School Counsellor - Cobar High School

NSW Department of Education; Cobar; On-site; AUD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Rural incentives

Housing subsidy

3 personal leave days

Professional supervision

Indemnity insurance

Fitness Passport

Job summary

The NSW Department of Education is seeking a qualified school counsellor based at Cobar High School, with opportunities to work across primary and high school students. You will provide counselling and psychological assessment to support learning and wellbeing, collaborating with teachers, families and external agencies in a multidisciplinary team.

You must be a registered or provisionally registered psychologist, with experience in evidence-based interventions and travel between worksites.

Qualifications

• Experience in counselling using evidence-based interventions for children and young people.
• Experience in psychological assessment of children and young people, including reporting.
• Ability to collaborate with stakeholders to improve learning and wellbeing outcomes.
• Registered or provisionally registered psychologist, or eligible for Psychology Board of Australia.
• Willingness to travel between worksites; valid driver’s licence.

Responsibilities

• Provide counselling and psychological assessments for students.
• Collaborate with teachers, families and external agencies.
• Participate in supervision and professional development.
• Contribute to a multidisciplinary school counselling team.

Skills

Counselling

Psychological assessment

Stakeholder collaboration

Travel readiness

Education

Registered psychologist

Provisionally registered / eligible

Job description

School counsellors are an essential part of the department’s School Counselling Service . They provide counselling and psychological assessment of students to complement and enhance the work of teachers to strengthen student learning and wellbeing outcomes, and they help families understand and manage their children’s learning and mental health needs. This is a truly collegiate role offering unique challenges and opportunities – both in your professional development and your ability to make an impact on the lives of children and young people. The successful candidate will be based at Cobar High School and provided with opportunities to work across the lifespan with both primary and high school aged students. Working as a school counsellor in a NSW public school will enable you to engage with a diversity of students (and school communities) like no other child and adolescent psychologist role can. This is a chance to use your skills to make a real difference in the lives of children and young people at a time in their lives when it matters most. School counsellors receive regular, individual professional supervision with the Senior Psychologist Education and participate in group and peer supervision as a member of the broader district school counselling team. You will most likely be collaborating with a number of school communities and colleagues, as well as outside agencies, with the opportunity to use and expand the full range of your skills and expertise as part of a supportive, multidisciplinary team. School counsellors are provided with regular opportunities to participate in continuing professional development and the NSW Department of Education will support you to complete or maintain your registration with the Psychology Board of Australia. Other benefits include school holiday leave, travel allowances and health and wellbeing benefits such as our Fitness Passport program. The department will also cover your indemnity insurance as a psychologist. Cobar is a well-resourced, far western mining community and rural service centre of approximately 5,000 people, located 720 km west of Sydney. As a small co-educational, comprehensive high school catering for students from Year 7 through to Year 12, with an enrolment of 220 students, inclusive of 24% Aboriginal students, the school aims to provide a safe and happy environment that caters for individual differences and provides opportunities for all students to maximise their potential. Cobar High School hosts a trade training centre which provides significant curriculum options within a vocational framework. As such the school values its connection with the wider community and maintains strong links with local industry. Cobar High School is committed to Positive Behaviour for Learning and our values are Respect, Excellence and Safety. This position will form part of a dynamic, motivated and collaborative team of professionals, many being early career teachers. Staff at Cobar High School are eligible for incentive transfer after 3 years of service, 70% housing subsidy and attract incentives such as 3 personal leave days, mid‑term breaks and retention benefits.

• Experience in counselling using evidence‑based interventions with a demonstrated understanding of the mental health needs of children and young people.
• Experience in the psychological assessment of children and young people, including case formulation and report writing.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate with key stakeholders to improve the learning and wellbeing outcomes of children and young people including students from diverse backgrounds and needs.
• Be a registered or provisionally registered psychologist, or eligible for registration with the Psychology Board of Australia.
• Ability and willingness to travel between worksites. Must have a valid unrestricted provisional or full driver’s licence with the ability to drive oneself.
• This position is under the Teachers award ( Crown Employees (Teachers in Schools and Related Employees) Salaries and Conditions Award 2024 ).

To be eligible to apply, you must have an unconditional, full approval to teach or have eligibility to apply for an approval to teach. If you do not hold a full approval to teach with the NSW Department of Education, you are required to commence the application process at the same time as you apply for this teaching opportunity. Successful applicants will be provided with a Departmental induction program, ongoing professional learning and professional supervision.

Rural and Remote Incentives are available for eligible school counselling positions.

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 people of all backgrounds, including but not limited to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, people of any age or gender, people from culturally and linguistically diverse groups and/or from the LGBTQIA+ community, veterans, refugees, people with disability, people with sensory differences, and neurodiverse people.

Merit selection application guidelines for classroom teachers, executives and principals provide clear advice for applicants and selection panels.