River Nile School

The Australian school breaking down barriers to education for refugee and asylum-seeking women

River Nile School (RNS), a not-for-profit secondary school in North Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, is breaking down barriers to education and providing a pathway to economic independence for young refugee and asylum-seeking women by empowering them to discover their potential, assert their identities and build successful futures. For these women, complex systematic barriers that include limited English proficiency, social isolation, and past trauma hinder their access to mainstream education. Through intentionally designed programmes, RNS delivers high-quality, life-changing education and wellbeing support that equips them with the knowledge, skills and confidence to thrive.

By embracing a trauma-informed, wellbeing-focused approach, the school provides language support, literacy and numeracy programmes. The small class sizes, high ratios of staff to students, and wraparound support services create a safe and inclusive environment where the latest research and data lead learning to ensure programmes are consistently culturally responsive to new communities. The teaching staff are highly qualified, while the wellbeing team works to remove trauma-related barriers through social-emotional learning (SEL), family engagement, and medical support. 

Embedded school-wide, the model involves all stakeholders, in collaboration with external partners, to provide students with structured workplace learning, mentoring, and skills training, ensuring they have access to real-world opportunities beyond the classroom. The school had a 95% student retention rate in 2024, with 80% of students making measurable improvements in their literacy and numeracy within six months of enrollment and over 70% of graduates transitioning into further education, vocational training, or employment. More than 50 workplace and community partnerships currently provide students with hands-on learning, mentorship, and career pathways.

Staff wellbeing is also a key focus, with teachers able to access an external counselling service offering responsive support at any time. The impact extends outwards to families, who are invited to share in the achievements of students, helping to shift perspectives, create cultural pride, and provide tools for families to understand that their daughters can contribute meaningfully to society.

Founded on the belief that education can change lives and challenge systemic barriers, RNS is giving students a space where their strength and resilience are honoured as part of a learning ecosystem where all young women, regardless of their background, have access to high-quality education and the opportunities that come with it.