Teaching and Learning

Assistant Principal's Report

Hello wonderful Merri-bek Primary School community.  My name is Bianca and I am so excited to be working at Merri-bek Primary School as your Assistant Principal.  It has been lovely meeting families, students, teachers and community members at the gate in the mornings and throughout my first 2 weeks here.  

I am looking forward to meeting you all as the year progresses and hopefully contributing to the school experiences of our amazing students and fulfilling the school’s vision.  I have been in schools for 18 years as a teacher, Leading Teacher and Assistant Principal.  I have one son who is 6, 2 mini sausage dogs and a love of learning, reading, nature and am currently training for the Oxfam 55km hike which is in 3 weeks.    

Please feel free to come and introduce yourself as I am learning many new faces and names.  

Kindest regards

Bianca Hudson

Michelle Carland - Engagement,Wellbeing and Inclusion Leader  

My name is Michelle Carland and I am the Mental Health, Wellbeing and Inclusion Leading Teacher at Merri-bek Primary School. My role is to build the capability of the whole school with regard to mental health and wellbeing (identification, promotion and prevention), provide support to staff to better identify and support students with mental health needs, establish clear pathways for referral for students requiring assessment and intervention, and monitor and evaluate student progress. The role was specifically established as a coordination function to support educators in the classroom and to provide a crucial link to resources external to the school.

My Mental Health, Wellbeing and Inclusion Leading Teacher role is quite different to a Student Support Services officer or psychologist – it is not a clinical role and is not designed for direct intervention. The role is seen as a key conduit in ‘getting a child to care’ once a teacher or other staff member identifies a concern in the classroom.

Operating in collaboration with the Department of Education and Training's area-based multi-disciplinary teams, my role is to:

• Provide support to individual teachers in the classroom with students who have been identified as in need
• Create clear pathways for students who may need further assessment and intervention within the school and to external community-based services
• Use informed referral pathways to strengthen linkages between schools and community services
• Work proactively with regional staff, school wellbeing teams and other health professionals to engage appropriate mental health support