Mental Health Practitioner

Location: North West Region | Wallan

Job type: Full time / From 14/10/2024

Organisation: Schools (Government)

**Salary**: Salary not specified

Occupation: Health and Allied Health

Reference: 1439217

**Location Profile**:
Wallan Secondary College (WSC) is a Year 7 to 12 Secondary College situated in Wallan, 50 kilometres north of Melbourne, in the Mitchell Shire one of the fastest growing areas outside of the Melbourne Central Business District (CBD).
Land in Wallan and the surround is continuing to be developed, attracting many families to the area. The College opened in 2006 with 110 students. There has been strong enrolment growth in the past 12 months. Numbers steadily increased throughout the 2024 school year, and current student numbers are in excess of 850.
The College currently has 5 Principal Class members, 7 Leading Teachers, 1 Learning Specialist positions, 60 teaching staff and 28 support staff. Staff include; classroom teachers, Educational Support (ES) administration, ES student support and ancillary staff.
Staff of WSC, along with the community have high expectations of our students. Staff at all times engage students in their learning and have high academic expectations of their students.
WSC offers a range of enrichment opportunities; performing arts, breakfast and homework club, inter school sporting and co-curricular activities. A Learning for Life Program which includes small group literacy and numeracy intervention. An independent reading program has been integrated into the Pastoral Care curriculum with a focus on reading and comprehension across all other learning areas. Our lecture theatre has allowed us to hold our annual production and concerts in a state of the art facility.
Students are encouraged to develop their leadership skills; opportunities are provided through a range of learning experiences. All students of WSC should demonstrate and model our school values of Respect, Responsibility and Resilience.
Our school is committed to student wellbeing, engagement and achievement through four goals for continuous school improvement:
1. To provide for all students at WSC a challenging and differentiated curriculum that equips each and every student for successful future pathways and ensures that they are lifelong learners.
- To improve the learning growth of every student across all domains but particularly in literacy and numeracy.
- To improve student achievement and completion rates in VCE, VET and VM programs.
2. To provide a stimulating learning environment so that all students are actively engaged in all learning opportunities both inside and outside of the classroom and capable of achieving their full individual potential.
3. To develop a positive, healthy and safe learning environment that enhances student voice and empowers all students to achieve positive pathways in their own community and beyond.
4. To build the capacity of all staff at WSC in order to develop an equitable, sustainable and high performing teaching and learning environment.
Our College Motto is 'Learning for life¿, this is embodied in the actions of all key stakeholders who are jointly committed to improving the learning outcomes of students. The College culture of participation and striving to achieve our best; always, is based on mutual respect.
We believe improving student outcomes is achieved through deep learning, outstanding teaching, supportive and authentic relationships

**Selection Criteria**:

- Ability to implement a range of small group and whole-school mental health prevention and promotion activities aimed at improving student mental health and wellbeing, including the delivery of capability building and awareness raising activities for staff and/or students on key mental health and wellbeing issues affecting the school student population.
- Demonstrated ability to input into the development, implementation and evaluation of processes and strategies aimed at enhancing mental health and wellbeing prevention, promotion and early intervention.
- Demonstrated experience in assessing, conceptualising and analysing wellbeing issues, and providing evidence-based direct counselling support to clients with a range of mental health needs.
- Demonstrated experience in coordinating supports for young people with complex needs including referrals to a range of specialist services as appropriate.
- Highly developed communication, networking and interpersonal skills including the ability to liaise effectively with a wide range of people.
- Clear understanding of legislative requirements regarding privacy of health information.
- Demonstrated experience in therapeutic counselling skills utilising frameworks such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Dialectal Behavioural Therapy (DBT).

**Role**:
The Mental Health Practitioners (MHP) initiative was announced by the Minister for Education in late 2018 to expand mental health and wellbeing support in gover