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For parents and caregiversNot sure what to say when your child is struggling? See today's conversation starter CPD Standards Office UK Accredited
  • NEP 2020
  • SC order 25.07.2025

Wellbeing Where It Counts

SWISS is a certification standard for school wellbeing and institutional safety. Schools implement five pillars across a school year and are audited against them annually.

What Is SWISS?

  1. StudentComprehensive support systems for student mental wellness
  2. WellnessHolistic wellness programs integrating physical and emotional health
  3. InstitutionalSchool-wide frameworks creating safe learning environments
  4. SafetyCrisis prevention and intervention protocols
  5. StandardsEvidence-based benchmarks ensuring consistent quality

Accredited by the CPD Standards Office UK, Provider #50828.

Find Your Tier
Delhi Public School, Sector 45, Gurgaon receives its SWISS certificate for 2026-27, with the school building and the framed certificate
SWISS certified, 2026-27Delhi Public School, Sector 45, GurugramDPS International, GurugramDharav High School, GurugramDharav High School, Ajmer Road, Jaipur
Schools across India1.47M
K-12 students in India248M
CBSE counsellor mandate1:500
Today's conversation

Better mental health often starts with what we say to each other.

Most of us were never taught what to say when someone is struggling, and the right few words can change how that conversation goes.

The school counsellor has asked to meet you.

Here's how to go in open, not defensive.

Being called in can feel like an accusation. Counsellors usually ask because they've noticed something early and want to work with you.

Try saying

  • Thank you for reaching out. What have you noticed?
  • What can we do at home that would help with what you're seeing at school?

Try not to say

'There's nothing wrong with my child.' It ends the conversation before you know what the concern is.

When to get help

If the counsellor suggests a referral to a psychologist or paediatrician, follow it up within a couple of weeks rather than waiting for the next term.

A new card for each age group every day. Check in tomorrow for the next one.

If someone may be in danger right now, call Tele-MANAS 14416 (free, 24x7), Childline 1098 or Emergency 112.

Introducing SWISS Safe Hands

Staff orientation for a safer school

Under Indian law, several child safety duties rest with each adult in a school, not only with the institution. SWISS Safe Hands gives every teacher, driver, guard and administrator the same grounding when they join, and keeps it current through the year.

SWISS Safe Hands
Visit the SWISS portal (opens in a new tab)
1 / 7
Step 1

Your school is set up on SWISS

SWISS runs onboarding and progress tracking. Your programme, role tracks and due dates are set there, for each location or campus if you have several.

Names and figures are sample data, for illustration only.

Helps your school meet
  • POCSO Act 2012 and Rules 2020
  • POSH Act 2013
  • Supreme Court guidelines 2025
  • CBSE Affiliation Bye-Laws
  • NCPCR school safety manual
  • NEP 2020
  • UMMEED draft guidelines
  • DPDP Act 2023

Obligations vary by size, sector and status. This is a planning summary, not legal advice; confirm requirements with your counsel.

Check out the SWISS portal

If someone may be in danger now, stay with them and call Tele-MANAS 14416 · Childline 1098 · Emergency 112.

What the Law Now Requires

The Duty of Care

Student wellbeing has moved from good practice to a documented obligation on the institution

Supreme Court of India

Counsellor Requirement

Sukdeb Saha v. State of Andhra Pradesh, 2025 INSC 893, 25 July 2025. Institutions with 100 or more enrolled students require a qualified counsellor, psychologist or social worker.

POCSO Act, 2012

The Reporting Duty

AAA v. Linda Sema & Ors., 2026 INSC 675. A disclosure received directly from a child is knowledge under Section 19(1). Verification follows a report; it does not precede it. Liability attaches to the adult who received the disclosure.

POSH Act, 2013

Employer Obligations

Internal Committee formation, an external member, annual return filing and staff awareness apply to every school as an employer.

DPDP Act, 2023

Data Fiduciary Duties

Substantive obligations become enforceable on 13 May 2027. Schools act as Data Fiduciary, and readiness work starts now.

For CBSE schools, the counsellor and wellness staffing circulars of January 2026 and February 2026 apply in addition. For ICSE, CISCE and IB schools, the Supreme Court order is the board-neutral anchor.

Where Schools Come Unstuck

The Capacity Gap

What Schools Have

  • Teachers who spend more than 1,000 contact hours a year with the same children
  • A counsellor, in many schools one, for the whole enrolment
  • Committees constituted on paper
  • Goodwill, and a great deal of it

What Is Missing

  • Training for the adults who see the warning signs first
  • A written escalation route every staff member knows
  • An incident record that survives a change of principal
  • Independent verification that any of it is operating

SWISS addresses the second column. The counsellor stays the clinician; the teaching staff become the layer that notices early and refers correctly.

