Apps for secondary school student mental health and wellbeing

The advent of the internet, smartphones and other forms of technology has fundamentally changed the way in which people are educated, communicate and work. Adolescents appear to favour the use of smartphones in particular, for example: in 2015 it was estimated 80% of all Australian teenagers possess and use a smartphone (The Australian Communications and Media Authority, 2016). Smartphone apps therefore provide an avenue for school wellbeing teams to facilitate unprecedented access to mental health information, assessment and interventions. Young people are most at risk of independently searching for and using poor quality apps containing inaccurate counselling guidance and advice (Furlonger & Budisa, 2016). It is incumbent upon schools to ensure digitally relevant support tools are available to students that cater to the increasingly technological needs of young people. The purpose of this policy is to provide wellbeing and school leadership teams an outline of criteria relevant to the appraisal, adoption and promotion of high-quality apps to support student mental health and wellbeing.