newsletter term 4

Contact DetailsHelen AstolfiGateway Centre, Suite 1, Level 2237 Mann St, Gosford 2250Ph: (02) 4328 [email protected]

TERM 4 2015 | VOL: 9 | ISSUE 3

CENTRAL COAST

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

School Link Services

Child Protection

headspace Lake Haven

Student Mental Health Forum

Share the Care

Evidence Based Practice

Mental Health and Schools Conference 2016

Primary School Expo

Programs in School

From the School-Link Coordinator

PrincipalCounsellorsHead TeacherDeputy PrincipalYear Advisors

HT Welfare

LS Team

Staff Room

PD/H/PE

CIRCULATION

ADMIN Team

Well here we are again with another year just about over and the sum-mer holidays on the horizon. The year has seen lots of school, CYPMH and headspace joint initiatives take place. We have had the successful CC School Mental Health Forum, and the follow up Student Mental Health Showcase. It has been great to see so many schools and stu-dents involved in both events. The participating schools have been actively coordinating and promoting mental health initiatives in their schools. The initiatives were showcased with great enthusiasm from both staff and students.

The opening of headspace Lake Haven has made a significant differ-ence to the community in the Wyong Shire. The opening saw many dig-nitaries, young people, schools, community groups and workers in at-tendance. Gorokan High School also provided an excellent poetry rap performance and Northlakes High School students were involved in an Aboriginal artwork project and created original artwork for the centre.

I would like to remind you about some of the fantastic initiatives avail-able to raise awareness of mental health problems and also provide support for school staff and their students. The School-Link Consul-tation line was established for school staff to consult with the School- Link Coordinator on any mental health concerns they may have with a student. ‘Share the Care’ is a new initiative to encourage parents/carers to inform schools when their young person is involved with the mental health service, particularly if they have been hospitalised. See further into this issue for more information. If you would like to order some ‘Share the Care’ pamphlets for your families to access please do not hesitate to contact School-Link on the email below.

Unfortunately our fantastic full-time School-Link Coordinator, Fiona, has taken a six month secondment in Sydney. We will be recruiting to the position shortly so I am sure it will roll along without too many hiccups

I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a safe and happy festive season and summer break. See you all in 2016..!!!

Regards Helen

Please email us through any stories for the newsletter or enquires at [email protected]

Mental Health Line 1800 011 511

The School-Link Consultation Line does not replace the usual referral process but is available to discuss any queries or clinical issues regarding a student.

School-Link Services

For referral to Children and Young People’s Mental Health contact the Mental Health Line on 1800 011 511

New School Requests Booking System

Children and Young People’s Mental Health and headspace Gosford and Lake Haven have developed a new online booking system for schools to make the following requests:

• Resources;• Presentations for Student and Staff;• Workshops for Student and Staff;• Information Stalls;• Other events.

Schools can access the booking form on the ycentral or headspace Gosford and Lake Haven websites. The use of this form can help us collect the information we require to assess your request based on our criteria and availability. All requests received will be processed and you will be contacted by phone. Please note that we require a minimum of 4 weeks notice. Urgent requests can be considered, however it will still be subjected to our criteria and availability.

The School-Link Consultation Line is still available for consultation, enquiries and other requests. Schools can contact the School-Link Consultation Line to discuss your school request before completing the form.The new system aims to make it easier for schools to make a school request through a central contact point. If you do have any questions, contact the School-Link Consultation Line on 0414 193 139.


Child Protection

National Child Protection Week aims to promote the safety and wellbeing of children and young people. This year’s theme is “Protecting children is everyone’s business.”All Australians are encouraged to play their part in protecting children.

For more information about the role you can play, NAPCAN has published a range of resources tailored to specific roles on its website (link is external).

Reporting suspected abuse or neglect

Anyone who suspects, on reasonable grounds, that a child or young person is at risk of being neglected or phys-ically, sexually or emotionally abused, should report it to Community Services.

Reasonable grounds is the standard that reporters must use in deciding whether or not to report to Community Services. It does not mean that reporters are required to confirm their suspicions or provide solid proof before making a report. A useful rule of thumb is to consider whether another person, when faced with similar information, would also draw the same conclusion.

What will Community Services do?

By law, Community Services must assess reports where a child or young person is or may be at risk of significant harm from abuse or neglect. When you report to us, our staff will ask you questions to help them find out about the risk of significant harm to the child or young person involved.

What happens next depends on the information received by Community Services. The matter might be closed as no risk of significant harm is indicated or we may ask a local Community Services Centre to make a further assessment.

Sometimes the child or young person and their family is visited immediately because the information indicates the child or young person is in immediate danger. We may need to talk to other people to find out about the family’s circumstances. For example, we might contact the child or young person's teacher, child care worker or relatives.

