Hello everyone,

My name is Kelly Wilson and I am very excited to be a part of the wonderful team and community at St Patrick’s P.S. 

I have been a teacher for 24 years and have come to St Patrick’s to work with you all in the areas of Wellbeing & Mental Health. 

Together with the wonderful Wellbeing Team already in place at St Patrick’s, I will be implementing many new programs, setting up wellbeing learning spaces, and providing opportunities for everyone to learn about being the very best version of themselves. 

I am here to support teachers, students and families, so please pop in and say hello. I’m very grateful to be part of the wonderful family at St Patrick’s and look forward to meeting you all.

Take care,

Kel.

What is Wellbeing?

The World Health Organisation defines wellbeing as:

"... a positive state experienced by individuals and societies. Similar to health, it is a resource for daily life and is determined by social, economic and environmental conditions. Well-being encompasses quality of life and the ability of people and societies to contribute to the world with a sense of meaning and purpose."

The MHiPS (Mental Health in Primarsy Schools) Role

The role of the MHiPS is to build the capability of the whole school with regard to mental health and wellbeing (identification, promotion and prevention), provide support to staff to better identify and support students with mental health needs, establish clear pathways for referral for students requiring assessment and intervention, and monitor and evaluate student progress. The role was specifically established as a coordination function to support educators in the classroom and to provide a crucial link to resources external to the school.

The MHiPS role is quite different to a Student Support Services officer or psychologist – it is not a clinical role and is not designed for direct intervention. The role is seen as a key conduit in ‘getting a child to care’ once a teacher or other staff member identifies a concern in the classroom.

The role is designed to provide a proactive focus for the promotion and prevention of mental health and wellbeing through assessment and implementation of context-relevant programs, approaches and initiatives based on a broad and extensive knowledge of the needs of the school.

Operating in collaboration with the Department of Education and Training's area-based multi-disciplinary teams, the MHiPS :

• Embeds evidence-based training and resources across the school to build the capability of staff to better identify and support students
• Provides support to individual teachers in the classroom with students who have been identified as in need
• Creates clear pathways for students who may need further assessment and intervention within the school and to external community-based services
• Uses informed referral pathways to strengthen linkages between schools and community services
• Works proactively with regional staff, school wellbeing teams and other health professionals to engage appropriate mental health support
• Is responsible for implementing whole-school approaches to mental health and wellbeing
• Contributes to the development of larger-scale reform, promoting what works to support students’ mental health and wellbeing.