Taking More Action on Student Wellbeing?
Apply for a SWAG!
Your school is probably already a Living Ripples school and has completed the Resilience Survey and has or is soon to complete the Action Plan process. The Action Plan is the second of the four stages of the annual cycle of the Living Ripples process.
Survey
Action Plan
Teacher Audit
Action Plan Review
While we know each school has a budget for wellbeing, sometimes there is a specific need which has been found during its Survey and Action Plan. This is where Student Wellbeing Action Grants (SWAG) can step in. A competitive process, if successful, SWAG adds to the available funds needed to enable a school to act and/or select and engage a provider to achieve their specific aims. Schools apply for a SWAG showing how it links with the Living Ripples process, its ‘fit’ with the school’s existing plans and expected outcomes.
If your school is not yet part of the Living Ripples process and would like to be, we would be pleased to hear from you.
Engaging the Provider to best suit your school
Living Ripples already works with a number of partner, providers and service organisations. Each of them reflects elements that make up the Resilience Survey. Because Living Ripples is about sustained and locally led long-term change, so is the way we connect schools and providers. These have all been approved by the Living Ripples team in the way they operate, including suitable focus areas, commitment and regular connection with the schools with which they partner. If there is another provider your school would like to work with, this can be detailed in the application and Living Ripples will contact them to ask for an Expression of Interest.
Applying for a SWAG
The simple application form asks for specific answers, with a ‘who, what, why, where, when’ approach and how the application links to your own particular school goals. A SWAG application asks for an estimated cost, the number of students taking part and when the anticipated program will start. Applications for SWAG are reviewed quarterly by Living Ripples towards the end of each school term.
After the awarding of the SWAG?
The Living Ripples team need to know how well the SWAG worked for your school. Your evaluation and review of the service or program is very important. We ask that you take part in a short (15 minute) phone or online interview so we can prepare a Partner Profile. This comes to the school for checking and is then included on the Living Ripples Community of Practice thus adding to the depth of national offerings about resilience and wellbeing. Partner Profiles are invaluable for other schools looking for pathways to improve the wellbeing of their students.
Invitation for Prospective Partners, Providers and Practitioners
Living Ripples is keen to broaden the range of its partners. What we need are partners who are experienced, creative, wide-ranging in their approach and committed to working with schools and their communities. Most importantly of all, we need partners who want to work with Living Ripples. Providers complete an Expression of Interest to be on the Living Ripples register. This includes a summary of services, completion of details of mandatory regulations and how regular connections with schools are maintained. Because Living Ripples is evidence-based, its approved providers will receive evaluation data, seeing their role as part of a coordinated and collaborative approach. For interested providers, an information session will be held on Wednesday 16 October at 12 noon, see details below in Dates for the Diary.
Dates for the diary
For school communities
We are delighted with the response for our NSW South Coast Cluster Connect and Celebration on Wednesday 20 November in Gerringong, NSW. An invitation to all NSW Living Ripples schools has been shared, if you are interested or know someone who is, please get in touch. If you would like to register for a Connect and Celebration event in your area, please get in touch and we will work with you to develop.
For program providers
For program providers and practitioners keen to contribute to the Living Ripples process in partnership with participating schools, we are holding an information session about Living Ripples on Wednesday 16 October at 12 noon for 45 minutes. The session will provide an overview of the program, discuss the application process and include a Q&A session. The session will be recorded and shared on the Living Ripples website.
The Living Ripples Pool
Living Ripples Partner Profile
Corrimal East Public School
In each newsletter we feature a school, school community or local network implementing the Living Ripples process. Corrimal East Public north of Wollongong NSW has been involved in Living Ripples since 2023 and this year, moved to the new implementation process. Recently the School completed their Action Planning process with the findings informing their current practices and creating new initiatives with great success.