The law allows Community Services to exchange information that relates to the safety, welfare or well-being of a child or young person with a range of agencies, including NSW Police, NSW Health or the Department of Educa-tion.

If the child or young person is at risk of significant harm, we try to work with the family, other agencies and profes-sionals to make sure they are safe. If we think a child or young person is in immediate danger, we will move them to a safe place. We involve the child or young person and their family as much as possible in decisions that affect them

https://aifs.gov.au/cfca/2015/09/08/child-protection-week-2015-pro-tecting-children-everyone-s-business

You can make a report by phoning the Child Protection Helpline132 111 (TTY 1800 212 936)

for the cost of a local call, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week


headspace Lake HavenWe were excited to officially launch headspace Lake Haven on Wednesday 2nd September. This is the sec-ond headspace site on the Central Coast, along with Gosford, which has already been servicing the Coast for 8 years. headspace Lake Haven was opened by government and headspace stakeholders and some of the young people who have been involved in the establishment of the service; with community leaders, Consortium partners and local headspace staff also celebrating the event. headspace Lake Haven based at the Gravity Youth Centre, Lake Haven, is open Monday to Thursday from 8.30am to 5pm.

Artworks completed and donated by students from Northlakes High School


headspace Lake Haven Manager Helen Isenhour (Left) said “It’s exciting to open the doors and welcome young people from the local area to our headspace service here at Lake Haven. We are now open in two locations here on the CC. The message we have for young people is that there is no issue too small to see us about. The sooner you get help, the sooner things will improve.”

headspace Lake Haven was opened by Federal Member for Dobell Karen McNamara, with NSW Minister for Men-tal Health Pru Goward, headspace head of Centres Leslie McGuire along with Central Coast Local Health District CE, Matt Hanrahan all speaking. A performance by Gorokan High School Students (below) was a highlight of the event with their mental health poetry rap a favourite with the crowd.

headspace Lake Haven

headspace Lake Haven is open Monday – Thursday from 8:30am – 5:00pm and can be

headspace Lake Haven offers:Support to young people aged 12-25 years Youth friendly intake, assessment and a range of counselling servicesi.e. drug and alcohol and on site appointments with Centrelink, GITS and ORS


Student Mental Health Showcase

The inaugural Central Coast Student Mental Health Fo-rum was held on May 6th at The Hub, Erina Fair. The forum was led by the CYPMH School-Link program and headspace Gosford. The focus of the day was on developing mental health champions from the student representatives in attendance (years 8 and 9) and in-creasing their knowledge about mental health and well-being.

Following on from the forum the Central Coast Stu-dent Mental Health Showcase was held during Mental Health Month. The Showcase was a celebration of the mental health initiatives developed at the Mental Health Forum in May.

Go to our www.ycentral.com.au to check out all the mental health school initiatives and events held in partnership with headspace and CYP-

Share the Care with Schools


Changes in your child’s mental health can affect their education and relationships.

Share the Care with Schools

You can talk with your school to:

Set up an individualised support plan tailored to your child’s needs. Identify a sta� member your child can talk to. Develop a plan together with the school to help your child remain engaged with the school during tough times. Learn about the help available from the school and outside agencies. Help your child return to school following a mental health crisis.

You can support your child by working together with the school.

Start this conversation by contactingsupport sta� at your child’s school.

CYPMH provide an information package to families and/or carers when young people are admitted to hospital, attend the emergency department or referred to CYPMH for mental health treatment and care. As part of this package a flyer is included (see above) to encourage the family or carer to make contact with the appropriate school staff to discuss any supports that may be required for the young person to remain in school and any fur-ther assistance they may require. It is important that appropriate school staff have an understanding of what may be happening for that young person and therefore able to provide additional support through developing a plan for the student. This process will also help the school to intervene early and hopefully prevent a mental health crisis.

If your school would like some ‘Share the Care’ pamphlets for dissemination please contact School Link Coordinator on 4328 7350

Please feel free to include in the schools newsletterA PDF can be found at www.ycentral.com.au



Second Australian Child and Adolescent Survey of Mental Health and Well-being - highlights

A second national survey of the mental health and wellbeing of Australian children and adolescents was conducted by the Telethon Kids Institute at The University of Western Australia in partnership with Roy Morgan Research in 2013-14.

Almost one in seven (13.9%) 4-17 year-old were as-sessed as having mental disorders in the previous 12 months. This is equivalent to 560,000 Australian children and adolescents.

Males were more likely than females to have experienced mental disorders in the 12 months prior to the survey (16.3% compared with 11.5%).

ADHD was the most common mental disorder in children and adolescents (7.4%), followed by anxiety disorders (6.9%), major depressive disorder (2.8%) and conduct disorder (2.1%).

