Supporting staff wellbeing in uncertain times

After two years in a global pandemic and the UK now on the brink of a recession, charities are feeling the pinch. Rising running costs, loss of donations, and stretched resources are affecting the charity sector. This gloomy outlook will be affecting how people working in charities are feeling.

 

Research from ACEVO and Mental Health First Aid England at the end of 2020 shows that the pandemic worsened existing mental health issues for people working in the charity sector. The wider UK population’s mental health has also deteriorated further this year, according to research from Rethink Mental Illness.

 

 

The effects of poor mental health in the workplace

 

Poor mental health can affect how someone performs at work. They may make poor decisions, not communicate effectively, and be unengaged. It can also lead to people taking time off work, with research showing that 12.7% of all sickness absence days in the UK are due to mental health conditions.

 

When people’s mental health is good, it has a positive impact on their work and the people who surround them.

 

Research also shows that better mental health support in the workplace can save UK businesses up to £8 billion annually. So, there’s a financial gain for organisations too. Below we look at some of the ways to promote positive mental health in your charity:

 

 

Create a mental health and wellbeing policy

 

The first thing to do is to put together a mental health and wellbeing policy to show what actions you’ll take to support staff and volunteers’ wellbeing. This could include:

 

• Flexible working
• Making sure staff and volunteers have regular breaks and take holidays
• Regularly talking to colleagues about how they’re feeling
• How you’ll respond to people who tell you they have a mental health problem
• Supporting a phased return to work after a mental health absence

 

Talk openly about mental health

 

The more you talk about mental health, the easier it will become for people to talk about how they’re feeling. Senior leaders and managers need to talk about the importance of mental health in staff and volunteer meetings. They also need to model behaviours that support mental health, including not working late into the evening.

 

You could hold a team-building session about mental health. Start the session talking about how everyone can experience mental health changes. You may want to ask people to share early signs of mental health problems and the support they find helpful.

 

Some people may not want to talk about their experiences. Managers can help by explaining why they’re running the session and how it will help and sharing their own experiences of mental health.

 

 

Look out for signs of poor mental health

 

It’s important to keep an eye out for colleagues who may be experiencing mental health problems. This could prevent someone’s wellbeing from deteriorating further.

 

Someone who is experiencing a mental health problem may be adopting unhealthy working practices, such as working long hours and not having breaks. The Mental Health Foundation says that “working conditions and environment can have a huge impact on mental health”.

 

Here are some signs that someone may be experiencing mental health problems:

• They are withdrawn and isolating themselves
• They are being abrupt with people
• They are not meeting deadlines
• They are experiencing headaches and migraines

But it’s not just about looking out for signs of poor mental health. Bupa says: “Everyone’s experience is different and can change over time. As a manager it’s important to get to know your team and understand what they need and when.”

 

 

Access resources from mental health charities

 

Mind has a free online programme to create better working environments. It’s specifically for charities with less than 250 employees. It’s split into three training modules: ‘mental health awareness’, ‘self-care’ and ‘employee support’.

 

The mental health charity also has an online toolkit to promote mental health in the workplace. Resources are split into: ‘support for line managers, colleagues and staff’, ‘ways to assess my organisation’s approach’, ‘ideas to improve workplace culture’ and ‘help to develop policy and practice’.

 

Rethink Mental Illness has a toolkit called Mental health in the workplace employers’ toolkit. It aims to support organisations to develop processes and knowledge to look after the mental health of their workforce.

 

You can also find information about the effect that work can have on someone’s mental health on the Mental Health Foundation website.