Harrow International School Hong Kong is the first international boarding and day school in Hong Kong. It is the third school in the Harrow family of schools in the Asia region and provides a British education from Early Years to Year 13 in custom-built facilities in a stunning location in Hong Kong. The School combines elements of educational philosophy, practice and traditions from Harrow School in London with the international mindedness of a diverse pupil body in Hong Kong. Having opened in September 2012, the School roll is currently around 1600 and the school achieves the best results in Hong Kong at A-level and GCSE. We were delighted to have featured as one of the top Schools in the World, top 10 Schools in Asia and one of the leading schools in Hong Kong according to the Spear’s Index and CARFAX Index since 2020. Harrow Hong Kong is, however, about much more than academic results and our pupils excel in music, drama, sport and art as well as service and charity work. Our pupils go on to some of the most prestigious universities across the world including Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial College London, Durham University, University of Exeter, The University of Edinburgh, Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Princeton University, UPenn, UC Berkeley, The University of Hong Kong and Tsinghua University.

Job Title: School Counsellor

Job Purpose: To provide a high-quality counselling service to pupils experiencing a range of emotional problems. To provide support, guidance and advice to parents, carers and the School as required. To observe confidentiality and to support the School’s endeavour to provide excellent teaching and learning for all pupils. To contribute to the safeguarding and promotion of the welfare and personal care of children and young people.

Tenure: Part-time

Start Date: August 2024

Reporting Line: The School Psychologist

Job Description

Education is ever-changing and all staff are expected to participate constructively in school activities and to adopt a flexible approach to their work. Whilst every effort has been made to explain the main duties and responsibilities of the post, each individual task undertaken may not be identified. The post holder will be expected to comply with any reasonable request from the line manager to undertake work of a similar level that is not specified in this job description. This job description will be reviewed regularly and may be varied in light of the business needs of the school.

Specific aims and key responsibilities are:

• Primarily providing confidential counselling to Lower School (age 3 – 11) pupils both individually and in groups
• Providing confidential counselling to Upper School (age 11 – 18) pupils as required by the School
• Counselling support for parents and families when appropriate 
• Working with a diverse range of issues including emotional difficulties such as anxiety and low mood, attachment-related needs, bereavement, eating related difficulties and supporting neurodiverse pupils
• Support with parent workshops and parent talks 
• Proactively working with School Pastoral Team and The School Psychologist to help prevent mental health difficulties developing in pupils. This might include supporting specific lessons and further PSHE development
• Promoting a caring and supportive environment where such concerns may be explored
• Maintaining appropriate and confidential records of counselling sessions and support
• Ensuring appropriate confidentiality of sensitive information
• Be aware of the responsibility for personal Health, Safety and Welfare and that of others who may be affected by your actions or inactions
• Following recognised counselling code of ethics (as determined by a nationally recognised body)

Pastoral Responsibilities

• Meeting regularly with relevant members of the Pastoral Team on individual pupil issues ensuring the best possible support
• Providing consultation to Class Teachers, House Masters/Mistresses, and other staff who support identified pupils
• Employing appropriate assessment and screening tools
• Referring pupils to relevant professionals such as the School Psychologist or external agencies when appropriate to do so
• Being alert to trends and patterns of problems identifying causes and recommend corrective action
• Dealing with or report to the nearest member of the teaching staff, incidents that are seen or reported regarding pupils’ welfare

Safeguarding Responsibilities

• Having a full and detailed knowledge of the School’s Child Protection Policy and procedures
• Liaising with the Designated Safeguarding Lead and School Psychologist on a frequent basis
• Receiving appropriate safeguarding training and refresher training regularly
• Establishing strong links with outside agencies
• Having a thorough knowledge of the mental health provision locally and nationally
• Networking with personnel from other agencies and counsellors from other schools
• Developing strong working relationships with specialist consultants such as psychologists, ensuring they receive regular professional supervision in line with standard local counselling guidelines (regular and adequate supervision from a suitably qualified supervisor)
• Implementing safeguarding procedures at the School

Other Responsibilities

• Taking responsibility for personal professional development, keep up to date with research developments and best practice for counselling which may lead to improvements in the counselling service provided
• Meeting with the School Psychologist regularly for managerial and supervisory support
• Assisting with the School’s Peer Support Programmes, such as the Wellbeing Ambassadors
• Contributing to the School’s PSHE and Facing Challenges education programmes as directed
• Providing regular audit information such as numbers, age range and types of problems to the SLT
• Providing assistance to other schools in crisis situations
• Arranging and delivering relevant training for staff when needs are identified
• Following all agreed school policies and procedures 
• Undertaking other reasonable duties as requested by the Head of Department, Head of Faculty or members of the Senior Leadership Team and any duties that the Head deems necessary for the effective operation of the School
• Undertaking duties as the Head of School or a delegated representative may reasonably request.

Harrow Hong Kong is fundamentally committed to safeguarding the children in our care and their welfare is our top priority. 

All adults in the School community are expected to follow its Child Protection procedures and are required to undertake safeguarding checks.

Harrow Hong Kong reserves the right to recruit at any stage during the selection process.

Person Specification

The successful candidate will be likely to fit the following profile:

Qualifications:

• Post-graduate Diploma or Master’s level in Counselling or a related field 
• Desirable to have further therapeutic training or a qualification in working with children and young people, especially play-based therapy

Skills:

• Good written and verbal communication skills in English
• Ability to communicate effectively with a variety of people such as pupils of all ages, teachers, Senior Leadership Team, parents and wider community 
• Understand and respect for confidentiality of the service
• Consider cultural sensitivities and approaches to pupil support
• Have a vision of Harrow Hong Kong’s values and a drive to maintain standards as a leading school in Asia
• The ability to inspire others and lead by example, role modelling the School’s vision statement Educational Excellence for Life and Leadership in relationships with pupils, teachers and parents
• The ability to work in a successful and dynamic school

Experience:

• Background of providing counselling in school is desirable
• It is desirable to have at least three years post-qualification experience in counselling
• To have worked with younger children and to have used play-based approaches

Knowledge:

• Knowledge of local mental health and child protection services
• Knowledge of the Children’s Act and legislation pertaining to children
• An understanding of the developmental, emotional, social and educational issues of children and young people

Personal Qualities:

• High levels of personal and professional integrity
• Ability to exercise discretion and confidentiality
• Personal warmth to gain the confidence of pupils, staff and parents
• Positive rapport and empathy with pupils
• High standards of personal presence and presentation and attention to detail
• Ability to communicate concisely and sensitively, both orally and in writing, to a variety of audiences
• Ability to work independently
• Patience, tolerance and sensitivity
• A mature and non-judgemental outlook
• An awareness of the range of needs of people from diverse ethnic, cultural and social backgrounds

Attitudes:

• A team player with a reflective and flexible approach
• Organised, energetic, positive and able to self-direct
• Positive, enthusiastic and energetic approach to life
• Committed to the Harrow Hong Kong ethos
• Ambitious and aspirational for oneself and for the school
• Committed to professional development and show a willingness to undertake appropriate training as required
• A positive ‘can do’ approach in all aspects of the role
• High levels of personal presentation, integrity and communication skills

All applicants should have in place the right to work in Hong Kong.

Application deadline: 29 May 2024 (The School will review applications on a rolling basis. Please apply immediately.)

Interested candidates please complete the application form on the Online Application Portal via https://career.aisl-edu.com/ Personal data provided by job applicants will be treated in strict confidence and used strictly for recruitment purpose only. Only short-listed candidates will be notified.