From the Inside Out: Empowering Student-Led Wellbeing and Peer-to-Peer Support in Schools
Tracks
PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
| Wednesday, March 18, 2026 |
| 11:00 AM - 11:20 AM |
Overview
Elizabeth Wilson & Rebecca Wright, St John's Anglican College
Presenter
Ms Rebecca Wright
School Clinical Psychologist
St John's Anglican College
From the Inside Out: Empowering Student-Led Wellbeing and Peer-to-Peer Support in Schools
Presentation Overview
While professional and adult-led support remains vital in schools, students themselves are uniquely positioned to influence culture and connection. Peer-to-peer initiatives harness this potential, embedding belonging, agency, and resilience directly into everyday school life.
This presentation explores practical models of student-led wellbeing, including the benefits of Teen Mental Health First Aid, buddy programs, student ambassador roles, inclusive clubs, and peer-driven events such as R U OK? Day and wellbeing assemblies. These initiatives demonstrate how students can normalise conversations about mental health, reduce stigma, and provide meaningful support to one another.
Key themes include building student agency through training and leadership, scaffolding peer programs with adult mentorship, ensuring diverse student voice and inclusion, and evaluating impacts on engagement and school culture.
Attendees will gain practical strategies for embedding peer-to-peer approaches as a cornerstone of whole-school wellbeing, complementing formal supports and creating sustainable cultures of care.
Three Key Learnings:
1. Empower student agency through peer-led wellbeing initiatives that build belonging and resilience.
2. Scaffold programs effectively with adult mentorship, training, and inclusive frameworks.
3. Shift school culture by normalising mental health conversations and reducing stigma.
This presentation explores practical models of student-led wellbeing, including the benefits of Teen Mental Health First Aid, buddy programs, student ambassador roles, inclusive clubs, and peer-driven events such as R U OK? Day and wellbeing assemblies. These initiatives demonstrate how students can normalise conversations about mental health, reduce stigma, and provide meaningful support to one another.
Key themes include building student agency through training and leadership, scaffolding peer programs with adult mentorship, ensuring diverse student voice and inclusion, and evaluating impacts on engagement and school culture.
Attendees will gain practical strategies for embedding peer-to-peer approaches as a cornerstone of whole-school wellbeing, complementing formal supports and creating sustainable cultures of care.
Three Key Learnings:
1. Empower student agency through peer-led wellbeing initiatives that build belonging and resilience.
2. Scaffold programs effectively with adult mentorship, training, and inclusive frameworks.
3. Shift school culture by normalising mental health conversations and reducing stigma.
Biography
Rebecca Wright (she/her) is a General Psychologist, Clinical Psychology Registrar, and qualified teacher with over 15 years’ experience across education and community health settings. She has worked in metropolitan, rural, and remote settings, bringing a breadth of perspective to her practice. Rebecca is currently a College Psychologist at St John’s Anglican College and works in private practice part-time, where she supports students, families, and staff through compassionate, strengths-focused approaches. With a dual background in teaching and psychology, she is passionate about school-based and community initiatives that promote resilience, inclusion, and wellbeing across the lifespan.
Mrs Elizabeth Wilson
Head Of Learning Enhancement And Support
St John's Anglican College
From the Inside Out: Empowering Student-Led Wellbeing and Peer-to-Peer Support in Schools
Presentation Overview
While professional and adult-led support remains vital in schools, students themselves are uniquely positioned to influence culture and connection. Peer-to-peer initiatives harness this potential, embedding belonging, agency, and resilience directly into everyday school life.
This presentation explores practical models of student-led wellbeing, including the benefits of Teen Mental Health First Aid, buddy programs, student ambassador roles, inclusive clubs, and peer-driven events such as R U OK? Day and wellbeing assemblies. These initiatives demonstrate how students can normalise conversations about mental health, reduce stigma, and provide meaningful support to one another.
Key themes include building student agency through training and leadership, scaffolding peer programs with adult mentorship, ensuring diverse student voice and inclusion, and evaluating impacts on engagement and school culture.
Attendees will gain practical strategies for embedding peer-to-peer approaches as a cornerstone of whole-school wellbeing, complementing formal supports and creating sustainable cultures of care.
Three Key Learnings:
1. Empower student agency through peer-led wellbeing initiatives that build belonging and resilience.
2. Scaffold programs effectively with adult mentorship, training, and inclusive frameworks.
3. Shift school culture by normalising mental health conversations and reducing stigma.
This presentation explores practical models of student-led wellbeing, including the benefits of Teen Mental Health First Aid, buddy programs, student ambassador roles, inclusive clubs, and peer-driven events such as R U OK? Day and wellbeing assemblies. These initiatives demonstrate how students can normalise conversations about mental health, reduce stigma, and provide meaningful support to one another.
Key themes include building student agency through training and leadership, scaffolding peer programs with adult mentorship, ensuring diverse student voice and inclusion, and evaluating impacts on engagement and school culture.
Attendees will gain practical strategies for embedding peer-to-peer approaches as a cornerstone of whole-school wellbeing, complementing formal supports and creating sustainable cultures of care.
Three Key Learnings:
1. Empower student agency through peer-led wellbeing initiatives that build belonging and resilience.
2. Scaffold programs effectively with adult mentorship, training, and inclusive frameworks.
3. Shift school culture by normalising mental health conversations and reducing stigma.
Biography
Elizabeth Wilson is Head of Learning Enhancement and Support (K–12) at St John’s Anglican College, where she co-founded the Wellbeing Team and leads trauma-informed and inclusive practices across the school. With a Master of Education (Educational Wellbeing) and a Graduate Certificate in Mental Health in Education, she has designed evidence-based SEL programs, partnered with universities on pastoral care initiatives, and presented nationally on strengthening adolescent wellbeing. Elizabeth is an accredited Mental Health First Aid Trainer and passionate about building responsive, relational, and resilient learning communities.
