Tailoring health and wellbeing approaches at your school
Tailoring health and wellbeing approaches at your school is a suite of evidence-based resources that:
- identify and promote the enablers of successful health and wellbeing approaches
- draw together relevant department policy and new and existing health and wellbeing resources
- address the complex health and wellbeing challenges that schools identified during a 2020 research discovery.


Research discovery insights
Schools understand the value of effective health and wellbeing approaches and the connection for improving learning and life outcomes.
A research discovery undertaken in 2020 with schools, and the staff that support them, informed how school communities can be further supported in tailoring their health and wellbeing approaches in their local context.
Three key interconnected themes emerged from the research discovery report (staff only)
- One size does not fit all
- 10 key principles underpin all successful health and wellbeing approaches
- Problem + context = approach.
1, One size does not fit all


Schools use five main health and wellbeing approaches, with more than one, or a hybrid approach often utilised. Approaches reflect the school’s unique features.
The impact of health and wellbeing approaches is maximised when underpinned by supportive leadership and embedded within whole school universal strategies.
”Start [supports] as close as you can to the kids and then move out”
Resource for schools - Five approach snapshots:
Summary: the snapshots highlight the key features of each of the five health and wellbeing approaches, including the benefits and challenges. Example initiatives are featured within each snapshot and embedded links take you to key department supporting tools. The snapshots are intended as illustrations of practice for schools.
2, 10 key principles


Ten key principles were identified through the research discovery that are key enablers of success for all schools’ health and wellbeing approaches.
Schools with successful health and wellbeing approaches:
- embrace student voice and promote students’ health seeking behaviours and health literacy
- demonstrate a deep understanding of local context and the importance of fit for purpose and culturally safe spaces
- embed whole school universal strategies to strengthen the capacity of staff so they are better able to recognise and respond early to students’ health and wellbeing needs
- link appoaches to School Excellence in Action
- are supported by effective Learning and Support teams
- support capacity building of students, families and school communities to maximise longer term health and wellbeing, learning and life outcomes
- identify clear roles and responsibilities, operate within department policy and legal service agreements where required
- provide continuity of support, including through school transition points
- have an evidence based approach embedded.
Resource for schools - 10 key principles Infographic:
Summary: a visual resource that captures the definitions of the 10 principles that underpin successful health and wellbeing approaches. Your school can use the infographic for quick reference and a communication tool for the school community.
Resource for schools – Checklist and guidelines:
Summary: a tool to support the planning and review of schools’ health and wellbeing approach/es. The 10 key principles are unpacked into their components for your easy reference. The guiding information outlines the basis of each principle and brings together relevant department policies and resources in the one place, saving schools time.
3, Problem+context=approach


NSW public school students represent the diversity of cultural, linguistic and socioeconomic backgrounds across NSW. The communities that NSW public schools serve have very different contexts, strengths, challenges and needs; as well as staffing structures and experience.
Schools are implementing a range of proactive and preventative health and wellbeing strategies for their students. Where schools are dealing with new or emerging issues, they gain a shared understanding of the problem they wish to address in partnership with students, families and the broader community.
Schools with successful health and wellbeing approaches:
- take stock of their programs and resources already in place, and what is readily available to help strengthen an existing response
- consider what the service gaps are and whether upskilling department staff will meet the gap and address the identified problem, or whether external partnerships are required
- respectfully listen and learn from their community, including the local Aboriginal Education Consultative Group (AECG) and develop an inclusive and equitable response
- implement sustainable approaches for their local context that provide a continuum of care and continuity of support.
The health and wellbeing solutions schools are implementing often start small and build.
In rural and remote communities, issues around isolation and access to services are often significant barriers in addressing students’ health and wellbeing needs, and in designing health and wellbeing approaches.
Aim 3.2 of the Rural and Remote Education Strategy (2021-2024) is: All students in rural and remote communities have early access to and engage with wellbeing support services.
Enhancing the availability of digital technologies can facilitate increased access to health and wellbeing services for students and their families.
Partnering with local health services may support schools to address a service gap:
- The Local Health District (LHD) can act as a touchpoint for schools to navigate the health system and map local service delivery.
- Primary Health Network (PHN) and the NSW Rural Doctors Network are key links into the health system.
- Establishing connections with local GPs can support continuity of service.
Resource for schools – Step by step guide:
Summary: a flowchart that guides schools through a sequence of steps to tailor their health and wellbeing approach. Each step has been mapped to the key principles that underpin successful health and wellbeing approaches.


Support with evaluating health and wellbeing approaches
Schools with successful health and wellbeing approaches:
- gain a picture of need, impacts and potential improvements by overlaying relevant department and publically available data sets; they challenge assumptions
- gather only the information that is needed for evaluation, including baseline data
- identify the best possible ways for gathering the required information
- provide a clear and reasonable timeline for evaluation
- carefully consider the ethics of involving children and young people in evaluation, Schools have clear protocols in place to ensure the follow-up of support for students where required.
Departmental resources available to support schools with evaluation include:
- Evaluation Resource Hub which includes the Logic Modelling design tool that helps provide a clear line of sight between needs, inputs, activities and outcomes
- SCOUT platform for data and analysis
- Developing student wellbeing improvement measures.
Publically available data sets commonly used by schools include:
- Australian Early Development Census (AEDC)
- Australian Bureau of Statistics - Community Profiles
- HealthStats NSW
Other resources:
Departmental resources available to support schools with planning include:
- Situational Analysis: resources that support an authentic and rigorous assessment of a school’s current state. Used to inform a school’s improvement journey in learning, teaching and leading
- Strategic Improvement Plan: (SIP) process which ensure continuous improvement, reflecting where a school is at and how it will further improve learning, teaching and leading
- School Excellence Framework: identifies quality practice across the three key domains of education – learning, teaching and leading to help schools plan and monitor strategies for ongoing improvement. Schools that excel in the Learning Domain of the SEF develop whole school wellbeing approaches that support students to enhance their learning, health and wellbeing and life outcomes.
- The Wellbeing Framework for Schools: supports schools to create teaching and learning environments that enable students to be healthy, happy, engaged and successful. Wellbeing in our schools is driven by the themes of Connect, Succeed and Thrive.
Resources for schools
These resources help schools tailor their health and wellbeing approaches.