Certification Holds To

The CARE Standard

C

Consistent

The same standard applies in every certified school

A

Auditable

Evidence a board or an inspector can examine

R

Replicable

Repeatable across campuses and school networks

E

Enduring

Survives staff turnover and a change of principal

What a Certified School Runs

The Five Pillars

1
Whole Staff

Teacher Gatekeeper Certification

Three modules, self-paced, an indicative six hours per staff member. Whole teaching staff certified in recognising warning signs, responding, referring and reporting.

2
4 × 2 Hours

Quarterly Teacher Labs

Four sessions of two hours across the school year, eight hours in all: psychological safety, burnout prevention, difficult conversations.

3
Drafted & Adopted

Policies Toolkit

Psychological Safety Policy, Grievance Redressal Mechanism and Anti-Harassment policy, drafted for the school and adopted formally.

4
5-Member Team

Wellness Council

A five-member trained team, written protocols, an incident register and an annual simulation exercise.

5
First Incident Covered

Crisis Response and Recovery

Rapid response and structured recovery support during an incident. The first incident is covered from SWISS Essentials upwards.

Platform access, anonymous reporting, the annual student workshop and the annual parent session are included with SWISS Essentials and above.

The Core Certification

The Gatekeeper Series

Three self-paced online modules. Each staff member completes one age-banded mental health module and the Child Safety module, an indicative six hours in the year, recorded per person on the school dashboard.

Foundational Track

Indicative 4 hours · Classes I to V, primary cadre

Mental health first aid for early years: behavioural change, regression, somatic presentation, school refusal, attachment disruption, safe conversations with a young child, referral to the school counsellor.

CPD accreditation in progress

Secondary Track

Indicative 4 hours · Classes VI to XII, TGT and PGT cadre

Suicide prevention: warning signs, risk recognition, direct enquiry, crisis response, safe messaging, referral and handover, examination-period pressure, educator self-care.

CPD UK accredited, Provider #50828

Child Safety (POCSO)

Indicative 2 hours · All classes, all staff

The reporting duty under Section 19 and the penalty under Section 21, why no internal enquiry may precede a report, the referral route to the Special Juvenile Police Unit, police, Childline 1098 and the Child Welfare Committee, safe adult conduct.

CPD accreditation in progress

Delivered in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu, with further languages in development. Non-teaching staff take the Child Safety module together with the mental health module matched to the age group they principally work with.

Gatekeeper training, meta-analysis of 16 randomised controlled trials (Liu et al., 2025, BMC Public Health): knowledge 0.72, self-efficacy 0.73, preparedness 0.69 (standardised mean differences).

Programme Tiers

Seven Starting Points, One Framework

From a single workshop to full certification and statutory audit. Each tier builds on the one before it, so a school can start where it is today and move up without starting over.

  1. 1Start HereSingle sessions
  2. 2LiteVisiting counsellor
  3. 3BridgeCounsellor capacity
  4. 4FoundationAll teachers
  5. 5EssentialsFull certification
  6. 6CompliancePOSH / POCSO
  7. 7CompleteAudit-ready
1

Individual Workshops & Staff OnboardingStart here

Single sessions for one audience · Safe Hands onboarding for staff

Live, facilitator-led workshops for teachers, students or parents, and Safe Hands onboarding for staff, without a full programme commitment.

Teachers
2 hrs · Psychological safety, burnout prevention, difficult conversations
Students
Age-banded, one cohort · Help-seeking, peer support, recognising distress in friends
Parents
Warning signs at home, opening conversations, partnering with the school
Staff onboarding
Safe Hands: onboarding for new staff and annual refresher training · Integrates with the school HRIS/ERP

Also available individually: Wellness Council training with Policies Toolkit · Anonymous Reporting System

2

SWISS Lite

Visiting Counsellor Programme · For schools without a counsellor

An MSS counsellor on campus, trained wellness leads and a starter policy kit, in two cadences.

Lite (Monthly)
1 counsellor visit a month · up to 10 wellness leads
Lite Plus (Bi-Monthly)
2 counsellor visits a month · up to 15 wellness leads

Includes: Policies Toolkit (templates) · Email crisis advisory · SWISS Aware recognition

3

SWISS BridgeOn-ramp

Counsellor Capacity Programme · For schools that have a counsellor

Makes the existing school counsellor measurably effective, with a clear path to certification.

Train
CPD-accredited counsellor course · Monthly clinical supervision
Screen
PHQ-A · GAD-7 · ASQ · Three times a year, auto-flagged
Report
Quarterly principal reports · Risk dashboard · Audit trail
4

SWISS FoundationAll teachers

Whole-Staff Gatekeeper Programme · For schools certifying every teacher

Every teacher certified as a mental-health first responder: the Gatekeeper pillar delivered across the entire teaching staff.

