At UWC, we make sure that all of our students feel supported, inspired, and welcomed in their school community.
Each UWC school has an on-site team that supports your well-being, including but not limited to: houseparents, student advisors/tutors, peer support networks and counsellors, deans of students, health and wellness specialists, heads of residential life, psychologists and psychotherapists, and healthcare providers both on campus and locally.
We also give students the tools to reflect on the part they play in their living and learning communities. We encourage them to think about how they treat others and how they can help create a more respectful community where everyone feels a sense of belonging. During their induction and throughout the UWC experience, students also learn how to be culturally sensitive, and be better community members.
Well-being staff regularly meet to ensure they too are working towards creating a healthy community with common goals. They are also offered forums that enable pastoral staff across the UWC movement to collaborate and support each other.
Peer supporters
Peer Supporters are a group of selected students who are trained to provide well-being support to their peers in various situations that put them under stress throughout their time at UWC. Throughout the school year, the peer supporters are supervised by an adult mental health practitioner who supports them to navigate through challenging situations as well as to organise workshops depending on their needs and the needs of the UWC community.
Many psychological studies show that young people would share and talk to their peers rather than any adult. As a part of our training and ongoing supervision sessions, Peer Supporters are encouraged to act as role models of UWC values and, as such, they help maintain a supportive culture and positive atmosphere at the school.