Nurturing Holistic Wellbeing: 

A Biblically Grounded Approach at DCC

A forward thinking, preventative and biblically grounded wellbeing program is not only essential in seeing the young people entrusted to us at DCC become all that God has made them to be, but also in building a community that seeks to nurture and grow one another. It is an incredible privilege to be investing in the DCC community in this way. 

For many years, I worked as a social worker in fast-paced and chaotic hospital environments. This included maternity wards supporting young vulnerable families, neurology and cancer wards helping people adjust to unexpected and shock illnesses, crisis intervention in ED and ICU and in palliative care, where I walked alongside patients and their families in their final season of life. Throughout these settings, issues of mental health emergencies, substance misuse, family breakdown and trauma from violence or abuse were all too common.  

These experiences were often intense but rewarding, giving me daily opportunities to share the compassion, mercy, hope and grace of Jesus with people in their most vulnerable moments.   

My work over the last couple of years at DCC has been a welcome and fulfilling shift in focus. My role still very much revolves around connecting with students and families during challenging seasons, but via the wellbeing program, also enables me to invest in the wellbeing of the DCC community.    

My prior experience has reinforced the urgency of preventative school-based wellbeing education programs and the tools and positive outcomes such programs equip students with, to help them cope with life’s challenges.   

As a Christian school community, we believe every young person is created in the image of God, (Genesis 1:27) and therefore inherently valuable, deeply loved and full of potential. Supporting their growth through a holistic wellbeing program is not just a responsibility, but an expression of our collective faith in action. 

(Over 180 parents attended our recent Respectful Relationships Information night with Melinda Tankard-Reist and Marshall Ballantine-Jones)

Our comprehensive wellbeing program, across Year 7 to 12 and for parents and staff, addresses key areas that support students through the highs and lows of adolescence, including: 

• Healthy Friendships & Respectful Relationships

Valuing oneself and others – living out the biblical call to ‘love your neighbour as yourself’ (Mark 12:31) and speak life into others (Proverbs 18:21). These sessions promote empathy, boundary setting and respect, forming the foundation for strong character building and safer interpersonal interactions. 

• Drug, Vaping and Alcohol Education

Making informed and wise choices, understanding that our bodies are a gift from God – our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, and how we care for them matters (1 Corinthians 6: 19-20). 

• Cyber Safety

Navigating the online world safely and with integrity. The internet can be both a gift and a challenge, so we aim to instill discernment, kindness and responsibility – aligning with Jesus’ call to be ‘wise as serpents and innocent as doves’ (Matthew 10:16). 

• Mental Health awareness

Just as the Psalms are filled with raw and honest expressions of emotion, they encourage our young people to speak openly about their mental health and to be mindful of others’ needs. This assurance helps them understand that it’s okay to struggle and that seeking help is essential – whether through God, professional support or the strength of our community. 

These programs and workshops are delivered by a combination of our experienced wellbeing team and other staff, as well as external organisations who provide specialist expertise in navigating these issues.  

(Year 8 ‘Taking Care of Yourself and Others’ panel session)

These sessions and topics are not just ‘add ons’ to our curriculum, they are vital building blocks that help our students become resilient, purposeful, responsible and relational. They help develop our young people as whole people – young men and women who are compassionate, thoughtful and spiritually grounded.  

In nurturing wellbeing, we are not only helping students cope with life’s challenges and developing emotional intelligence – we are participating in God’s transformative work, as DCC’s guiding Bible verse requires, 

‘To act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God’ (Micah 6:8).