Certify
Teacher Gatekeeper Certification · 4–6 hrs · Self-paced · CPD UK accredited
Reach
100% of teaching staff · Warning signs, crisis response, self-care
Languages
English · Hindi · Tamil · Telugu, with more to follow

Includes: CPD UK accredited certificate per teacher · SWISS Foundation recognition

6

SWISS ComplianceStatutory

Wellness + POSH / POCSO · Statutory compliance bundled

Everything in Essentials, plus POSH and POCSO compliance in a single programme.

POSH
IC formation · External IC member · Annual return filing
POCSO
CPC formation · Training · Mandatory reporting protocol
Students
Awareness modules in 3 age tracks · Compliance dashboard
7

SWISS CompleteAudit-ready

Full Coverage + Audit Suite · Inspection-ready

Everything in Compliance, plus physical safety audits and CBSE inspection readiness.

Audit
Annual safety audits: fire, electrical, transport, kitchen, playground
Remediate
Pre-audit gap assessment · Post-audit remediation tracker
Document
NCPCR-aligned documentation pack · CBSE inspection readiness file

Crisis Response & Recovery (add-on, any tier): 24/7 rapid response and recovery support during a crisis, invoked only when needed. The first incident is covered from SWISS Essentials upwards.

A school that already publicises POSH and POCSO committees is usually better served by Compliance, which evidences what it has already announced. Walkthroughs and multi-school group proposals on request.

From Signature to Certification

The First Year

1
Weeks 1 to 3

Baseline and Scoping

Readiness assessment, staff roll uploaded, Certification Coordinator named.

2
Weeks 4 to 10

Whole-Staff Certification

Gatekeeper modules completed by every teacher, CPD certificates issued.

3
Weeks 8 to 14

Council and Policies

Five-member Wellness Council trained, policies adopted, escalation route published.

4
Across the term

Teacher Labs

Four sessions of two hours, plus the annual simulation exercise.

5
Month 10 to 12

Audit and Certification

Compliance audit against the five pillars, Seal issued, renewal scoped.

Audit passed, Seal issuedThen the cycle starts again: certification is renewed every year.

Bars are approximate: week ranges are drawn on a monthly scale.

Certification is annual. The audit checks that the standard is still operating twelve months on, which is the part a parent, a board or an inspector can actually rely on.

What Certification Changes

Benefits by Group

Students

  • Every teacher trained to recognise distress
  • Early intervention before a crisis
  • A route to help that does not depend on one adult

Teachers

  • Confidence in a situation they currently face untrained
  • Protection through written protocols
  • CPD-accredited professional development

The School

  • Documented evidence of duty of care
  • An incident trail that survives staff turnover
  • Independent third-party certification

Parents

  • A verifiable standard rather than an assurance
  • Transparency on how the school responds
  • Confidence in the institution's commitment

Accredited by the CPD Standards Office UK, Provider #50828. In use at DPS Gurgaon and DPS International, with schools across Gurgaon, Jaipur, Dehradun, Bangalore and other Indian cities. Institutional Safety Partner to TAISI.

The SWISS Portal

Where Certification Lives

Certification is only worth what someone can verify. The portal is where a parent, a board or an inspector checks it, and where staff track their own completion.

Public Registry

Certified schools and their current certification status, listed publicly so a claim can be checked rather than taken on trust.

Staff Dashboard

Where Gatekeeper completion is recorded per staff member and CPD certificates are issued.

For SWISS-certified schools

Your school's public page

Every certified school gets a page on the SWISS portal that parents, the board and inspectors can open. It shows the school's wellbeing commitment, teacher Gatekeeper training, workshops delivered, policies, a summary of anonymous reports and how quickly they are answered, and the wellness team, with a way to reach the counsellor or report a concern anonymously. For CBSE schools it also carries the mandatory public disclosure. Data on the page is verified via the SWISS platform.

Below is a sample school with demo data. The school, names and figures are illustrative.

Sample SWISS school page for a demo school: commitment statement, teacher training progress, workshops, policies, anonymous reporting summary, wellness team and CBSE mandatory public disclosure.
Open the live sample page
Visit the SWISS Portal
24/7 Student Support

Powered by IntelliCare AI

An always-available AI companion for students — confidential, multilingual, with crisis-detection escalation to human counsellors

24/7 Availability

Students get support after school hours, weekends, and during exams — when counsellors aren't on campus

Multi-Language Support

Conversations in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali and more — supporting India's linguistic diversity

Crisis Detection

Trained to identify at-risk language and escalate to a human counsellor for immediate intervention

Confidential & Encrypted

Student conversations stay private; aggregate wellness insights inform school-level interventions

Ready to Talk?

Request a 30-minute discovery call. Leave your details and we’ll get back to you within 24 hours to arrange a time.

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