St Andrew's Cathedral School

Wellbeing and character development are central to the school's learning. Character Strengths are taught and mapped to the VIA framework, and approaches to learning (ATL) from the International Baccalaureate World School are incorporated into the school's Character Strengths. The wellbeing programme is cohesive with Character Education and runs across year groups. Junior School delivers Social and Emotional Wellbeing (SEW) lessons addressing emotional management; attention and awareness; relationships; coping; and goals, reinforced through chapel, assemblies and playground activities. Secondary School wellbeing includes a Flourishing Research strategy with student voice and seminars on topics such as consent, cyber safety, and mental health, supported by a structured Middle School and Senior College tutorial programme.

A team of specialist educators supports teachers in the classroom, as well as withdrawal groups, to cater for the learning needs of students who require additional support; onsite occupational therapists and speech therapists are available in the Junior School. Learning Support staff work with school psychologists and the Head of Careers and Pathways, and with outside professionals to tailor support. Services include in-class support; diagnostic screener; development of Individual Adjustment Plans (IAPs); targeted intervention plans; parent information sessions; professional development for staff; modifications to curriculum and assessment; learning transition programmes; collaborative planning with teachers, students, parents and outside professionals; Disability Provisions applications for HSC and IB; data collection for NCCDSWD funding.

EAL/D students are defined as those who have studied in an English-speaking institution for the last five years or less and are from a non-English speaking background or speak a dialect other than Standard Australian English. For Years K-3, English level is evaluated at the enrolment interview, and offers are at the Head of Junior School's discretion. For Years 4-11, applicants should provide AEAS or iDAT results; if the student meets required levels they sit an English language proficiency test at St Andrew's Cathedral School; if results do not meet the standard, they may attend Intensive English College or ELICOS; retesting occurs after AEAS, iDAT or ELICOS results show improvement. The school's English requirements by year group specify thresholds for AEAS and iDAT.

The wellbeing programme runs in tandem with the Character Education programme to support students' mental health and resilience. The Flourishing Research strategy incorporates student voice and informs wellbeing interventions; a range of external professionals run seminars across year groups on topics including consent, cyber safety, mental health and the value of the human person; the Middle School and Senior College tutorials outline topics and seminars relevant to wellbeing.

St Andrew's Cathedral School places care, safety and wellbeing of children and young people as a central responsibility. All children have the right to feel safe and to be protected from abuse, maltreatment and harm. The School is committed to remembering its history with humility and acknowledging institutional failures, with policies and procedures to prevent such failures in the future; information for confidential disclosures is available. The National Redress Scheme provides support to people who experienced institutional child sexual abuse and started on 1 July 2018, with eligibility details and access information provided.