New South Wales’ public schools are opting for secular wellbeing officers more than religious chaplains under the Albanese government’s National Student Wellbeing Program.
According to data provided to the Rationalist Society of Australia (RSA) by the state’s Department of Education, as of April this year 57 per cent of 233 schools that had engaged a provider had opted for the secular option, while 41 per cent selected religious chaplains.
A review by the RSA of all states’ published lists of approved providers shows New South Wales has witnessed the emergence of a significant number of non-religious providers since the Albanese government made changes to the controversial federal program to allow schools a choice of appointing a secular wellbeing officer instead of a chaplain.
At least 14 of 32 service providers in New South Wales are secular, while one religious provider offers both wellbeing officers and chaplains, and another provider appears secular but has a website featuring numerous Bible quotes.
The review also shows, however, there is a lack of clarity over whether suppliers are religious-based or secular, with some agencies listed as offering wellbeing officer services while having religious connections and making religious references on their websites, and others being religious-based organisations supplying wellbeing officers.
In Victoria, the published list of service providers reveals that religious-based agencies continue to dominate the NSWP, with just two of 17 service providers appearing to be secular.
Three suppliers in the state provide the option of either a wellbeing officer or chaplain. Although, one of these – Young Life Australia – says on its website that its mission is to “introduce young people to Jesus Christ and help them grow in their faith”.
The leading provider of Christian chaplains in Queensland, Scripture Union, is listed on the state’s education department’s website as also providing wellbeing officers.
Of the total 16 providers listed on the Queensland education department website, at least six appear to be secular, recruiting only wellbeing officers.
South Australia has just two approved service providers – the Christian-based Schools Ministry Group and Your Dream. While Your Dream appears to appoint both chaplain and wellbeing officer roles, and its website does not talk about religion, its charitable purpose, as registered with the national charities regulator, is “advancement of religion”.
Of six providers in Western Australia, three are listed as providing only secular wellbeing officers, with one of these being Anglicare. One listed as providing both chaplains and wellbeing officers is Scripture Union, which, according to its website, works to give children “opportunities to discover life in God’s big story”.
In Tasmania, there only appears to be one provider of wellbeing officers – Relationships Australia Tasmania (Speak UP! Stay ChatTY!) – while the other three are religious-based chaplaincy recruitment agencies.
Last year, the RSA published a report highlighting the continued religious-based discrimination in the NSWP.
While the program rules say chaplains and wellbeing officers can be “of any faith, or of no faith”, those hired as chaplains must still meet a number of religious credentials, including formal ordination, commissioning, recognised religious qualifications or endorsement by a recognised or accepted religious institution. These religious credentials do not apply to the wellbeing officer roles.
The RSA has been arguing that pastoral care workers should be hired by schools directly rather than through external agencies to ensure there is no discrimination.
Only the Australian Capital Territory has blocked use of NSWP funds to hire workers based on religious credentials.
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Si Gladman is Executive Director of the Rationalist Society of Australia. He also hosts ‘The Secular Agenda’ podcast.