Our schools play a vital role in promoting the wellbeing of all students. Schools share this responsibility with students, families, the community, and other education and training providers.
Our approach to wellbeing is strongly grounded in Catholic Christian beliefs and values. Wellbeing is defined as an ongoing experience of wholeness and hope that is integral to learning and ultimately, to overall health and life success. It relates to the interconnectedness of emotional, physical, cognitive, social and spiritual dimensions within the person. Wellbeing encompasses nurturing self, giving to others, and building and celebrating community and fostering strong connections.
Educational settings are uniquely placed to positively influence wellbeing. They have a critical role to play in fostering positive and sustainable characteristics that enable students to achieve their full potential. Evidence supports the strong, mutual relationship between wellbeing and learning. Identifying and reducing barriers to learning, including those linked to student wellbeing, can help to maximise the educational and social outcomes for students.
The Australian Student Wellbeing Framework (2018) was developed to provide schools with a vision and set of guiding principles to support school communities to build positive learning environments and to address student wellbeing priorities. BCE endorses the Australian Student Wellbeing Framework vision that Australian schools are learning communities that promote student wellbeing, safety and positive relationships so students can reach their full potential. The Australian Student Wellbeing Framework sets out the vision and guiding principles for building positive learning environments and safe, supportive, and respectful school communities and affirms the rights of all members of the school community to feel safe and be safe at school. It is based on evidence that demonstrates the strong association between safety, wellbeing and learning. The Australian Student Wellbeing Framework acknowledges that student wellbeing is both 'caught and taught'. That is, both the culture of the school community and explicit development of social and emotional wellbeing through the curriculum are important.
The five interconnected elements of leadership, inclusion, student voice, partnerships and support provide the foundation for enhanced student wellbeing and learning outcomes.
BCE partners with Be You to provide schools with the knowledge, tools and resources to create positive, inclusive and responsive learning communities where every young person, educator, and family is empowered to achieve their best possible mental health.
The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers also reflects an emphasis on student safety, inclusion and wellbeing. This is specifically articulated in Standard 4
Create and Maintain Supportive and Safe Learning Environments. Of the seven general capabilities that are addressed in the
Australian Curriculum those that specifically relate to student wellbeing include personal and social competence, self-management, ethical behaviour, intercultural understanding, thinking skills and creativity. In the delivery of the Australian Curriculum, schools address a core wellbeing curriculum in health and through the personal and social capabilities.
At the heart of all our endeavors is the student. A range of role holders in schools and BCE offices support schools in creating optimal environments for student learning and wellbeing.
Brisbane Catholic Education Student Wellbeing Personnel
Guidance Counsellors: Guidance Counsellors work to improve student interactions with their school environment, reducing barriers to academic and life success. They promote educational equality, equity, access, and academic success, helping students become happy, confident, and successful learners who use their knowledge for the good of all. They understand the needs of children and young people within educational systems and the unique complexities of schools and classrooms. They are experts in mental health, social-emotional wellbeing and student engagement and are an essential link in the continuum of support provided by educators and specialist staff to schools, families, and external health care providers if required.
Guidance Counsellors are integral members of school support teams in Brisbane Catholic Education and are experienced and have full registration as a teacher with the QCT and possess Masters’ level Education qualifications in Guidance and Counselling or have full registration as psychologist with AHPRA with experience in the education setting or working with young people. Some Guidance Counsellors have registration as a teacher and psychologist. All are required to maintain professional competence through continual professional development and supervision.
Guidance Counsellors in Brisbane Catholic Education work collaboratively with other school specialist staff in learning, behaviour, pastoral care, engagement, and student transitions to enhance student learning outcomes. They have the unique capacity to:
- apply contemporary psychological theory to provide brief counselling support for students so they can engage effectively in their learning;
- consult with teachers to inform adjustments in teaching, learning, assessment and reporting;
- use the results of educational assessment to assist in developing personalised learning plans and transition/pathway plans;
- facilitate individual student support and manage case management processes for students who present with complex social-emotional, mental health and behavioural needs;
- undertake appropriate psychometric assessments where deemed necessary by the school team to understand ability, strengths, and weaknesses in order to support teaching and learning.
Guidance Counsellors monitor the well-being of students and provide feedback to schools, families and other professionals when students are continuing to experience difficulties. Guidance Counsellors are known and trusted by students, families, teachers and school leadership for their professional skills and competence.
In Brisbane Catholic Education Secondary schools and P-12 schools a Guidance Counsellor is provided on a fulltime basis when student numbers reach 40 and a second Guidance Counsellor is allocated at 900 students. Those under 400 are staffed according to a pro rata formula. In primary schools Guidance Counselling services are provided to a cluster of schools on a pro rata ratio of 1 full time position to 800 students. Many schools choose to staff above this ratio. Contact your local school to enquire how you or your child can access the Guidance Counsellor services.
School Pastoral Workers: are committed to a ministry which values the dignity and potential of individuals within the school community. School Pastoral Workers walk with students, particularly the marginalised and disadvantaged, through the course of their lives at school, as well as being supportive of parents and staff. School Pastoral Workers are members of religious orders.
Student Wellbeing Officers: Some schools have Student Wellbeing Officers. These are School Officers work under the direction of specialist staff to assist in supporting the wellbeing of students.
Education Officers - Student Wellbeing: provide supervision and professional advice, support and reporting in the areas of student wellbeing, guidance and counselling, behaviour education, social and emotional development and pastoral care. They support the Guidance Counsellors and School Pastoral Workers to carry out their role and to work with staff and communities to contribute to student wellbeing.
Education Officers - Student Behaviour Support: provide consultancy and professional learning opportunities regarding Brisbane Catholic Education Student Behaviour Support Policy and procedures, and whole school approaches to behaviour support and wellbeing.
Lead Education Advisor - Student Wellbeing: provides leadership, advice and support in student wellbeing and liaises with multi-disciplinary teams working with schools to improve wellbeing, safety and educational outcomes for students. Key areas of responsibility include responsive support to schools, guidance and counselling services, student behaviour support and proactive approaches to wellbeing within schools.
Lead Education Advisor - Inclusive Education and Student Wellbeing: provides leadership, advice and support in policy development, strategic directions, resourcing and specialist professional support in the key areas of students with disability and student wellbeing..
Education Officer - Student Wellbeing and Professional Support: provide professional support in the area of students with disability, specifically in the categories of Intellectual Disability and Social Emotional Disorders. A key focus of this role is co-management of the Caroline Chisholm Centre.
The Caroline Chisholm School - Students and Family Support Centre: is a partnership involving Brisbane Catholic Education and the Queensland University of Technology. It is an educational and developmental psychology clinic which provides a wide range of psychological services to students and their families.