Our Space: putting staff wellbeing first

You spend one third of your life at work, so it goes without saying how important it is to our lives and happiness. A good job is not just about how big the salary is, it’s a mix of factors – the commute, your colleagues, working hours, proximity to Pret…

An aspect of working life that is often overlooked is how our daily grind affects us mentally. In the UK, work related stress, anxiety and depression affects over half a million people each year and is the cause of 12 million working days lost.

For those who work in care giving ‘front line’ roles, access to support is crucial for them to continue the important work they do. It has been found that working regularly with service users in crisis situations, dealing daily with homelessness, financial poverty, unmanaged mental ill health, anger or substance abuse, increases the risk of these people-focused, front line staff experiencing vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue.

With 150 members of staff, many of who work with the community, our client the Bromley by Bow Centre is aware of this risk, and wanted to help look after the mental wellbeing of their staff. Instead of posters and handouts, we proposed a micro site for staff to access when or wherever they liked. The result, ‘Our Space’ is an online area with information and resources to improve all aspects of health, from sleep to work-life balance and even access to counselling. The site also details what procedures the organisation provides to support their staff as well as events, and links to external organisations and services that are available.

Bromley by Bow aren’t the only people giving this issue serious thought at the moment. You may have seen in the news recently the launch of the website Mental Health at Work. The project has been developed by the charity Mind and was launched by The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as part of their Heads Together initiative. The new website holds resources for employers to better support their staff around mental health and provides a wealth of tool kits, information and stories.

We wanted the Our Space site to be an example of best practice, while also being highly accessible for all staff, not just those already taking steps to look after their own mental wellbeing. Working in collaboration with a therapist, Our Space is easy to update and on brand, directly reflecting the nature of their work.

Microsites are a useful method for organisations to create secure areas for staff, or a separate section for new products or campaigns, without the high price tags that come with continually keeping printed materials up to date. See how we can help your organisation support it’s staff with a therapist-approved wellbeing home.

 

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