Support Staff
A team around every student
Wellbeing at Y Community School is not one person's job. Our wellbeing framework is held by a multi-disciplinary team of Educational Youth Workers, Wellbeing Specialists and teaching staff who work as one group around each young person, sharing the same language and the same understanding of what that student needs. The aim is that every young person is supported academically, emotionally, socially and physically, by people who know them well.
Wrap-around means the support follows the student rather than the student having to go looking for it. The circle starts in the classroom and widens as far as it needs to, taking in family, carers and services outside the school, so that what happens in a young person's life is not something they have to leave at the gate.
Educational Youth Worker
Our Educational Youth Workers know our students well, and that knowledge is what makes their work possible. They offer personalised guidance and build the sense of belonging that has often been missing from school, and they are skilled at recognising early signs of distress, de-escalating conflict and helping students stay regulated and engaged. Because they respond to difficulties as they arise rather than after the fact, much of their most valuable work is quiet and happens before anything escalates.
Wellbeing Specialists
Our Wellbeing Specialist works directly with students. That might be one to one, in a small group, or simply being alongside a young person in class on a hard day. They help students build the skills underneath the difficulty: recognising what they are feeling, finding strategies that settle them, repairing a relationship after something has gone wrong, and getting through a day that felt impossible the night before. Where a student needs support beyond what the school provides, our Wellbeing Specialist helps the family find it and stays connected through the referral.
Wellbeing Leader
Our Wellbeing Leader holds the wellbeing of the whole school. They lead the wellbeing team, make sure Thrive is used consistently in every classroom, and oversee the support planning for each student from enrolment onwards. They are the person who connects the pieces, working with teachers on what a young person needs in class, with families and carers on what is happening at home, and with outside services already involved so that support is joined up rather than repeated. They also coach and support staff, because consistent practice across every adult in the building is what makes a school feel safe.
Support beyond the classroom
Our team also works alongside students, families, staff and community services to address the wider things that affect wellbeing and engagement. That includes helping students and families navigate essential supports such as housing, financial assistance, government programs, allied health, and physical and mental health care.
This is practical work, and it matters because a young person cannot concentrate on learning while the basics are uncertain. By working with families to build resilience and remove the barriers standing in the way of school, our team helps create a connected, well-resourced community where young people have the stability, confidence and support to do well in the classroom and after they leave it.
Enquire about Y Community School
Flexible, supportive secondary education for young people, where learning feels possible again.