Alternative school settings

Our education system includes a range of programs and services as an alternative to school.

These settings are designed to be a safe, inclusive and supportive place to learn for children who need complex and intensive support.

Within our settings we:

• design academic, wellbeing and transition goals in partnership with each student
• personalise their learning
• focus on creating opportunities for their future.

To attend, your child's school or a community agency must refer your child to these programs. You cannot enrol directly, except for Hospital School.

Find out about distance education or home education (home schooling), which are other alternatives to a formal school setting.

Hospital School

The Hospital School classroom is located in the Child and Adolescent ward in the Centenary Hospital for Women and Children at the Canberra Hospital in Woden.

The aim of the school is to keep students connected with their learning.

Each morning, the Hospital School teachers make rounds of the ward to let patients and their families know about the classroom.

To access the Hospital School classroom, students:

• must be school aged (minimum of 5 years old) – kindergarten to year 12
• be an inpatient or the sibling of a patient admitted to Canberra Hospital
• must not be listed as infectious
• do not need to live in the ACT and can be enrolled at any school, including home school.

The classroom space, activities and learning experiences are designed to meet the needs of any child or young person – even if they are in a hospital bed.

If your child will be attending Hospital School for more than 3 days, teachers can support your family by:

• contacting your child's school to help your child stay connected to their learning, teachers and classmates
• providing support for your child's transition back to school.

Muliyan

Muliyan is a voluntary program that supports students with complex and intensive support needs in years 7 to 10.

It takes a holistic approach, focusing on building a student's skills and confidence. It does this with support from a team of professionals including teachers, youth workers and family engagement officers.

The Muliyan program:

• engages and connects students with their learning in a positive way
• focuses on improving literacy, numeracy and career education and skills
• prepares students to transition back to school or vocational learning
• targets students' personal and social skills, supporting them to understand themselves and others. It helps them manage their relationships, lives, work and learning more effectively.

Your child's public school can refer them to Muliyan. The school needs to show that they have implemented all available supports and strategies.

Muliyan accepts referrals twice a year.

Waruga Yardhura

Waruga Yardhura is an engagement support service for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander primary and high school students who have either:

• not been attending school
• are not enrolled in school.

The Waruga Yardhura team:

• provides engagement support for students and their families to engage in education or another pathway
• works with the family, student and school to identify barriers to attending school
• looks at a holistic approach to support the child or young person to engage in school.

This includes:

• linking families with community and agency supports
• works with the school to support engagement and implement supports and strategies.
• works with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and other community organisations to meet students’ needs.

Our Student Attendance team or a community agency can refer students to Waruga Yardhura.

Education program at CAMHS Cottage

The Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMHS) Cottage program is for young people who are:

• aged 13 to 18 years
• living in the ACT
• experiencing moderate to severe mental health issues
• enrolled in, but disengaged from, school due to their mental health issues
• a current client of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS).

We provide the teacher as part of the program. They work as part of the CAHMS Cottage multidisciplinary team to support young people to get to a point where they are confident to return to school or vocational programs.

The Cottage operates from the North Canberra Hospital campus in Bruce.

A CAHMS clinician makes the referrals to CAHMS Cottage.

To find out more, visit the CAHMS Cottage website.

Murrumbidgee School

Murrumbidgee School is located within Bimberi Youth Justice Centre.

It provides education and training programs to all young people in custody in the ACT.

Murrumbidgee School provides a range of programs, including:

• years 7 to 9 Australian Curriculum
• year 10 and Year 12 certification, in partnership with a school or Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT)
• vocational and training certifications through CIT or another registered training organisation
• social and emotional programs
• access to cultural programs and a range of external providers.

Murrumbidgee School staff continue to support young people after they are released. They help them transition back to school or vocational programs.

Contact us

If you want to know more about any of these alternative settings, contact our Flexible Education team.