Life Education Australia (Life Ed) is the largest and most recognised health education provider in Australian schools.
It is a not-for-profit organisation that adopts a holistic approach to health, covering critical areas of the Australian curriculum and state syllabi. Lessons are divided into three interrelated streams: physical health, social and emotional wellbeing and safety.
Life Ed is on a mission to help children thrive supporting children, teachers and families with programs and resources, to address the complex challenges children face today.
Whilst Life Ed's programs continually evolve, its vision remains the same: Healthy Australians living to their full potential.
Life Ed reaches on average 700,000 children annually where qualified educators present evidence-based preventative health and wellbeing education, along with Healthy Harold, the giraffe puppet and mascot who is the face of the organisation.
Founded in 1979 by
Ted Noffs
Theodore Delwin "Ted" Noffs (14 August 1926 – 6 April 1995) was a Methodist (later Uniting Church) minister who founded the Wayside Chapel in Kings Cross, New South Wales, Kings Cross, Sydney, in 1964.
During the youth revolt of the 1960s, No ...
, the organisation is well loved by generations of Australians.
History
Life Education Australia began in 1979, in The Wayside Chapel in
Kings Cross by Reverend Ted Noffs, who used his experience with religion to focus on an action-based approach as opposed to preaching.
In 2016, the program began to teach topics of illicit drug use like
methamphetamine
Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational drug and less commonly as a second-line treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and obesity. Methamph ...
, in response to rising narcotics usage rates in Australia.
In 2017, the Australian government announced plans to defund the program, but was not implemented after public backlash.
The in-person program was temporary halted and moved online due to restrictions placed by the Australian government in response to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, but resumed on October 13, 2020.
[{{Cite web, last=Gregory, first=Helen, date=2020-05-17, title=Healthy Harold moves message online, url=https://www.newcastleherald.com.au/story/6758308/healthy-harold-moves-message-online/, access-date=2022-02-07, website=Newcastle Herald, language=en-AU]
References
External links
Life Education Australia Website
Health education in Australia
Law enforcement in Australia
History of drug control
1979 establishments in Australia