Consultancy
Consultancy team
Our consultancy team brings together experience across psychology, education, leadership, research and presenting. We work with schools and organisations to build practical responses to wellbeing, mental health, learning and system challenges.
The aim is not to arrive with a generic package. We work with you to understand the context, identify what will make the biggest difference, and shape support that is useful on the ground.
Practical expertise. Tailored to your setting.
Consultancy can be a presentation, a focused piece of project work, ongoing mentoring, or a broader review of systems and practice.
Consultancy support
Areas we can support with
Our consultants bring different areas of experience. Projects can focus on one area or combine several, depending on what your school or organisation needs.
Presentations and training
Professional learning for staff, parents and students, including mental health, wellbeing, relationships, practical helping skills and role-specific training.
Pastoral care and wellbeing systems
Reviewing and strengthening pastoral care, counselling and wellbeing frameworks so roles, pathways and day-to-day practice are clear and sustainable.
Policy, process and risk frameworks
Developing practical procedures, decision pathways and organisational processes, including responses to significant student risk and complex wellbeing situations.
Assessment, learning and neuroinclusion
Supporting schools with assessment-informed planning, learning and behavioural needs, NCCD-related practice, reasonable adjustments and neuroinclusive approaches.
Leadership, mentoring and supervision
Supporting psychologists, counsellors, pastoral leaders and managers to build capability, clarify roles, strengthen teams and make thoughtful decisions.
Future-focused education and program design
Helping schools design innovative and integrative approaches to teaching, pastoral care and student engagement, including programs such as eSports and robotics.
Our experience
Schools and organisations we've supported
Our team has worked with staff from 150+ schools and organisations across Australia through consultancy, professional development, presentations, supervision and mentoring.
150+
Schools and organisations supported
Australia-wide
Working across states and school systems
Whole-school to individual
From leadership and wellbeing teams to psychologists, counsellors and pastoral staff
Flexible support
Consultancy, professional learning, supervision and mentoring
Our team
Meet the consultants
Each consultant brings a different lens to the work. We also draw on a wider network of HR, legal, education and management expertise when a project needs additional input.
Dr Matt O’Connor
Clinical and School Psychologist
Matt brings together clinical psychology, school psychology, research, leadership and presenting experience. His consultancy work is especially focused on practical school systems, wellbeing frameworks, staff capability and translating evidence into approaches that work in real settings.
Emily Locke (née Coote)
Educational and Developmental Psychologist
Emily has more than a decade of experience, primarily in education, with additional work across crisis, disability, rural and remote services. Her consultancy style is practical and approachable, with a strong focus on mental health, pastoral care and building staff confidence.
Michelle Pullen
Educational and Developmental Psychologist
Michelle is an Educational and Developmental Psychologist, supervisor and registered teacher. She works with schools on assessment, behaviour, learning, inclusion, staff capability and whole-school wellbeing, with a strong emphasis on practical strategies that can be used in everyday school settings.
Meg Foley
Principal and Teacher
Meg is a registered teacher and founding Principal of Omni Academies of Learning. Her consultancy work focuses on school design, integrative teaching, pastoral systems and future-focused programs, including practical development of eSports and robotics initiatives.
Dr Matt O’Connor
Clinical and School Psychologist
Qualifications
BPsySci (Hons)
Doctor of Psychology (Clinical)
Consultant profile
About me as a consultant
I’m a Clinical and School Psychologist, Board-approved Supervisor, researcher, presenter and Director of ConnectEd Counselling and Consultancy. I’ve worked across schools, mental health services, residential care, organisational consultancy and services supporting police and veterans, as well as holding leadership roles across education, mental health and the not-for-profit sector.
A large part of my work has been in and around schools. I’m particularly interested in the systems that sit behind good student support — how roles are defined, how referrals and decisions are made, how information is collected and communicated, and how schools can build processes that are practical enough to work consistently in the real world.
My approach to consultancy is usually to take something that feels complicated, unclear or inefficient and help turn it into a clearer framework, process or plan. That might involve reviewing an existing system, designing something new, working alongside a leadership or wellbeing team, or delivering professional learning that gives staff practical ways to improve what they are already doing.
Presentations and professional learning
- Mental health, wellbeing and pastoral care for school and organisational staff
- Student risk, self-harm and suicide-response processes
- Role clarity, professional boundaries and sustainable practice
- Technology, parenting and young people
- Parent presentations and education
- Practical skills for staff supporting children and adolescents
- Tailored professional learning for counselling, psychology and pastoral care teams
Systems, policy and process design
- School counselling, psychology and pastoral care frameworks
- Referral, triage and student-support pathways
- Risk-management and critical-incident processes
- Role definition, scope and team structures
- Documentation, record-keeping and decision-making systems
- Digital workflows, automation and administrative processes
- Wellbeing spaces, group programs and whole-school approaches
Applied projects, research and evaluation
- Designing practical school-based research and evaluation projects
- Wellbeing surveys and data-collection systems
- Identifying useful measures rather than collecting data for its own sake
- Analysing and communicating findings to staff, leadership and other stakeholders
- Turning research evidence into practical changes in policy and service delivery
My academic work has also included developing the Mental Health Literacy Scale, which has been translated into more than 50 languages and is widely used in mental health literacy research internationally.
