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Mental Health Education for Schools
Schools play a vital role in promoting mental health, building resilience, and ensuring young people can access support when they need it. Whether you're looking to increase mental health awareness, support student wellbeing, strengthen staff capability, or connect students with services, there are a range of ways headspace can partner with your school.
Our local headspace centre can visit your school to provide an introduction or refresher for young people on all things headspace, while headspace National Mental Health Education Program, Be You and various other programs provide evidence-based workshops, training, and support for educators, students, and the broader school community.
Together, we're here to help create mentally healthy,
supportive, and connected school communities.
Learn more below.
The Community Engagement team at headspace Southport can visit your school to provide an introduction or refresher on the support available through our centre and how young people can access it.
These sessions cover who headspace supports, common reasons young people seek help, how to make a referral, and what to expect when engaging with our services. We also showcase the many opportunities available beyond clinical support, including Youth Advisory Councils, groups, events and other ways for young people to connect, contribute, and have their voices heard.
We also introduce students to headspace's digital support options, including online and phone-based support, peer chat services, online communities, and a wide range of free mental health and wellbeing resources that can be accessed anytime, anywhere.
Sessions can be delivered as;
- A brief presentation suitable for assemblies, classrooms, staff meetings, or parent information sessions
- An interactive workshop incorporating information, discussion and engaging activities
Our goal is to help young people, educators, and school communities feel informed, connected, and confident about accessing support when it's needed.
To learn more or request us to visit your school, email community@headspacesouthport.org.au
The Mental Health Education Program from headspace National delivers free Mental health workshops for students at secondary schools across Australia, including metro, regional and remote areas. They are interactive, strength-based, evidence-informed and timed to fit a standard school lesson.
Workshops are facilitated in classrooms at your school in-person or online via a projector.
Topics include mental health and wellbeing, stress management, emotional wellbeing, self-care, bullying, connection and belonging, culture and identity, supporting friends, and navigating major life transitions.
Supporting Young People: Notice, Inquire, Provide
Delivered by headspace National's School Mental Health Education Program, and designed to complement the student workshops, this 'Supporting young people' workshop is for parents / carers in your school's community.
Topics covered include:
- Understanding adolescent mental health and development
- Understand young people's emotions
- Support young people to manage their emotions
- Where to seek support for you and your young people
Book a workshop
Please note that this 'Supporting young people' workshop can only be delivered if an in-person student workshop is also booked.
| Request in-person workshop | Book webinar for families - Primary to secondary | Book webinar for families |
Schools and universities play an important role in supporting the mental health needs of young people and their families.
There are a number of programs that support and equip school staff with tools to have important conversations, by building their mental health knowledge, skills and capacity.
Programs
- Be You - the mental health in education initiative delivered by Beyond Blue in collaboration with Early Childhood Australia and headspace. Be You provides Australian educators with knowledge, tools, and resources to create positive, inclusive, and responsive learning communities.
- Professional development programs - SAFEMinds: In Practice, Suicide Risk Continuum Training, and STORM® (Skills-based Training on Suicide Risk Management) aim to develop staff skills to support young people and their mental health and wellbeing in Victoria.
- Student Support Services Wellbeing Program – provides support specifically for Student Support Service (SSS) Officers who work with school communities in Victoria in the area of mental health. The program utilises strategies such as facilitated reflective practice and psychoeducation to assist with stress management and self-care, to support and maintain mental health and improve overall wellbeing for SSS staff.
- University Support Program – Provides training and education opportunities to Australian universities to build their capacity and confidence to engage in conversations about mental health and wellbeing, and offers suicide postvention response and support.
- NSW Response and Recovery Program - guides communities through short-, medium-, and longer-term recovery initiatives and practices in the aftermath of natural disasters, suicide risk, and other large-scale impacts. This work is in alignment with national and internal recovery frameworks, focusing on community engagement, capacity building, and connection. If your community requires support, reach out at nswresponseandrecovery@headspace.org.au
For more information and resources, including responding to suicide and critical incidents in your school community, head to mental health programs in schools | headspace schools
headspace Southport and Upper Coomera hosts an annual School Information Session for local school leaders, guidance officers, wellbeing staff, and educators across the Gold Coast.
The session provides an opportunity to visit and learn more about local headspace services, headspace digital support, referral pathways, and the range of supports available for young people and school communities. Participants can connect with local headspace staff, hear from the headspace Schools and Communities team, including the Mental Health Education Program and Be You, and explore opportunities for collaboration to strengthen youth mental health support across the region.
