School Counsellors

School Counsellors at Belmont High School

Two school counsellors are currently working at the high school:

Robyn Morgan – Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday

Leese Bailey - Monday and Thursday

There are occasional variations to these times due to the need to attend other schools in the district, often at short notice.

All school counsellors have teaching experience as well as qualifications in psychology and school counselling. We are part of the school’s welfare team and our job is to support students, teachers and parents. This may involve a full educational assessment, parent and teacher interviews or a referral to an outside agency such as the Community Adolescent Team.

The areas in which counsellors can help students include the following:

· Problems with other students, eg bullying, not getting on with friends, controlling anger.

· Keeping out of trouble in class.

· Personal matters, eg family issues.

· Investigation of learning difficulties.

· Study techniques and exam anxiety.

· Educational options for later years at school.

· Vocational choices.

We especially welcome self-referrals, as in this way, students are taking the initiative of helping to solve their own problems.

Parents who want to contact the school counsellors simply need to phone the school to make an appointment.

Confidentiality: What students and their families tell the school counsellor is usually confidential. However, we must also obey the law to ensure people’s safety.