If you run or manage a school, you have probably asked whether you need a school counsellor, and what one would actually do all day. This page answers in plain terms, and sets out how a school can arrange one without hiring for a post it may not fill.
What a school counsellor does
A school counsellor supports students with what gets in the way of school and growing up. That includes worry before exams, trouble with friends, bullying, family changes, low mood, and choosing a subject stream.
Most of the work falls into a few kinds. One to one conversations with students who ask for help or are referred. Career counselling, especially in classes 9 to 12, where students choose streams and plan what comes after school. Talking with teachers and parents about a child, with care about what is shared. Running sessions for a class or the whole school on topics such as stress or exam pressure. And knowing when a concern is bigger than school can hold, so the child is referred on.
A counsellor is not a disciplinarian and does not replace a teacher. Their usefulness depends on students trusting that the room is safe.
Full-time versus part-time
A full-time counsellor is present every school day. Students can walk in, and staff can talk to them informally. This suits a large school, or one that has seen demand for a counsellor and can support the cost.
A part-time counsellor is available for set hours, such as a few days a week. It suits smaller schools and those starting out. The trade-off is that the counsellor is not there at every moment, so the school needs a clear plan for what happens in between: who a student speaks to when the counsellor is away, and who is told if there is an urgent concern.
Neither is better in itself. Many schools begin part-time and see how students and teachers use the service before deciding on more.
How a school can arrange a counsellor
There are three common routes. You can hire a counsellor as staff. You can contract an individual counsellor yourself. Or you can work with a service that brings counsellors to your school.
Leshya offers part-time counselling for schools, matched from counsellors already on Leshya who have told us they take on school work. A person reviews every counsellor profile before it goes live, and you can see credentials and experience before the school agrees.
We talk through what the school needs first. Scope and fees are agreed before anything starts, and billing is per session taken, not a flat amount per student.
What else a school can add
Besides counselling, Leshya can arrange career counselling for classes 9 to 12, awareness sessions for teachers and staff on POCSO, and a referral linkage so that a teacher knows who to send a worried student to and what the handoff looks like. For the full picture of options across schools and colleges, read our article on student counselling.
Schools have legal duties towards children. Please confirm yours with your legal adviser; this page does not replace that advice.
Privacy and trust
Students will not use a counsellor they think will report back on everything. Individual counselling stays between the student and their counsellor. Leshya does not tell the school who attended or what was discussed. Agree with the counsellor, at the start, how a safety concern would be handled. Where a child may be at risk, the law, including POCSO, may require a report.
How to start
Open the For organizations page and choose "Tell us what you need". Say you are a school, how many students you have and what you are hoping for. A person at Leshya reads it, and a short call follows. Our guide on sending an organization inquiry shows each field.
If a student is in crisis now, Tele MANAS, the national helpline, is on 14416.
If you're thinking about harming yourself, please talk to someone right now. Tele MANAS is free, confidential and always open: call 14416. You matter.
The counselors here can help with ongoing support, but right now a call is faster.
Common questions
A school counsellor supports students through one to one conversations, career counselling, and sessions on topics such as stress. They also work with teachers and refer a child on when a concern is bigger than school can hold.
