Student Wellbeing

Student Wellbeing Services

As part of its commitment to student wellbeing, McKinnon Secondary College employs a Student Wellbeing Team to provide comprehensive support for a range of issues. This is a multidisciplinary team consisting of a counsellor, psychologist and social worker. The members of the Student Wellbeing Team are experienced in a range of modalities and are passionate about helping students navigate their way through the various social and emotional challenges they may face.

These challenges may include:

• Social difficulties

• Emotional challenges

• Behavioural difficulties

• Learning needs

• Family challenges, including family break-up

• Grief and loss

• School refusal

• Risk taking behaviours

• Mental health

• Child safety concerns

Services available through the Student Wellbeing Team include:

• Individual counselling for students

• Therapeutic groups targeting stress management, anxiety and academic pressure

• Mindfulness meditation

• Consultation with parents regarding the learning, behavioural, social or emotional concerns of their child

• Referral to external support services and specialist assessment/treatment services

• Positive mental health promotion and liaison with school-wide programs relevant to student wellbeing

• Financial support for families in need

More information about our Student Wellbeing Services can be found on the College website here. 

Additionally, our Student Wellbeing and Engagement Policy can be accessed here. 

Student Management

It is the aim of this college to provide all its students with the appropriate environment and support conducive to each student achieving success.

The Student Wellbeing Team (which includes the Principal team, Heads of Junior and Senior School and the Student Managers) believes that students need firm direction and constant reinforcement.

As a team, we continually develop and implement strategies to manage students and direct their time more purposefully. There are policies and procedures in place to help students successfully negotiate their secondary education.

Some of the procedures used by the Student Managers include:

• regular monitoring of student attendance;

• interviews with students about their performance;

• Progress Reports providing information about students' effort, organisation and behaviour;

• organising sessions on study skills, including time and self-management;

• contacting and meeting parents;

• organising students to stay back after school to do homework, where required.

Feedback to parents also occurs at the two Parent-Teacher-Student conferences and in the detailed written reports provided via Learning Tasks.  Other parental contact is made whenever the need arises.

Guidance and assistance to students are also available from the Careers team and the Student Wellbeing team.

We have very high expectations of our students.  They are required to work conscientiously and cooperatively with their teachers and other students, complete set work and strive to achieve their best.

They must continue to abide by all the school rules; in addition, students undertaking the VCE and VCE-VM must adhere to the relevant policies and procedures determined by the VCAA.  It is students' responsibility to understand these procedures thoroughly.

Secondary education can be a very demanding and challenging time.  It is important that parents/carers to work closely with the school (including teachers, student managers, etc) and communicate any concerns or problems their children may be experiencing.  Through this partnership, it is possible to provide students with direction and support.

Students are encouraged to participate in the many and varied activities that are organised as part of the College's rich extracurricular program. It is hoped that all these opportunities will assist our students to become confident, successful and equipped for the challenges of tertiary education and beyond.

Our ultimate aim at McKinnon Secondary College is to maximise student opportunity and vocational pathways through academic success.