Supervision, mentoring and leadership support
- School psychologists and counsellors
- Heads of counselling, wellbeing and pastoral care
- Psychologists undertaking endorsement pathways
- Leadership teams reviewing wellbeing structures and services
- Professional decision-making, role development and complex case discussion
- Staff wellbeing, workload, boundaries and sustainable practice
The common thread across this work is making things clearer, more useful and easier to implement — while keeping the needs of students, families and the people supporting them at the centre.
Emily Locke (née Coote)
Educational and Developmental Psychologist
Qualifications
BBehavSci
PostGradDip Psychology
MEdDev
Consultant profile
About me as a consultant
I’m an Educational and Developmental Psychologist and Board-approved Supervisor with more than a decade of experience, primarily in the education sector. My background includes school psychology and guidance counselling, crisis and mental health work, disability support, and roles in rural and remote communities across educational, medical and hospital settings.
My consultancy style is friendly, practical and grounded in the realities of working with young people, families and school teams. I enjoy helping people build confidence in what to notice, what to do next, and how to respond in ways that are clear and sustainable.
Presentations and training
- Mental health and wellbeing for school, university and organisational staff
- Recognising and responding to mental health challenges
- Respectful relationships and supportive workplace environments
- Parent and carer presentations, and sessions for students and young people
Pastoral care support
- Building staff capability to recognise and respond to concerns
- Supporting students at significant risk, including self-harm and suicide
- Professional boundaries and sustainable practice for pastoral teams
Supervision and mentoring
- School psychologists and other psychologists working in educational settings
- Psychoeducational assessment and report-writing support
- Educational and Developmental Psychology registrar support
- Pastoral care leaders and managers
Michelle Pullen
Educational and Developmental Psychologist
Qualifications
BSocSci (Psych)
BPsych (Hons)
BEd
MPsych (Ed & Dev)
Consultant profile
About me as a consultant
I’m an Educational and Developmental Psychologist, supervisor and registered teacher with more than a decade of experience supporting the wellbeing and learning of students, staff and families in schools.
My consultancy work is especially focused on students who may find traditional classroom settings difficult because of learning, behavioural, developmental or emotional needs. I enjoy working with staff and families to translate assessment information and research into practical supports that fit the real school environment.
Assessment-informed intervention and planning
- Behaviour and learning assessment
- Individualised behaviour support planning
- NCCD documentation and verification applications and reviews
Staff training and whole-school initiatives
- Understanding behaviour, disability, trauma and emotional needs
- Evidence-informed approaches to relationships, learning and classroom support
- Whole-school wellbeing and inclusive-practice initiatives
Parent and carer support
- Behaviour management strategies
- Supporting anxiety and school reluctance
- Transitions into Prep and other significant school changes
Neuroinclusive practice
- Reasonable adjustments in education and workplaces
- Supporting people with ADHD, autism, dyslexia and different cognitive profiles
- Translating research into practical strategies for teachers and parents
Professional supervision
- School psychologists, including assessment and report-writing upskilling
- Educational and Developmental Psychology registrar support
Consultant profile
About me as a consultant
I’m a registered teacher and founding Principal of Omni Academies of Learning, a Brisbane high school built around a progressive and integrative approach to education. My work has centred on designing school structures, policies and programs that are flexible, future-focused and strongly connected to student wellbeing.
As a consultant, I work with schools and educators who want to rethink existing structures or build new programs while keeping a clear connection to learning, relationships and practical implementation.
School frameworks for integrative teaching
- Developing models that connect learning across traditional subject boundaries
- Designing approaches that emphasise collaboration, critical thinking and flexibility while maintaining strong academic outcomes
Pastoral care design
- Creating whole-school pastoral frameworks embedded in everyday teaching and relationships
- Strengthening approaches to student wellbeing, resilience and personal growth
eSports and robotics programs
- Designing eSports programs that build engagement, teamwork, strategic thinking and digital literacy
- Developing robotics programs aligned with curriculum goals while supporting creativity, problem-solving and technical skills
Consultancy at ConnectEd
Bring in the right support for your school or organisation
Tell us what you are trying to solve, improve or build. We can work with you to shape a focused presentation, project or longer consultancy arrangement around your context.