Response to the Independent Evaluation of the National School Chaplaincy Program

The Australian Psychological Society (APS) welcomed the opportunity to respond to the Federal Government Department of Education’s independent evaluation of the National School Chaplaincy Program (NSCP) for the period 2019 to 2022. The evaluation aimed to assess the NSCP effectiveness in supporting the wellbeing of school students and the broader school community.

The submission highlighted critical opportunities for the Government that can be incorporated as part of a revised NSCP in the areas of: integration of the program in the broader context of school wellbeing initiatives, program delivery, program effectiveness and evidence-based improvements.

The APS recommended that:

• The revised NSCP Federal Government and State Government agreement removes administrative barriers for schools that wish to access the NSCP to fund, or part-fund, more highly qualified non-religious wellbeing staff, including psychologists.
• NSCP chaplains and student welfare officers are clearly positioned as members of school wellbeing teams with professional coordination of NSCP roles delegated to highly qualified school mental health practitioner roles, such as school psychologists.
• The Government evaluate the return on investment and value for money of the NSCP as part of the next independent evaluation.

View submission