Wellbeing

Dear families,

My name is Adam Todd, and I am pleased to introduce myself as our school’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader (MHWL).

I have been teaching atOld Orchard Primary School for seven years and have spent much of that time working in the Wellbeing and Disability Inclusion space. This experience has shaped my strong commitment to supporting student mental health and building inclusive, supportive environments where every child feels safe, valued, and ready to learn.

Our school is part of the Mental Health in Primary Schools (MHiPS) initiative, which supports a whole-school approach to mental health and wellbeing. In my role as MHWL, I will work alongside teachers, leadership, students, and families to:

• build staff capacity to support student mental health and wellbeing
• promote consistent, school-wide wellbeing practices
• support early identification of emerging needs
• strengthen connections between school, families, and external support services
• help develop clear and shared care pathways across the school community

We are also excited to share that our therapy dog, Ginger, will be part of the new Mental Health and Wellbeing role, having now completed her training. Ginger will be venturing out of the STEM room to support students across the school and within classrooms, bringing a familiar and comforting presence to wellbeing work. She has already done an incredible job greeting the preps each morning and helping them settle into their new classrooms.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at adam.todd@education.vic.gov.au, and you can read more information about the role at

 https://www.vic.gov.au/mental-health-primary-schools

Wall of Pets and a Special Update

To help make our Wellbeing Room a calm and welcoming space, we are creating a Wall of Pets! As we know, through the addition of Ginger to the Old Orchard community, animals ​can provide comfort, joy, and connection for students, and we would love for families to be part of this initiative.

If your child would like their pet included on the Wall of Pets, please drop off a photo along with the pet’s name and the name of your child/children on the back of it. The Wellbeing Room is located in the portables next to the library, near the Year 3 classrooms, and there will be a tub for children to add their photos to.

Thank you for your continued support. I look forward to working closely with our school community to support student wellbeing.

Kind regards,

Adam Todd

Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader