Teacher School Counsellor

**Position Information**:
School counsellors are an essential part of the department’s school counselling service.

They provide counselling and psychological assessment of students to complement and enhance the work of teachers to strengthen student learning and wellbeing outcomes, and they help families understand and manage their children’s learning and mental health needs. This is a truly collegiate role offering unique challenges and opportunities - both in your professional development and your ability to make an impact on the lives of children and young people.

School counsellors receive regular, individual professional supervision with the Senior Psychologist Education and participate in group and peer supervision as a member of the broader district school counselling team. You will most likely be collaborating with a number of school communities and colleagues, as well as outside agencies, with the opportunity to use and expand the full range of your skills and expertise as part of a supportive, multidisciplinary team.

School counsellors are provided with regular opportunities to participate in continuing professional development and the NSW Department of Education will support you to complete or maintain your registration with the Psychology Board of Australia. Other benefits include school holiday leave, travel allowances, and health and wellbeing benefits such as our Fitness Passport program. The department will also cover your indemnity insurance as a psychologist.

Bungendore Public School is a large school located approximately 30 minutes east of Canberra in a growing rural area. The school currently has an enrolment of 500 students, including 3% of student who identify as Aboriginal and 2% of students who identify as EAL/D.

The school is supported by a close-knit community who hold high expectations for learning and wellbeing. A strong culture of collaboration exists within the school, and teachers are supported to develop and implement high-quality teaching and learning experiences. The school is strongly supported by an active Parent and Citizens Association.

The school’s Strategic Improvement Plan focuses on the development of strong literacy and numeracy teaching, a positive learning culture and student wellbeing and community engagement.

**Selection Criteria**:
We are looking for School Counsellors with qualifications in Education and Psychology. To be successful in these roles you will have:

- Teaching qualifications and eligibility for an approval to teach in NSW Department of Education schools
- Be a registered or provisionally registered psychologist, or eligible for registration with the Psychology Board of Australia
- Have demonstrated understanding of the mental health needs of children and young people
- Experience in counselling children and young people using evidence-based interventions
- Experience in cognitive, emotional and behavioural assessment of children and young people
- Well-developed interpersonal, oral and written communication skills, including report writing
- Ability to work collaboratively and liaise with key stakeholders to enhance outcomes for children and young people
- Knowledge of and commitment to the Department's Aboriginal education policies

**Conditions**:
Ability and willingness to travel between worksites.

**Special Notes**:
Successful applicants will be provided with a Departmental induction program, ongoing professional learning and professional supervision.

Find out more about working in the school counselling service

Visit the Department’s School counselling service pages to discover more about working as a school psychologist or school counsellor in NSW public schools.

About the NSW Department of Education