Welcome

bill_w Bill Weigall, the State Project Officer for MindMatters ACT, has been a teacher for 20 years, working in a pastoral care role in a variety of school settings. Bill has been using the MindMatters resource in schools for nine years.

Contact Bill on (02) 6205 9198 or 0423 597 846 or by email.

MindMatters ACT

As well as the MindMatters professional development workshops, State Project Officers will work with schools to facilitate:

opportunities to develop an understanding of the relevant territory and national frameworks for mental health and wellbeing
assistance for schools using Every chance to learn, the P–10 Curriculum Framework for embedding mental health and wellbeing across the whole school
opportunities for whole school staff development
support for school leaders through Staff Matters and the Principals Australia resource, Learn:Lead:Succeed, which supports the building of leadership in Australian schools
links with national education and health initiatives such as the National Safe Schools Framework.

Professional development

ACT_PD_2009 On 29–30 April, Lucy Astle (headspace) and Megan Skillicorn (Lifeline) were both present at the Focus Module: Students Experiencing High Support Needs in Mental Health, to speak about their services. Participant comments about the workshop included the following.

'Working amongst other school professionals was very helpful. We were able to acknowledge each other's roles and values. Many valuable resources were provided.'

'I'm new in this position and still grappling with many of the issues presented to me by students. I found this focus module highly relevant in building my understanding of my role.'

Details of forthcoming professional development activities can be found on the Professional Development Calendar.