Kia ora. We would like to let you know of the services that are available for you and to introduce you to the team working at Simpson House.

Our team consists of an administrator, a mental health adviser, a social worker, and four counsellors.

Counselling Administrator

Illa Russell is our counselling and wellbeing administrator and first point of contact. She is available to help you make an appointment, to arrange for some time out from class if that is required and to talk with you until a counsellor is available. Illa also manages the College attendance process which involves notifying caregivers, promoting and rewarding positive attendance, and developing strategies for non-attendance.

Mental Health Adviser

Susan Ayson is our mental health adviser. Susan’s background is in general and psychiatric nursing. She is available to discuss anything you might like to regarding your mental health. She makes mental health assessments, can talk to you about receiving help outside of school and make referrals to outside agencies or arrange for you to meet with one of the Hagley counsellors.

Social Worker

Alana Whitcombe is our social worker. She can support you with social problems, such as finances and Benefits, housing, and other personal issues. Alana can support you with Government agency processes; with agencies such as Work and Income or Studylink. She can organise food parcels and refer to other agencies outside of school for extra support if needed.

Counsellors

Leanne Buchan, Carolyn Heyward-Judd, Suzanne Wood, and Michael Gilchrist are our counselling team. Their role is to offer you support for anything that is an issue for you that you would like to share in a confidential setting. No issue is too big or too small. If it is an issue for you, it is an issue for us, and we would like to help as much as we can. Typical issues the team support students with are anxiety, loneliness, depression, friendship, and relationship issues, liaising with teachers, eating issues, substance use and abuse, family pressures, support for LGBTQIA+ students, and support concerning inappropriate behaviour such as neglect and abuse. The counselling team also facilitate a variety of groups which foster social connection amongst the students.

Isobella King is a student on the Masters’ Counselling programme at Canterbury University, and we are fortunate to have her working with us one day per week throughout the year.

We are based at Simpson House, the brick building next to the Waller Terrace entrance.