Short answer — there’s no single “best” platform for every Australian high school. Choose by your school’s priority:

• For whole-school, curriculum‑aligned social‑emotional learning (SEL) and preventative mental health: Smiling Mind (Primary & Secondary school programs) or ReachOut Schools. (smilingmind.com.au)

• For focused digital safety, online behaviour and cyberbullying education: the Optus Digital Thumbprint program (free, nationwide workshops) or Cyber Safety Project (paid, ready‑to‑teach curriculum). (adelaidenow.com.au)

• For teacher/student mental‑health lessons and classroom resources delivered digitally: Smiling Mind (school subscriptions, mapped to Australian curriculum) or Grow Your Mind (video lessons, SEL resources). (smilingmind.com.au)

• For a packaged “school wellbeing ecosystem” with regular parent/staff resources and local relevance: ReachOut Schools (free resources + PD) and state education department program lists (many NSW/other jurisdictions list Smiling Mind and other vetted programs). (schools.au.reachout.com)

What to compare when choosing

• Coverage: SEL + mental health vs online safety vs digital/cyber citizenship.
• Curriculum alignment: Smiling Mind explicitly maps to the Australian Health & PE curriculum. (smilingmind.com.au)
• Evidence and uptake: Smiling Mind publishes program impact and is widely used in Australian schools. (warataheducationfoundation.org.au)
• Cost and procurement: ReachOut is free; Smiling Mind, Grow Your Mind and Cyber Safety Project are paid (Smiling Mind lists 2025 school pricing tiers). (schools.au.reachout.com)
• Implementation support and PD for teachers (look for on‑demand training and implementation guidance). (smilingmind.com.au)
• Compliance/privacy: verify that the vendor complies with Australian student data privacy expectations and any state education procurement rules.

Quick recommendations by common school needs

• If you want a scalable, evidence‑based SEL/mental‑fitness programme across Years 7–12: Smiling Mind (or combine Smiling Mind for mental fitness + ReachOut for complementary resources). (smilingmind.com.au)
• If your biggest concern is online safety, cyberbullying and digital citizenship: run Optus Digital Thumbprint (free) for awareness and pair it with a curriculum‑aligned provider (Cyber Safety Project or your state department programs) for classroom lessons. (adelaidenow.com.au)
• If you need low/no budget options to start immediately: ReachOut Schools (free resources, apps and PD) plus state eSafety resources. (schools.au.reachout.com)

Next practical steps (quick checklist)

1. Decide primary goal (SEL mental health vs online safety vs both).
2. Pilot one program for one year (Smiling Mind or Cyber Safety Project/Optus workshop) and evaluate teacher workload, student engagement and any measurable wellbeing indicators. (smilingmind.org.au)
3. Check procurement requirements for your state (some NSW DoE inclusion noted for Smiling Mind). (smilingmind.org.au)
4. Confirm pricing, PD and data/privacy policies with vendors before purchasing.

If you want, I can:

• shortlist 2–3 platforms matched to your school (size, public/private, budget and whether you need secondary‑school content), or
• draft an evaluation rubric you can use during a pilot.

Which would you like me to prepare?