School Counsellor
Description
School Counsellor
Purpose of Role
The School Counsellor’s position involves working with students across all Key Stages of the school, supporting the social, emotional and academic well-being of students. The SC will focus on ensuring that there are clear processes and structured systems of support in place for students and in some cases, for parents. This role involves close collaboration with other members of staff, school leadership and external agencies where necessary. The duties and responsibilities of this post are numerous and varied, with the expectation that the ideal candidate will demonstrate high levels of flexibility and commitment as we move forward as a school.
This document is designed to outline the main duties and responsibilities of the School Counsellor, reflected across the following three main areas:
- Counselling Services
- Awareness Raising
- Wellbeing
ISP Principles
Begin with our children and students. Our children and students are at the heart of what we do. Simply, their success is our success. Wellbeing and safety are both essential for learners and learning. Therefore, we are consistent in identifying potential safeguarding and Health & Safety issues and acting and following up on all concerns appropriately.
Treat everyone with care and respect. We look after one another, embrace similarities and differences and promote the well-being of self and others.
Operate effectively. We focus relentlessly on the things that are most important and will make the most difference. We apply school policies and procedures and embody the shared ideas of our community.
Are financially responsible. We make financial choices carefully based on the needs of the children, students and our schools.
Learn continuously. Getting better is what drives us. We positively engage with personal and professional development and school improvement.
Key Responsibilities;
Counselling Services
- School counsellor will provide guidance and counselling services to students, offering social, emotional, and educational support. This may include responding effectively to crises that affect students.
- Ensure a clear process of referral is in place with explicit guidelines for other staff and parents.
- Liaise with parents/carers regarding the ongoing psychological support of their children, including providing rationale and recommendation for external support when required.
- Complete regular and detailed reports for services provided, such as session notes and incident reports.
- Share key information where necessary with members of SLT.
- Report safeguarding concerns directly to the school’s DSL, including any that are disclosed during counselling sessions.
- Focus on closely monitoring students that may be at higher risk.
- Treat all sessions with the highest levels of confidentiality and professionalism.
- Develop and implement action plans essential to improving parent-teacher and teacher-student work relationships.
- Work with school faculty and staff to develop plans for maintaining the well-being of individual students and of the student population as a whole.
Awareness Raising
- Create and share monthly ‘newsletter’/bulletins for staff and parents, highlighting key topics of interest and importance.
- Create, and regularly update displays around the school dedicated to promoting Wellbeing.
- Contribute regularly to school assemblies, liaising with class teachers/form tutors to design a calendar of topics and activities that are appropriate to each Key Stage’s needs.
- Plan and deliver workshops to parents and teachers on a variety of counselling, mental health and wellbeing issues.
- Look for ways to expand your own professional development and knowledge through courses, training, and other forums.
- Connect with other schools and external agencies in order to build connections and networks of support.
Wellbeing
- Take part in, and facilitate events designed to promote positive student, staff and parent wellbeing throughout the school.
- Assess the needs of our students and ensure that we have the appropriate resources in place to support them.
- Celebrate days/weeks of importance e.g. Mental Health Week.
- Assist with supporting exam year groups and liaise with teachers/leadership to provide support sessions and advice.
- Attend co-curricular activities including school camps, retreats, excursions to support teachers and students as appropriate.
*The points above outline the vast majority of the responsibilities that are central to this role. However, there are other duties that may fall outside these three main categories, but are equally essential to the successful running of the school. These include (but are not limited to): supervision duties, cover work and school CPD.
Reports to: Head of Primary, Head of Secondary and Principal
Requirements:
- Candidate must possess master’s degree in counselling, psychology, or related field.
- Required certification or licensure from relevant education or counselling board.
- Experience working in educational settings, particularly with children and adolescents, is preferred.
- Familiarity with international school environments is an advantage.
- Strong communication skills.
- Empathy and cultural sensitivity to diverse student backgrounds.
- Problem-solving and conflict resolution skills.
- Organizational and time management abilities.
ISP Commitment to Safeguarding Principles
ISP is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All post holders are subject to appropriate vetting procedures, including an online due diligence search, references and satisfactory Criminal Background Checks or equivalent covering the previous 10 years’ employment history.
ISP Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging
ISP is committed to strengthening our inclusive culture by identifying, hiring, developing, and retaining high-performing teammates regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation and gender expression, age, disability status, neurodivergence, socio-economic background or other demographic characteristics. Candidates who share our vision and principles and are interested in contributing to the success of ISP through this role are strongly encouraged to apply.