Wellbeing Team News

M.E.R.L.E Program Launch

On Wednesday 10th August, we held the official launch of the MERLE Program run by South East Community Links (SECL) here at HPSC! MERLE stands for Mentor, Empower, Reflect, Learn and Earn, and the program works to support young people in gaining life skills to reach their full potential. 

MERLE will work with 60 students across three schools in the South Eastern suburbs of Melbourne over two years to promote inclusion and build resilience, and Hampton Park Secondary College is one of these schools! 

The program focuses on practical support, life skills and pathways that are needed by young people to create a successful future at home, school, work and in the community. Key elements of the program include one on one and group mentoring, leadership development, and financial and life skills. 

On the day we were lucky to be joined by many notable guests including Federal MP for Holt Cassandra Fernando, Minister for Home Affairs Claire O'Neill, South Eastern Community Links (SECL) CEO Peter McNamara, Writer/Activist/Actor/Producer Candy Bowers, and many more! Also in attendance was MERLE Youth Practition from SECL Kwabs Agyeman-Manu who, along with Candy led our students in a hip hop/poetry creative writing experience where students had the opportunity to work collaboratively and present their final piece to our guests and staff. 

We would like to thank everyone who attended the program launch. The full list of attendees are:

HPSC GP Now Taking Bookings:

Every Thursday there will be a doctor at HPSC to see students.  GPs are at the school to help you be as healthy as possible, so you can see them for free. 

You can request to see either female or male GPs if you have a preference, and the appointments will be for about 20mins.

You can make an appointment for the GP by using this link: GP Appointment Request Form. or if you would prefer that your appointment not appear as a ‘meeting’ on Compass, you can drop into the centre during recess or lunchtime.

For more information, head over to Health Space, A1/Wellbeing, check out the posts on your House Teams page, or scan the QR code on the flyer below. 

Lawyers in Schools:

Talani the lawyer is here every Tuesday for all students to see for FREE. 

Students can book an appointment via this link.

Sporting change (Years 8-10):

Every Tuesday after school we have a free sports program running in the gym, students will have the opportunity to meet with sporting clubs and try out a range of sports. Some of the clubs we have had come out include Melbourne city football and Dandenong Rangers. 

Students can try out soccer, netball, basketball, rugby and so much more. Please collect a permission form from A1 or come down to the gym on Tuesdays at 3.30 pm and collect a form.

EPIC sports program:

Students who have recently arrived in Australia, within the last 5 years are invited to come on Fridays after school to the gym and take part in lots of games and activities where you can get to know the school, make some friends and hang out.

This program is FREE and open to all year levels. Please collect a consent form from A1 or come to the gym on Fridays from 3.30 pm and collect a form.

Southern Migrant resource centre:

Students and families who are new to Australia and require some extra help with settlement supports, migration, Centrelink, filling in documents, understanding life in Australia and any other supports are invited to meet with Sadiqua on Wednesday afternoons from 1 pm onwards. 

She is FREE to access, students can find out more by collecting a flyer from A1 or meeting with her on Wednesdays.

Cooking program:

Foodbank is running a series of free cooking classes for our HPSC community.

Classes will run after school on Tuesdays from 3.30 pm beginning on August 16th.

Classes are open to all secondary school students and their parents/guardians, and will cover nutrition, cooking on a budget and how to create healthy tasty meals. 

If you are interested to participate please collect consent from A1.