Lorna Wilson

Lorna is the Wellbeing & Engagement Officer at Northern Counties School in Jesmond, a specialist education provider for learners aged 3-19.

She’s responsible for supporting learners, parents and staff alike through counselling, safeguarding and wellbeing activities. Lorna is a qualified counsellor and a member of the British Association for Counselling and Therapy.

Find out about Northern Counties School >

How long have you worked at the Percy Hedley Foundation?

Since April 2022.

What has your journey been within the Foundation to get to where you are today?

I was employed by the Foundation as a school MCAP (Member of the British Association for Counselling and Therapy) counsellor and Northern Counties School’s wellbeing and engagement officer.

My work involves providing support for our amazing learners, staff and parents/carers when required. This sometime includes personal support or referring to external organisations.

What are some of the biggest changes you’ve seen in your time at the Foundation?

Since I started in 2022 Northern Counties has continuously improved; I’ve watched the school grow from strength to strength and have been supported by senior management to integrate a whole school approach to wellbeing. We now have mental health first-aiders, poverty support, we have gained recognition for wellbeing improvements and are now working towards our gold Carnegie award after receiving silver only last year!

I believe the schools’ improvements are down to the committed staff that work in the Foundation. We have an amazing leadership team, and our staff are always going above and beyond for our learners.

The Foundation is always working with external organisations to ensure we as a school are looking after our learners, staff and parents to the highest level possible.

It really is like a big family here, and there’s always opportunities for progression and growth within any role.

What does an average day look like for you?  

No day is ever the same… I have 3 days of learner counselling sessions, 1 day of safeguarding and 1 day for parent/carers. Staff support is as and when required!

The job role is always adapting depending on need.

What’s your favourite part about your role? 

Getting to work with the most amazing learners, their families, and supporting the most passionate staff team!

What is your greatest memory of working at the Foundation?  

There are too many amazing memories to pick just one.

Getting to be part of a Foundation that inspires positive change for our learners and working with external organisations to make the community more accessible for our learners.

The privilege of getting to support and work alongside our learners, watching them grow and develop ready for steps after school (we often have previous learners return for visits to tell us how things are as staff have a great rapport with learners).

Working with a passionate staff team during wellbeing events, we love a bit of competitive sports.

A piece of advice to someone joining the Foundation?  

Be open to new experiences: it always helps to be flexible and adaptable as we have some a diverse range of learners and staff, which brings an amazing range of skills and qualities to the school.

View our Vacancies >