Wellbeing Corner

Raise Mentoring

Students involved in the Raise Mentoring successfully graduated from the program on Monday 15 September, marking an 11th year the school has worked with this fantastic organisation.

Starting in Term 1, 15 students from year 8 and 9 worked weekly with their mentors to develop skills and build new perspectives on issues affecting their lives. The strength of the program rests in giving students the opportunity to make connections with trusted adults (who aren’t their teachers or relatives) and have another advocate in their lives.

Not only would I like to thank the mentors for generously volunteering their time to support young Fortians, I’d also like to thank the parents for supporting this valuable program. Lastly, I’d like to thank the indefatigable Rose Dooley, Fort Street’s Student Support Officer, for her expert running of the program.

Once again, a huge congratulations to the students for graduating from the program showing tremendous growth and developing skills that will last a lifetime.

I’m already look forward to the next Raise Mentoring program kicking off in 2026.

Social Media Ban for Young People Coming Soon

With the government’s Social Media Minimum Age (SMMA) legislation coming into effect in December of this year, it may be a good time to familiarise yourself with what the legislation means and how to prepare your child for it, particularly if they are in years 7-10.

Here’s what the new law will mean in practice:

If your child is under 16 and using an “age-restricted” social media platform, that platform must remove their account.
If your child is under 16 and tries to create an account, or re-activate one that has been closed, the platform must stop them before they get through the sign-up process..

On 10 December 2025 thousands of children under 16 will lose access to their social media accounts in December. Some will be relieved. Some will be angry. Many will be caught off guard. Here are some questions and comments you might get from your child:

“I’m nearly 16 – what does it matter?”
“My whole friendship group is online – don’t you want me to have friends?”
“This is the only place I feel seen and can express myself!”

These questions matter. And they need to be met with respect, not dismissal. But be clear – social media accounts are environments designed with adult users in mind. They are harmful places for young people to be in.

Click here to download a free guide from the organisation CtrlShift/Safe on Social on how to prepare.

What Counts as an “Age-Restricted Social Media Platform”?

Any platform where:

Social interaction is a key purpose
Users can follow, friend, tag, message or comment on each other
Users can post content (videos, photos, stories, etc.)

This covers many popular platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat, but also any new or emerging service that fits the same risk profile.

What System Will Platforms Use to Know Who’s Under 16?

Platforms must move beyond self-declaration and install age assurance systems tools that estimate, verify, or infer a person’s age. These may include:

Facial age estimation (e.g. to estimate age using AI)
Behavioural inference (e.g. looking at content patterns, language, login times)
Date of birth checks against verifiable data (e.g. from a device or app store)
Multi-step ‘successive validation’—starting with light checks and escalating only where needed

Click here to find out more information. Please also feel free to contact me (hugh.oneill7@det.nsw.edu.au) should you have any concerns regarding your child and this change.

Mr O’Neill

Hear Teacher Wellbeing (Relieving)