Building confidence,
social skills +
emotional wellbeing
HAD In Schools is a unique cross-age peer mentoring service that leverages low-intensity physical activity and meaningful conversation to build confidence, social skills and emotional wellbeing in primary and years 7-9 secondary students.
About the Program
Our Mission
At HAD In Schools, we seek to empower primary and early years secondary students by building their confidence, social skills and emotional wellbeing through cross-age peer mentoring and low-intensity physical activity that complements their existing school support systems.
How it Started
Founder of HAD Football and Birmingham P.S parent, Brad Jenkinson, noticed that some students were arriving at school dysregulated - carrying energy, frustration, or tension that made it difficult to start the day well.
By offering an outlet like kicking a footy or shooting hoops, Brad helped redirect that energy into something more productive, creating space for connection, calm, and a positive start.
From there, the simple idea grew into a structured, relationship-based mentoring model, HAD In Schools, anchored in movement, trust, and meaningful conversation - that now runs weekly across the school.
Where we are today.
HAD In Schools has grown from strength to strength, working . name of schools participating?
Our Core Strengths
Mentors
Our mentors are carefully selected and trained.
Their youth, shared lived experiences, and high-level sporting achievements create aspirational and relatable connections for the students.
This aspirational connection not only forms a powerful platform for positive influence, but is enhanced by our mentors individual characters and genuine ability to connect with young people.
Program Structure
Our program structure has been tailored to complement existing school support systems and directly support critical strategic priorities within Victorian Schools.
Through light physical movement, such as kicking a footy or playing with a basketball, our mentors have a unique vehicle for engagement with students that allows authentic conversation and connection in ways that more formal or static settings often cannot achieve.
A common program structure:
Weekly sessions
Held on a 1-1 or small group basis
Delivered on school grounds, during school hours