Position Information
The NSW Department of Education provides, funds and regulates education services for NSW students from early childhood to secondary school, delivering world-class education through its public schools and providing funding support to non-government schools. We employ, develop and support teachers, leaders and other staff to deliver the best outcomes for students and to advance the wellbeing of Aboriginal people.
About the Role
Student Support Officers work within the school community to enhance student wellbeing and learning outcomes in partnership with the wellbeing team and the school counselling service. Student Support Officers provide individual and targeted wellbeing support and whole of school wellbeing initiatives and programs that are evidence-based. They have a pivotal role in working collaboratively with external agencies and creating referral pathways for students and families to child and family support agencies.
Essential Requirements
• A completed diploma or higher qualification in social work, youth work, welfare or related discipline must be attached along with your application
• Knowledge of and commitment to the Department’s Aboriginal education policies
• Valid and current Working With Children Check (WWCC).
Click here for the role description
Talent Pool
A talent pool may be created through this recruitment process. A talent pool is a group of candidates who have undergone an assessment process and have been identified as suitable for this role or similar roles for a period of 18 months. Being part of a talent pool means that you may be considered for ongoing or temporary employment for a range of similar roles. This offers exciting opportunities for you to gain a wide range of experiences to build your public service career.
Special Notes
About the NSW Department of Education
The Department of Education is the largest provider of public education in Australia with responsibility for delivering high-quality public education to two-thirds of the NSW student population. We welcome applications from all ages and genders, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, culturally and linguistically diverse groups, the LGBTQIA+ community, veterans, refugees, neurodiverse people and people with disability. If we can make some adjustments to our recruitment/interview process to better help you shine, please contact the hiring manager using the contact details provided above. For more information, visit NSW Department of Education Diversity and Inclusion
Additional Information
Chifley College Bidwill Campus is a comprehensive 7-12 campus of Chifley College located in Mount Druitt on the land of the Darug people. The school shares its site with Bidwill Public School, resulting in a Pre-school to year 12 campus working collaboratively to meet the needs of the Bidwill and Mount Druitt Communities.
Our enrolment of 710 students is representative of the many cultures that make up the Mount Druitt community. Our students represent many cultural backgrounds including 25% of students who identify as Aboriginal, 36% as Pasifika of Samoan, Tongan, Cook Islands, Maori communities, and increasing populations of students from Afghan, Sudanese and Indian backgrounds.
Our school is a Choice Theory School, where we apply the principals of William Glasser and Marvin Marshal to empower our students to self-manage their behaviour and engagement. The culture of care, compassion and innovation embeds an approach where the needs of the whole child is considered and leveraged to provide the best possible conditions for learning. Our platforms set high expectations for student success through collaborative engagement with students, parents and carers, staff and community.
Our school includes a substantial support unit with an enrolment of up to 104, catering for the needs of students with disabilities in 3 classes IM and 5 MC support classes. Our Teaching and Learning team provides embedded support for students with disabilities, EAL/D and disadvantage through additional staffing financed through flexible funding, ensuring every student has the best possible access to equitable opportunities.
We pride ourselves on our connection to community and invest heavily in engagement with mental and physical health service providers, Aboriginal and Pasifika cultural organisations, commercial and industrial partners, universities, TAFE and other campuses of the college to connect our students, parents and community to opportunities and support which ensure success.
Our collaboratively developed School Excellence Plan focuses on the elements of our holistic approach to learning through quality, evidence informed pedagogy, explicit teaching and building the conditions which enable effective teaching and learning.
Our consultative and collaborative approaches have allowed us to deeply understand the Bidwill community and embed practices that remove barriers, build cultural safety and sense of belonging and build the conditions which allow students to thrive in their learning and wellbeing, resulting in significant increases in enrolments, retention to the HSC, improved attendance and academic performance over the last 5 years.
How to Apply
To apply for this role, please submit in either Word or PDF format:
1. A cover letter (max 2 pages)
* demonstrating how your skills, knowledge and professional experience meet the focus capabilities as outlined in the role description
2. A target question response (maximum 300 words per target question)
* answering the two targeted questions below
3. A current resume (max 5 pages)
* including name, phone number/s and email for two professional referees
4. Copies of your qualifications and academic transcripts
Note: all documents relating to your application including qualifications and academic transcripts are required to be submitted online via iworkfor.nsw. No paper based, email or late applications will be accepted.