WELLBEING

ThinkUknow

St Joseph's College is the first school to support the local Vic Police roll out the ThinkUKnow program. 

On Thursday, 26 February Senior Constable Nick Raynor and Sergeant Mark Kendall, attended the Mercy campus and spoke with our Year 8 students. 

For more information, please follow the link https://www.thinkuknow.org.au/.

This was an exceptional and quite timely presentation. We look forward to Nick and his team returning to present to our other year levels later in the year.

ONLINE SAFETY

On 28 November 2024, the Australian Government passed a new law called the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024. This law introduces world-first social media age restrictions and took effect on 10 December 2025. This means, as of early December 2025, a mandatory minimum age of 16 for accounts on certain social media platforms was stipulated, and parents/caregivers could not give their consent to let under-16s use these platforms. Age-restricted social media platforms, such as TikTok, Instragram, Reddit, and others may face penalties if they don’t take reasonable steps to prevent under-16s from having accounts. It’s important to note that there will be no penalties for under-16s who access an age-restricted social media platform, or for their parents or carers. The emphasis and responsibility is on the tech companies.

We’re not really sure how this new law will be enforced or the impacts that it may have, but we do understand that it presented a significant change for many young people. We strongly encourage all parents, caregivers, and young people to explore the eSafety social media age restrictions hub.

The eSafety Commissioner's site has the most reliable and up to date information regarding the social media age restrictions laws including platforms affected, plans for existing social media accounts, and resources for families. 

If you have any questions, concerns, or would like to further discuss, please reach out.

Thank you 

Mrs Rebecca Miceli, Mrs Aimee Webster, Mr Sam De Luca & Mrs Jane Sparks

Wellbeing Team