School Wellbeing Coordinator/Leaders of WellbeingRole Descriptionpro-forma

Wellbeing Core Team

As Wellbeing is everybody’s business in schoolcommunities; the Wellbeing Coordinator will ideally have a Wellbeing core team. The core team is responsible for developing and driving the implementationof a whole-of-school approach to the promotion of health and wellbeing. School demographics and need will determine the size and makeup of the Wellbeing Core team, which usually involves: the Principal or Deputy Principal, Chaplain, Special Education Coordinator, School Nurse, Counsellor and or Psychologist, Curriculum Coordinator, a parent representative from the Board, a youth or community service representative and 2-3 student representatives. In secondary schools consider sub school representatives. To enable discussion of individual or group needs that are of a confidential nature, allow separate meeting time with student and parent representatives not present.

School Wellbeing Coordinator Role Description*

The Wellbeing Coordinator, with assistance from the core team, will be responsible for the following:

Organisation, ethos, environment

Together with school leadership and governance,developing appropriate policies, strategic plans, values and organisational structures that support the promotion of school wellbeing. Marketing these through regular newsletters and other strategies.

Providing day-to-day advice to Principal/Deputy Principal on student wellbeing issues

  • Building and maintaining a safe school community. This includes attending to critical incident and emergency management, safety and action plans, wellbeing alerts, individual learning plans, cyber safety, positive behaviours, restorative practices and non punitive bullying interventions.Ensuring all staff understandsthe legal implications and importance of respecting confidentiality, privacy, duty of care and mandatory reporting.
  • Supporting the implementation of national and state initiatives linked to health, wellbeing, and safety in schools. Eg. National Safe Schools Framework, MindMatters & KidsMatters national mental health initiatives, National School Drug Education Strategy, Cybersafety, Sunsmart, Asthma Friendly, Anaphylaxis Management, Diabetes/Epilepsy education, First Aid qualifications etc.
  • Empowering and advocating for students, parents/carers and staff so their voices are heard in relation to Wellbeing matters. A gate keeping role that promotes distributed leadership. Eg.Creating forums for students, parents/carers, staff and the school community to raise, discuss and promote solutions to wellbeing issues within the school community.
  • Managing the Wellbeing budget. Seeking and promoting improved access to funding opportunities.

Teaching and Learning

Facilitating the development and implementation of social and emotional learning across all years in the curriculum.

  • Organising regular staff professional learningof social and emotional core competenciesto inform school teaching pedagogy and learning strategies.
  • Seeking and promoting improved access to student and staff wellbeing resources.
  • Enabling student voice, leadership and participation.

Partnerships with parents and community

  • Promoting the development of parents/carers as partners in wellbeing within your school community.

Listening to student/staff requests for assistance and providing support in the application of student modifications or accommodations, seeking help, including referral, providing community supports and liaising with/involvingeducation sector Student Services staff.

Acknowledging that attending to student needs can be tough. Organising care of self and others through debriefing, both informally with colleagues and more formally via supervision with a trained practitioner, such as a psychologist, social or youth worker.

  • Developing and strengthening relevant partnerships with community facilities and agencies to promote health and wellbeing.

Collaborating with appropriate networks to promote cluster-based Wellbeing activities across schools.

*This is a guide only for a full time Wellbeing Coordinator. For part time positions we recommend a focus on the core work indicated by the arrows. All other responsibilities would therefore remain in the leadership domain. It is vital to discuss the expectations and boundaries of the Wellbeing Coordinator rolewith the Principal.

Adapted by WISA, 2015 from CEO Melbourne Student Services 2005 and Ballarat Diocese Wellbeing Coordinators 2011.