Meet Your Senior School Psychologist
Ms Georgina Speak, BPSYCH (HONS), MPSYCH (CLINICAL) 

Georgina is new to the St Catherine’s staff this year, and is providing school psychology services to senior students.

Georgina is a Clinical Psychologist who has experience in various settings including across several schools, private practice and hospitals. Georgina holds a Master of Psychology (Clinical), is an endorsed Clinical Psychologist and Board approved supervisor.  She has worked with young people with a wide range of psychological presentations including special learning needs, anxiety, depression, trauma, emotion regulation problems and adjustment problems. Georgina has a special interest in working with students.

“I aim to provide a high-quality psychology service to students that supports and strengthens their resilience and wellbeing, particularly following on from the past two years of COVID and the ongoing impacts of the pandemic on daily life,” Georgina shares. 

“I have worked extensively with adolescents and their families during the past three years of COVID, assisting them to build healthy coping mechanisms, interpersonal and problem-solving skills, communication skills and resilience training.” 

“I am passionate about providing counselling to support the wellbeing of students, but also their families. Working in a school environment will provide a collaborative approach to assisting students, teachers, and families, which is essential for optimal outcomes. St Catherine’s has such a supportive environment for students, both in terms of wellbeing and academics.” 

Below, Georgina provides some background information on the role of a school psychologists and how students and parents can get in contact.

Who are School Psychologists?  

“Psychologists in schools apply their psychological and educational expertise to support students to achieve academic success, psychological health, and social and emotional wellbeing. The primary purpose of the psychologist’s work is to assist schools to address the barriers to learning for children and young people and to improve their educational achievement. Two significant barriers to educational achievement are mental health issues and learning difficulties.” [1]

What Do School Psychologists Do? 

“All psychologists are experts in human behaviour having studied the brain, memory, learning, human development, and the processes that determine how people perceive, think, feel, behave, and react. They apply their expertise using valid, reliable, and evidence-based methods.  

“Psychologists who work in schools are trained to provide evidence-based psychological treatment for mental health problems, behaviour problems, developmental issues and the impact of problematic life events that can affect children and young people. Treatment of referred students is aimed at helping them to better understand and manage their emotions and behaviour, apply more productive coping styles to daily events or stressors, and find achievement and satisfaction both at school and within their peer relationships and families.

“As part of the treatment approach, psychologists can assist teachers and parents to understand the difficulties a student may be experiencing and provide ways of assisting the student at home and in the classroom. At times it is necessary for the psychologist to discuss with a student, parent and possibly the teacher, the need for referral to a specialist agency if the student’s needs are outside the resources or expertise of the psychologist in the school setting.” (ibid.)

How Do I Contact the School Psychologist? 

Senior students can self-refer to see the School psychologist. Georgina can be reached via email gspeak@stcatherines.net.au or counselling@stcatherines.net.au.

Please contact Georgina if you would like more detailed information about St Catherine’s psychology service, or if you would like to organise a face-to-face meeting.