Students at six Sutherland Shire schools will benefit from leading Youth Mentoring Program to support student well-being this year.
Youth mentoring non-profit organisation, Raise Foundation, will run its evidence based youth mentoring program for the first time at Sylvania High School in 2022.
Five other schools in the shire already utilise the program. They include Sylvania High School, Lucas Heights Community School, Cronulla High School, Engadine High School and Our Lady of Mercy Catholic College, Burraneer.
In St George, Kingsgrove High School, Georges River College Hurstville Boys Campus and Peakhurst Campus have joined the program.
Up to 15 students from each school will benefit from taking part in the early intervention mentoring program this year.
Raise provides young people with a caring, independent volunteer mentor who each week, aims to empower young people to talk about life's challenges.
Mission Australia's Annual Youth Survey 2020 indicates that one in four teenagers are unhappy with their lives, mostly because of the effect of the pandemic, lockdown and border closures.
The Australian Institute of Health and Wellness 2021, revealed that 36 per cent of youth between the ages of 13-17 indicated that COVID-19 affected their anxiety and stress.
Furthermore, a Headspace survey showed that 74 per cent experienced worsened mental health since the onset of the pandemic, and 86 per cent reported negative effects on their well-being, mood and sleeping habits.
One of the concerns has been the reduced access to education, namely, face-to-face learning.
Chief Executive of Raise, Vicki Condon, said young people have a greater sense of belonging when exposed to one-on-one support.
"One of the strongest predictors of how a child develops in terms of happiness, academic success, resilience and meaningful relationships is whether at least one adult has consistently shown up for them," she said.
"These six Sutherland Shire schools have the well-being of their students top of mind and recognise that support from a mentor during the teenage years can change the course of a young person's life."
The foundation also hopes to encourage more volunteers to express interest in becoming a student mentor.
"Our team recruits, trains and screens everyday people to become successful youth mentors and that is what we're looking for in each of these school communities," she said.
"Our team is recruiting volunteers to be trained to mentor young people particularly for Sylvania High School, Lucas Heights Community School and Engadine High School who are all taking part in our program in 2022. The program will run during terms two and three this year, and we provide ongoing support from our local team of program counsellors."
our team is recruiting volunteers to be trained to mentor young people at Kingsgrove High School, GRC Hurstville Boys Campus and GRC Peakhurst Campus. The program will run during terms two and three this year, and we provide ongoing support from our local team of Program Counsellors."
