Mental Health and Wellbeing

AISNSW is committed to assisting independent schools to provide a safe and supportive environment for all students. The Student Services team works in collaboration with schools to seek assistance with whole-school approaches to wellbeing (prevention) as well as more targeted supports and intensive interventions for students. 

I am interested in accessing:

Advice and Support

Available to key school staff to promote and support the mental health and wellbeing of students and staff. The focus of the consultancy will vary and may include, for example:

• Personalised planning related to student matters.
• Undertaking a school Risk Assessment and Safety Planning.

 Collaborating with external mental health specialists.

Services and Support Available to Explore:

Advice may be related to:

• Risk mitigation strategies
• Safety planning
• Collaborative planning
• Curriculum and assessment adjustments
• Student wellbeing
• Staff wellbeing

Contact Student Services: 02 9299 2845

Professional Learning – face-to-face and virtual

Tailored to your school’s context and needs, delivery of professional learning may include face-to-face, or virtual engagements (e.g. Zoom or webinar). Sessions may be distributed over time to allow for implementation and reflection in between sessions, or they may be stand-alone offerings.

Professional learning is offered in the following areas:

• Student Wellbeing
• Teacher and Leader Wellbeing
• Interventions to Support Students with Mental Health Challenges in the School Setting
• Undertaking a School Risk Assessment and Safety Planning
• Refining School’s Referral Pathways and Processes
• Restorative Practices

Contact Student Services: 02 9299 2845

Online Learning Experiences

Aimed at building your skills and knowledge about mental health and wellbeing. 

There is no right or wrong place to start with this professional learning. The flexible structure of the online learning experiences allows you to dip in and out. You set the pace. You decide where to start and which modules are most meaningful and relevant for you.

• Mental Health – Three modules focused on:
  - Universal Supports: Good for All
  - Targeted Supports: Necessary for Some
  - Intensive Supports: Essential for a Few
• Promoting and Protecting Student Wellbeing and Mental Health
• Understanding Whole-school Wellbeing

Guidance Documentation, Planning Tools and Resources

Designed to provide up to date information about a particular issue and may be used to inform the development of processes and procedures specific to your school context.

• Responding to Self-Harm and/or Suicidality:
  - Flowchart
• School Counselling:
  - Guidance document: Guidance for School Counselling in Independent Schools
  - Guidance document: Professional Associations for School Counsellors
• Understanding Anxiety: The Anxiety Cycle
  - 5-minute animation
  - Teaching resource
• Student, Teacher and Leader Wellbeing: 
  - Podcast series
• Whole-school Wellbeing Literature Review
• Collaborative Planning Process Fact Sheets, Planning Proformas and Case Studies focused on:
  - Individual planning
  - School risk assessment

Networks

Facilitated by AISNSW, the network groups are designed to support staff working in independent schools by providing an opportunity to connect and share input across a range of pertinent topics. 

Wellbeing Network Group 
Held in Week 3 each term, these meetings provide an opportunity for wellbeing leaders to engage in professional discourse and learning and share their practice and approaches to wellbeing.

For further details, please contact Laura Brennan, Education Consultant: lbrennan@aisnsw.edu.au

School Counselling Network Group
Facilitated in Week 4 each term, these meetings are specifically designed to support those in school counselling roles by providing an opportunity for them to connect with each other and share input across a range of pertinent topics.

For further details, please contact Fabienne Arora, Education Consultant and Psychologist: farora@aisnsw.edu.au