Based on these prevalence rates it is estimated that in the previous 12 months 298,000 Australian children and adolescents aged 4-17 years would have had ADHD, 278,000 had anxiety disorders,112,000 had major de-pressive disorder and 83,600 had conduct disorder.

Almost one third (30.0% or 4.2% of all 4-17 year-olds) of children and adolescents with a disorder had two or more mental disorders at some time in the previous 12 months.

Prevalence did not differ significantly with age for males (16.5% for 4-11 year-olds and 15.9% for 12-17 year-olds), but was slightly higher in older females than younger females (10.6% for 4-11 year-olds and 12.8% for 12-17 year-olds).

Impact of Mental DisordersMental disorders impact on individuals in a wide vari-ety of ways and to varying extents. Assessment of the impact on functioning at school, with family and with friends, and the personal distress symptoms caused was used as the basis for determining the severity ofdisorders.

Three fifths (59.8%) of 4-17 year-olds with a mental dis-order or 8.3% of all children and adolescents had a mild disorder.

One quarter (25.4%) of 4-17 year-olds with mental disor-ders or 3.5% of all children and adolescents had a mod-erate disorder.

Just over one in seven (14.7%) 4-17 year-olds with a mental disorder were assessed as having a severe men-tal disorder. This is equivalent to one in 50 (2.1%) or

approximately 82,000 Australian children andadolescents.

Adolescents were almost three times more likely to ex-perience a severe mental disorder – 23.1% of 12-17 year-olds with a mental disorder had a severe disordercompared with 8.2% of 4-11 year-olds with a mental dis-order.

Major depressive disorder had a greater impact on func-tioning than the other disorders, with two fifths or 42.8% of cases being severe and another 35.8% assessed asmoderate.

The majority of anxiety disorders, ADHD and conduct disorder cases were mild. Two thirds (65.7%) of 4-17 year olds with ADHD, 53.8% with anxiety disorders and 58.7% with conduct disorder were assessed as having a mild disorder.

3.3% of 12-17 year-olds had a severe mental disorder compared with 1.1% of 4-11 year olds. What Adolescents told us about Self HarmAround one in 10 12-17 year-olds (10.9%)reported having ever self-harmed. This is equivalent to 186,000 young people aged 12-17 years who had delib-erately injured themselves.

Self-harm was roughly twice as high in females com-pared with males and also in older compared with younger adolescents.

Females aged 16-17 years had the highest rates of self-harm.

Self-harm was markedly higher in young people with major depressive disorder. One quarter (25.8%) of males and just over half (54.9%) of females with major depres-sive disorder (based on self-report) had harmed them-selves in the previous 12 months.

Self-harm can result in serious injuries and 0.8% of young people had been admitted to hospital as a direct result of these injuries.

For the full report go to http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/

Content/mental-pubs-m-child2



Children and young people at risk of disengagement from school

Children and young people at risk of disengagement from schoolCompleted by: Kirsten J. Hancock and Stephen R. ZubrickTelethon Kids Institute University of Western Australia, for the Commissioner for Children and Young People WA, June 2015

Background This literature review on student disengagement was commissioned by the Commissioner for Children and Young People of Western Australia. The brief was to provide an overview of current evidence on the profile, extent, and impact of disengagement in children and young people from school, along with evidence of programs and strate-gies to reduce disengagement and promote re-engagement. The review first examines international literature to determine how disengagement can be defined and under-stood, and then narrows the scope of the literature to examine student disengagement in Australia to address the following questions: 1. Why does disengagement matter? 2. What are the risk factors associated with disengagement? 3. How many Australian students are disengaged? 4. What do students, teachers and others have to say about disengagement? 5. What does the literature say about interventions and programs addressing student disengagement?

It then describe the themes emerging from the review in a discussion that identifies the integrative questions that focus on what schools and families expect from each other in terms of engaging students.

Grunts and Eye Rolls, Finding a Better Way to CommunicateThe old saying “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it” is particularly relevant when dealing with adolescents. Not only are they undergoing huge personal, physical, psychological and emotional change, but communica-tion patterns are also undergoing a transformation. This is a time to think about how we can communicate more effectively to build on what is hopefully a positive rela-tionship.

Talk less and listen more!Adolescents are not children – they often want to talk less, and we need to be better at either picking up the right cues to open a conversation, or when to simply listen and not talk (or offer unsolicited advice) at all.

Right time, right place:Discussions with an adolescent should never be about winning the point. Concession is sometimes the best path when dealing with non-important matters. Con-frontation can be very wearing, and potentially damag-ing.

