The counselling team includes two current teachers and one member of the international department who have all retrained to become qualified counsellors. Our aim is to help our young men negotiate the challenges of their teenage years, empowering them to better understand themselves, their connection to the world and the people in their lives.
Counselling is a confidential service and is available to all students at no cost. Confidentiality is always upheld unless there is a safety risk for the student or if the student poses a risk to others. Our counsellors are bound by New Zealand Association’s Code of Ethics and work within a framework that is safe and ethical in the best interests of each student.
Students are encouraged to self-refer for counselling support using the counselling icon on their Westlake start page. However we acknowledge that this can be a challenging process for some young men and so we encourage parents and whanau to have a conversation with their son and make the booking online together. Parents and whanau can also make direct contact with any of the counsellors by phone or email to get some advice and guidance on the best way to support their sons.
Year 9 and 10 students also have the ability to seek counselling support via the weekly PULSE well-being checking APP.
Ngā mihi nui,
Mark Butler (Head of Department)
