Supporting school leaders through complex workplace issues and contexts.
Consulting support
Experienced support when schools need it
With more than 25 years of experience working with schools, students and staff, the Compassionate Schools team brings deep school and organisational psychology expertise to complex and challenging situations.
We have supported schools through critical incidents, investigations and a range of psychosocial and other risks. We also work alongside schools that aren’t facing a crisis, but want to strengthen workplace culture, foster mentally healthy workplaces, build stronger teams or plan strategically for the future.
From Understanding to Action
Our consulting support is collaborative and practical. We work alongside your school to understand what is happening, identify priorities and develop achievable steps forward.
Together, we can identify symptoms and underlying causes through conversations, such as:
- focus groups and surveys
- consider priorities alongside your existing school
- improvement and learning agendas
- plan and implement meaningful change
- monitor progress
We regularly review what has been achieved, what needs to change and what comes next.
Supporting schools through challenge and change
Leadership in schools can be wonderful, confronting, care-filled, challenging, life-affirming and awfully hard.
Compassionate Schools provides experienced, practical consulting support to help schools navigate complexity, strengthen wellbeing and workplace culture, respond to challenges, and build capacity for the future.
Navigate challenges
Practical, experienced support for schools navigating critical incidents, investigations, risk and periods of complexity or change.
Strengthen your school
We can help you build healthier workplace cultures, stronger teams and mentally healthy environments that support staff wellbeing.
Plan for what’s next
We help you work together to identify priorities, set achievable goals and build capacity for sustainable change.
Our psychology services team
Melinda Phillips
Director and Principal PsychologistMelinda is an organisational psychologist, researcher and teacher with over twenty-five years’ experience supporting schools. She has established Compassionate Schools as a mental health workplace consultancy for schools across Australia. Compassionate Schools offers 1:1 support (clinical, supervision, coaching), school workshops for staff mental health, and psych health & safety partnerships.
Breanna Sada
Psychologist & Board Approved SupervisorBreanna is a registered psychologist and board approved supervisor, with over 15 years’ experience working across education, private practice, community mental health and organisational wellbeing. She is currently a mental health program facilitator for the Black Dog Institute, and her recent roles have included Clinical Consultant with headspace Schools and Communities, and Student Wellbeing Education Officer with Sydney Catholic Schools.