Mental Health in Primary Schools

Hello everyone, my name is Holly Smith, some of you may already know me. I have been at Cheltenham Primary School for 12 years, teaching all year levels from Year 1 to Year 6, being Literacy Learning Specialist and running the admin side of our school Library for the last few years. This year, I have a new role at CPS. It is called the Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader (MHWL). A very broad role, I agree. This write up will outline my role further, where the role originated from, and why or how you can contact me.

The MHWL ("m-hall") role is a government funded position that has come out of the Royal Commission into Mental Health and further in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was a pilot program, that has now been so successful, it will be rolled out all over the state by 2026. This means I (and thereby the school) will be trained, resourced and build connections (internally and externally) to help support the mental health and wellbeing of the Cheltenham Primary School community.

I have been completing training this year, run by the University of Melbourne, to learn more about the MHWL role and how the role is to help build the capacity of the whole school. The MHWL role is multifaceted, as can be seen by the picture below. However, my aim ultimately is help build on the school’s approach to wellbeing. We want to refine and sustain our approach to wellbeing. But this takes time. So this year, we aim to understand the needs of our school community. We hope to build the capacity of students and staff to understand mental health, relevant strategies and where to go when you need support. We want to work with students, parents and staff to understand what supports are needed to help our school community thrive and flourish.

Under Victoria’s Mental Health in Primary Schools (MHiPS) initiative, my role focuses on mental health promotion, early intervention, and building teacher capability. I’m a teacher (not a psychologist) and I work alongside staff to strengthen everyday wellbeing practices across the school.

As an MHWL I work across the school to lead a whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing for students, staff and families based on the needs of the school community. This can be demonstrated in a number of ways:

To build the capacity of school staff, in particular classroom teachers, to identify and support students with mental health concerns in the classroom.
Support the school to create clear referral pathways internally (within school) and externally (to community services) for students identified as requiring further mental health assessment and support.
Coordinate targeted mental health support for students by working with regional staff, school wellbeing and leadership teams, teachers, parents/carers and external organisations.
I advocate for student voice and agency in their wellbeing and mental health needs.

As part of our partnership in student wellbeing, it would be fantastic if parents could fill out a quick survey on student mental health. It is anonymous, and will help with the direction of information I can source to assist families. Please try to give broad information rather than specific case information, more for the privacy of the student involved.

Please follow the link to complete the survey.

https://forms.gle/YjsNGV4AA32o1ZSq6

So watch this space, as I will be in regular contact to discuss wellbeing and showcase the wellbeing initiatives being used at CPS. In the meantime, if you would like to share any knowledge, ideas or have any questions please feel free to email me on Holly.Smith@education.vic.gov.au.

You can learn more about the program and my role via this link https://www.mhips.org.au/training-program/the-mhwl-role/