Advice for staff

As well as being here to support students, the wellbeing team can also offer advice for staff.

If you are dealing with a student in distress, or you have concerns about their wellbeing, please refer them to the Student Hub to speak with a Student Adviser - you can either bring them over in person, or encourage the student to contact us directly. There is always an adviser on hand to speak with you and/or the student in confidence.

If you have concerns about the welfare of a student, a disclosure they have made, or you have any information relating to a safeguarding concern, please come and speak to us. We will be happy to provide you with practical advice on how to manage difficult situations, and details about our specialist support services. Please note that due to our services being confidential, we are usually not able to tell you whether a student has engaged with our services, or what actions we will take based on what you tell us.

If you wish to refer a student to us who requires complex support, or who you have non-immediate welfare concerns for, you may complete the forms below - ideally, you should gain the students' consent prior to making this referral.

Referral to Student Experience permission form

Student Experience referral form 18-19

Academic Toolkit

The academic tool kit provides scenarios which you may face relating to student support needs, and provides guidance in terms of appropriate responses, making referrals, and contact details for internal and external support services.

A flow chart has been developed to assist with making referrals if the student requires support or advice outside of the scope of your role and expertise.

How to Refer

Our specialist services also have specific advice for staff supporting students:

The Therapy and Mental Health team offer a safe place for students to explore their feelings. Please note, this is not an emergency service and they usually operate a waiting list.

Therapy and Mental Health Service

Access Solent disability service support students with a diagnosed disability, medical condition or specific learning difficulty and aims to remove barriers to learning

Access Solent disability service

Confidentiality and duty of care

Be aware of your boundaries; if you are supporting a student and feel it is beginning to fall outside of your remit, or you feel concerned for their welfare, please contact us.
Where possible avoid contact with students out of hours, e.g. via Facebook when there is no support on hand if a difficult situation arises.
The welfare of an individual may override confidentiality; if you have serious, immediate, concerns for someone's welfare, i.e. suicide risk, a child protection issue, or serious risk to another, it would be appropriate to breach their confidentiality and pass your concerns to us. Be honest with the student, and be clear with them that you have a duty to act upon certain information.
due to our service's confidentiality policies, unless a student has given explicit permission, we are unable to confirm to you whether a student is accessing support, or the actions we have taken on the information you pass to us.
Students are adults and they have a right to decide whether or not they wish to take up support and engage with our services. It is also important to acknowledge that some students may not be ready to engage with support.

This page: