in our excursion programs. Parents’ Club co-ordinate many fund raising activities.

Over the last seven years our school has participated in the New Pedagogies for Deep Learning (NPDL) global research project, based on the work of Michael Fullan. Our goal is to create compassionate global citizens who have the ability to communicate effectively, think critically and collaborate to create knowledge and solve real-world problems in an increasingly complex and connected world.