THE WELL-BEING VILLAGE PROJECT

In 2018 I wrote an article on Linkedin – more than an atar score – not knowing that this would form the foundation of a not-for-profit organisation founded by Jane Lockton and myself – THE WELL-BEING VILLAGE PROJECT LIMITED.

A young persons’ twelve years of schooling is often defined by an ATAR score. A percentile score which denotes a student’s academic ranking relative to their peers upon completion of their secondary education. But life and the world are not measured by an ATAR score. So how does a school take the approach of the anachronistic school day, term and year, and allow children to release their inner Leonardo or Bach, or learn lifelong skills? It is the harmonious combination of curriculum and co-curriculum that takes the school timetable beyond the traditional 3.30pm finish.

As parents we want the best for our children. We try to expose them to a variety of experiences, whether it be holidays, sport, relationships, friends, work, unstructured play and simple things like a walk on the beach with the sand squishing between their toes. But what happens when our children are faced with challenging issues that they don’t have skills to manage? Things like mental illness and suicide.

We are two parents of young people who have been bystanders in a traumatic event where a young women took her own life. She confided in and was supported over several years by one of our children, and the other is best friend to her sibling……there is a long road ahead for the family, and our children. Young people in this situation know things, hold information, are confidants for their friends. They carry the world on their shoulders……Six months after the traumatic event…..a teacher said he learnt from my daughter in 15 minutes more than he had known in the previous six months regarding how the siblings were coping inside and outside the school community. A year after the event…one young person continues to work his way through the profound effects the loss of his friend has had.

We know how big the problem of teen mental health and suicide is1,2. Friends may be aware of the distress their friend is experiencing, or they may not. Research shows that people struggling with mental wellbeing turn to their friends first, even before their parents3 Friends feel disempowered – we want to change that….We don’t know what to say and do…..know what to do….care of the friend and care of themselves. Parents – Fear- What if they miss the cues? What do I do? Stigma and raising awareness - In this case - belief there was nothing wrong……then all of sudden the young women took her own life. Except there were many signs…If you are a parent and have a young person studying in the senior years of school, talk with them about life beyond the ATAR score.

Will this solve the issue of teen suicide? – No. Will this provide a pillar in the network of care for young people? – Yes. Will this provide a pathway for support? – We hope so. Will this contribute to a 'towards zero suicide’ mindset?6 - Yes. Will this provide lifelong skills? - Yes

It takes a village – young people are part of the village, lets give them the tools to know what to do!

THE WELL-BEING VILLAGE PROJECT will:

• Actively involve young people in true co-design of resources and materials to promote mental well-being, to reduce the risks associated with distress, including the peers supporting their friends.
• Provide high quality and innovative programs so that young people can maximise their well-being and full inclusion in the community.
• Work in collaborative relationships with other organisations, and government agencies. Contribute research to inform the promotion and utilisation of best available evidence in practice to build positive outcomes for young people.

The Lived Experience, Leadership and Advocacy Network (LELAN) will be engaged to facilitate the co-design of school- and/or community-based wellbeing responses with young people, parents and school representatives. A particular focus of this work will be creating safe-enough environments so that challenging and often silenced topics, such as mental health issues and suicide, are able to be explored and peer, school and community solutions identified, designed and actioned. The scope and impact of these sessions on defining the wellbeing and support needs of young people and how their peers, schools and communities may best meet them in the future is far reaching.

We propose to design a program and deliver the trial to a year ten cohort (15 to 16 year olds).

We will be working in collaboration with Professor Nicholas Proctor – University SA to contribute to research in, and the promotion and utilisation of best available evidence in practice to build positive outcomes for young people.

References:

?       1. Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2020). Causes of Death, Australia, 2019.Canberra: ABS. Accessed 20 November 2020 https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/causes-death/causes-death-australia/latest-release#key-statistics,

?       2. Lawrence D, Johnson S, Hafekost J, Boterhoven De Haan K, Sawyer M, Ainley J, Zubrick SR. (2015). The Mental Health of Children and Adolescents. Report on the second Australian Child and Adolescent Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing. Canberra: Department of Health

?       3. Husky M. (2018) Help-Seeking. In: Levesque R.J.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Adolescence. Springer, Cham. https://doi-org.10.1007/978-3-319-33228-4_285

?       4. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2016). Australia’s health 2016. Australia’s health series no. 15. Cat. no. AUS 199. Canberra: AIHW.

?       5. Mo, P.K.H., Ko, T.T. & Xin, M.Q. School-based gatekeeper training programmes in enhancing gatekeepers’ cognitions and behaviours for adolescent suicide prevention: a systematic review. Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health 12, 29 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-018-0233-4

?       6. Canady, V.A. (2019), Zero Suicide declaration a ‘call to action’ to drive down suicide rates. Mental Health Weekly, 29: 1-6. https://doi-org/10.1002/mhw.31859