Exciting Student Wellbeing position available at Ballarat Specialist School:

• Open to graduate and experienced candidates that hold suitable qualifications.
• Flexible time fraction and work hours
• Only work during school terms, enjoy 11 weeks of holiday leave.
• Onsite support and supervision available from a diverse Integrated Services Team.
• Work in one of the largest specialist schools in Victoria.
• Enjoy working with a supportive team of wellbeing specialists.
• Access to a wide range of resources and professional development budget.

Location Profile

Student Wellbeing staff at Ballarat Specialist School (BSS) work with children with a range of disabilities. These disabilities include mild, moderate and profound intellectual disability and developmental delay. The students who attend Ballarat Specialist School are aged between 5 and 18 years. 

Role

The role of Student Wellbeing Officer is to support the wellbeing and welfare of our students and their families, to promote wellbeing and positive mental health across our community. Student Welfare Officers support and advocate on behalf of young people facing wellbeing, developmental, social and protection issues. SWO’s may work with young people on an individual or group basis, offering practical and emotional support and helping them to develop skills to make positive changes in their lives. SWO’s can provide basic counselling, intervention and risk assessments, in an effort to understand the student and their needs, and may support the family to refer the young person to other professional services when the issues are complex or specific. SWO’s will also work to support families during times of hardship, to access community and financial supports. The Student Wellbeing Officer position requires a demonstrated understanding of confidentiality, counselling, and communication skills. The Student Wellbeing Officer must be able to relate to, and interact with, a wide range of students, families, school community members, service providers, and Departmental staff while maintaining confidentiality with the welfare of the students as the prime focus of the position.

Responsibilities

Respond to and support students presenting with wellbeing needs on a day-to-day basis.  Provide brief or short-term, targeted wellbeing support via one-on-one or small group interventions. Respond to family welfare and crisis support needs, linking families to appropriate community services. Mental health and wellbeing promotion across the school. Identify need for, develop and facilitate wellbeing programs and initiatives across the school. Develop and maintain relationships with community agencies welfare, family services and mental health. Support students and families to access mental health supports through community agencies. Support attendance improvement on an individual, targeted basis. Support the school’s implementation of the Partnering Agreement.