Timing, location and tone of voice are critical elements of productive conversation with a teen. Avoid raising issues, which have been simmering away inside, when you are tired or already upset or angry or angry about something else.

Never humiliate or embarrass an adolescent in front of their friends. If an argument erupts and their friends

are around, it’s better to hold your tongue until you can discuss the issue in private.

Adolescents are not the only ones who don’t respond well to sarcasm. If you are expecting build an adult re-lationship, think about what you say, how you say it, and what ‘tools’ of conversation you use…..before you say it!

Active listeningActive listening is a cornerstone skill of US clinical psy-chologist Thomas Gordon’s model for building and maintaining effective relationships. The model is based on communication and conflict resolution skills, and is a model which has been adapted for use by parents, teachers, business and leaders over the years. Active listening requires our full attention. We don’t interrupt; we don’t make hasty comments; we don’t judge, we don’t ‘join the dots’. We listen to what has been said and then we confirm our understanding. The tenden-cy to assume and make decisions before we know the facts can lead to the common adolescent response: “That’s NOT what I said. You NEVER listen!” Maybe they’re right?

Andrew Fuller is a Clinical Psychologist and works with schools and communities in Australia and in-ternationally, specialising in the wellbeing of young people and their families. www.andrewfuller.com.au


MH and Schools Conference - 2016

Save the Date

2016 Central Coast Mental Health & Schools

Conference

Keynote by Young and Well CRC

Using Technology in Therapy & the Classroom

also

Trauma Informed Care and Practice.Educating and Empowering Young People

Through Youth Mentoring.

18th July 2016Location: Mingara Recreation Club

Time: 9:00am to 4:30pm

Contact School-Link Coordinator

Phone: 0414 193 139 or Email: [email protected]

This conference is guided by a steering committee of representatives from Department of Education, Catholic Schools Office - Diocese of Broken Bay, Children

and Young People’s Mental Health and headspace Gosford & Lake Haven

An Exciting Day of Presentations, Workshops & Panel Discussion


Primary School Expo - 2016

Save the DateChildren and Young People’s Mental Health & Child and Family Health Service

Presents:

Central Coast Primary School Mental Health Forum & Expo: Health and Schools Working together to Promote Well-being in Primary Schools

Mental Health Professional Development Day for Primary School Sta� to:

• Develop resilience in children and families• Increase con�dence in supporting children who have a family member who is experiencing mental health issues• Increase knowledge of services available to support children and their families.

DetailsDate: TBC

Location: Central Coast TBCTime: 9:00am to 3:30pm

Cost: FreeMore information coming shortlyEnquires: School-Link Coordinator

Phone: 0414 193 139 or email: [email protected]

PartnersThis conference is guided by a steering committee of representatives from Department of Education, Catholic Schools O�ce - Diocese of Broken Bay , Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Child & Family Health Service, School-Link, COPMI/Parenting Program.


Evidence Based Education Program - Seasons For Growth

Seasons for Growth provides a safe, evidence based education program, in a small group setting, for children and young people (6 to 19 year olds) who are challenged by change and loss in their lives. Whenever / wherever there is change, there is a loss. Where there is loss, there is grief. Seasons for Growth empowers young people to recognise, understand and learn how to work through their grief -

For more details contact Janice:

[email protected]

to learn how to deal with it.

The Seasons for Growth Program is based on the Grief Theory of J William Worden and his four tasks of grief. Worden’s tasks are specifically related to bereavement. Seasons for Growth, however, takes a broader view, adapts these tasks and relates them to a range of change and loss experiences that young people may have to manage as they navigate their life. The trained facilitators, “ Seasons for Growth Companions”, support young people to develop skills in communi-cation, decision-making and problem solving through a peer support network. The process used helps children at risk, to restore self-confidence and nurture self-esteem. Young people realize they are not the only one suffering. They are not alone. This program equips them with a language, a vocabulary, to talk about what is going on inside.

headspace School Support

headspace School Support works with school communities to prepare for, respond to, and recover from suicide.The service is flexible and is designed to respond to the individual needs of schools. Support is provided by working with relevant education bodies, local headspace Centres and other service providers.headspace School Support is an initiative funded by the Federal Government, Department of Health.

• Phone and email support for all Australian secondary schools affected by suicide• Help with preparing a school in the event of a suicide occurring• Staff capacity building around the issues of suicide• Response co-ordination following a suicide or suicide attempt• Staff and parent information sessions• Evidence based resources, including a range of fact sheets• Comprehensive postvention toolkit - A practical guide to assist schools in their response following a

suicide• Secondary and tertiary consultation• Assistance with critical incident review• Education and training related to suicide• Media liaison and advice

headspace School SupportDion Richardson, School Support Consultant NSW

[email protected]

Programs in Schools

newsletter term 4

Documents