Palliser's Family School Liaison Program provides qualified, professional counsellors to support student and family needs throughout the district. The goals of the program are to:
- Strengthen and stabilize school and family life
- Promote healthy relationships among family, child/youth, and school
- Increase mental health capacity in children and youth.
Individual counselling is available to deal with an array of needs including separation/divorce, grief/loss, self-esteem, mentoring/positive role modeling, school attendance, parent/child conflict, violence, abuse, depression, anxiety, peer/friendship issues, and problem-solving. Referral information is also provided to those families wishing to access community resources and services, or for students requiring support outside of the scope of the Family School Liaison Counselor.
How is counselling accessed? A request for counselling can be initiated in one of two ways:
- Through staff members such as the classroom teacher, consulting teacher, administrator, or
- Students or parents/guardians can directly contact the school, and request counselling services.
Once the counsellor has received a referral from the staff or parent/guardian, an intake appointment will be arranged to discuss concerns and possibilities. Involvement in the Family School Liaison Program is voluntary and parents/guardians and students have the right to stop counselling by notifying the counsellor. (Palliser Regional Schools)