Mental Health in Primary Schools initiative

Resources

• Mental Health in Primary Schools on the department’s website for families and general information
• Mental Health in Primary Schools initiative factsheet (PDF)
• Mental health and wellbeing leader position description template (DOCX)
• Mental Health in Primary Schools: instructions for reporting salary expenditure (DOCX) – provides guidance to schools on reporting Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader salary expenditure
• Mental Health in Primary Schools Onboarding checklist for school leaders (DOCX)

MHiPS in action case studies

The department has developed a series of short case study videos showcasing successful implementation of the Mental Health in Primary Schools (MHiPS) initiative and the Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader (MHWL) role in different school settings at different stages of implementation. These provide good practice examples for other Victorian schools.

• Lucas Primary School in Ballarat joined the MHiPS pilot implementation in 2022. The school’s principal and MHWL talk about how they have embedded MHiPS and the MHWL role into their whole-school approach to mental health and wellbeing. They also cover the long-term benefits of MHiPS for the school community, including students, teachers and staff and parents/carers.
• Sunbury and Macedon Ranges Specialist School in Sunbury has implemented MHiPS effectively in a specialist school setting since 2022. The school’s principal and MHWL explain how they have used MHiPS to support their students’ individual needs, and work alongside existing mental health and wellbeing approaches in the school, including Respectful Relationships.
• The Basin Primary School in The Basin, is in its first year of implementing MHiPS. The school’s principal and MHWL share their experiences and insights about early implementation and their plans for the future of MHiPS and the MHWL role.
• St Mary’s School is a small rural Catholic primary school in Donald in its second year of implementation. The school’s principal and MHWL discuss how MHiPS works in their small school setting and how student voice is highly valued by the school community.