Overview

Our Wellbeing Team

Reservoir West Primary School maintains a team of highly dedicated wellbeing staff to support the health and wellbeing of children and families. Our Wellbeing team includes:

• Student, Wellbeing and Engagement Leaders
• A Disability Inclusion Leader
• Psychologist working 5-day fortnight providing wellbeing support and consulations for students, parents, staff
• A dedicated First Aid Officer
• Department of Education Student Support Services
• A team of Education Support Staff working directly with students in classrooms

Our wellbeing team works to:

• Regularly assess, evaluate and update records of students who are at risk of or have confirmed health and wellbeing issues (such as mental health issues, placement in out-of-home care, homelessness, family or violence)
• Support referral processes for students and collect the necessary documentation
• Provide leadership to promote a whole school approach to Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
  We provide a safe and secure environment for students to develop their social and emotional awareness, along with skills and strategies to ensure social and emotional wellbeing.
• Provide individualised support for students with chronic or acute health and wellbeing needs to enable them to experience positive outcomes; both in the school-yard and within structured learning environments
• Recognise and celebrate healthy lifestyles and choices and promote positive health and wellbeing through prevention and strengths-based approaches
• Promote the impact of positive health and wellbeing on learning
• Reflect on the coherence and continuity of the school’s approach to health and wellbeing
• Ensure health and wellbeing practices are built into the school’s pedagogical model

Other whole school supports to provide a holistic approach are:

• Access to our psychologist for check-ins
• Absence Learning Plan or Variation of Attendance Plan for extended absences (eg. holiday over 5 days)
• Home visits from our comitted team of professionals to foster improved connectedness with our school

Research evidence:

• Higher levels of wellbeing are linked to higher academic achievement, school completion, and better overall mental and physical health (Australian Wellbeing Framework).
• Wellbeing interventions focused on belonging and engagement are found to have the greatest impact on student academic achievement (Dix et al., 2020).
• Social and emotional learning programs benefit students’ social skills, self-image, academic achievement and mental health and reduce antisocial behaviour and substance abuse (Evidence for Learning, 2019a).
• Effective health and wellbeing initiatives focus on the quality of intervention programs, which is more important than the frequency or duration (Dilley, 2009).
• School connections to social services which provide additional support for student health and wellbeing also contribute to improving student achievement (Moore et al., 2013).