Sun Safety and Skin Care @School
Comprehensive skin health education programs designed to protect and educate schools and workplaces across Australia.
Our Community Engagement: Sun Safe Schools
DermScreen's community engagement arm is committed to empowering young Australians with the knowledge, skills, and leadership to protect their skin for life.
Our Story
Our Story
The Sun Safe Schools programme was developed in 2023 through a strategic collaboration between Simon Board and Dr Philip Tong, CEO of DermScreen. Their 'Sun Safety and Skin Care Workshop for Schools,' this initiative aims to provide upper primary and secondary students with essential preventative education—countering the widespread misinformation often found on social media platforms.
How We're Different
How We're Different
Building on the foundations of the Sun and UV at School curriculum (originally co-authored by Simon Board and developed by the Cancer Institute), this updated program responds to the needs of a new generation of students. The revised approach incorporates a peer leadership model, ensuring young people are directly involved in shaping and delivering the content—making it more engaging, relatable, and culturally relevant.
Our Advocacy & Impact
Our Advocacy & Impact
As part of ongoing advocacy efforts under the banner 'Sun Safety and Skin Care at Schools,' Simon Board has successfully lobbied for greater recognition of sun safety education in the upcoming NSW 7–10 curriculum reforms. In response, the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) has begun consulting with him, with plans to develop supplementary skin safety resources ahead of the 2027 curriculum rollout.
The Need for Preventative Education
There is a longstanding belief that skin cancer incidence may be reduced by addressing sun safety determinants in the school years.
(Andrews, V.A., et al., 2009)
A 2023 systematic review of evidence-based high school melanoma prevention curricula reported a significant increase in knowledge, behavioural change, and attitude changes.
(Calco, G.N., et al. 2023)
Adolescence brings increasing independence from parental control, pressure to conform to social norms, intense focus on appearance, and experimentation with new experiences
(Eccles, 1999)
This developmental period, more than any other, leads to increased risk behaviours, including excessive UV exposure. Effective prevention programming for adolescents is imperative to reduce risk factors and to reinforce and sustain recent declines in indoor tanning
(CDCP, 2020)
Adolescents are known to place great importance on social acceptance and cosmetic appearance, and in this context, the sun-related activities of young women have been reported to be engaged towards meeting physical and psychosocial needs.
(Norton 2014)
These sociocultural norms and the belief that having a tan is healthy, the perceived attractiveness of having a tan, body image, peer norms, and fashion are all known barriers to protective sun-safe behaviours
(Andreeva, 2008)
Objectives of the Program
Three goals in skin cancer prevention for NSW:
To embed skin cancer prevention initiatives across the public sector, private sector and not-for-profit sector.
To improve access to quality shade at work, school, play and in public places across NSW as a healthier built environment.
To increase the adoption of sun/UV protection behaviours among those with low sun protection use, particularly those at high risk of skin cancer, and through community-wide interventions.
Our Impact
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Channel 7 News
Showcased our workshops for community health.
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Channel 9 Today
Highlighted the importance of sun safety in schools.
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2GB Sydney
Shared our sun safety message with listeners.
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Deputy Premier Prue Car MP
Voiced public support for our program.
Sun Safety and Skin Care Workshops for Schools
Theory Workshop
The Theory workshop is based on challenging the research, which states that students are more likely to consult social media for advice than medical specialists to access information relating to skin cancer. Skin Cancer survivors and dermatologists investigate TikToks with students, busting the many myths relating to tanning and skin cancer in general.
- Influencer Courtney Mangan and L'Oreal representative presents at Kambala
- Philip Tong and Sophie Alexander present to Ascham students
- Philip Tong and Kirstie Fitpatrick present to Inner Sydney High students
Practical Workshop
The Practical workshop offers a series of hands on stations where students experience and engage with the preventative message in a variety of experiences......
- UV camera what happens when you see your face under UV?
- Trivia competition using Ipads to create challenges
- VISIA Skin Analysis machine
- Dermscreen Nurse skin checks and skin Care routine
- SCJohnson Sunscreen sampling
- Shade Design
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Ready to Make a Difference?
Join us in creating a sun-safe Australia. Contact our team to learn how we can help protect your students or workforce through our comprehensive education programmes.
