Developing the Capacity of Australian Secondary Schools to cater for Students with High Support Needs in Mental Health and Wellbeing

Abstract

MindMatters Plus is a mental health promotion initiative in Australia which aims to improve the capacity of secondary schools to cater for students who have high support needs in the area of mental health. The development of effective school case management was one of the projects associated with this initiative. The aim of this project was to produce a practical resource on the principles and practices of effective school case management for staff who work with secondary school students who have high support needs in the area of mental health (e.g. student support personnel, school administrators, school psychologists, school counsellors and mental health workers). This article briefly outlines the school case management initiative — its rationale, and research and development process. This is followed by a description of the resource itself, namely the framework for effective school case management, and the kit for developing effective school case management practices. Feedback on the resource is invited from readers following access to and utilization of the kit from the website provided.