Mental Health Awareness Training
Employers have a legal duty of care to provide a safe working environment for employees. Moreover, employers have a moral duty to support employees' mental and emotional wellbeing. UK government statistics show that poor mental health costs businesses £34.6 billion annually. Increasing awareness of mental health can de-stigmatise the conversation and build a culture in which employees can thrive.
This is a 4-hour session to raise awareness of wellbeing and mental health, and for delegates to learn how to recognise and look after their own mental health.
What you’ll learn:
- Mental Health and Wellbeing
- The Mental Health Continuum
- Stigma and myth around Mental Health
- Stress, anxiety and depression
- Overview of other Mental Health conditions
- Early warning signs and where to go for support
- Wellbeing plan
Price:
1/2 day training for up to 12 delegates - £1000 (+ VAT).
| Benefits to the Business | Benefits to the Delegate |
| Support the company’s well-being agenda | Be confident in supporting colleagues and knowing where to sign post them |
| Create an agile workforce who can recognise the early signs of poor mental health | Have an appreciation for mental health conditions |
| Build an inclusive culture where employees work to their full potential | Feel comfortable to be honest about your absence and seeking help |
| Reduce unexplained absences and manage long-term sickness effectively | Know how to take care of your own mental health and wellbeing as well as others’ |
Get in touch to find out more.
Mental Health First Aider Training: One-day
One-Day Course on First Aid for Mental Health
To enquire about new dates please email: Training@hrchampions.co.uk
Course Overview
This one-day course equips employers and employees with the knowledge and skills to understand mental health conditions, promote well-being in the workplace, and provide initial support. Mental Health First Aiders (MHFAs) play a crucial role in fostering a supportive environment, identifying early signs of mental health issues, and guiding individuals towards appropriate professional help. Employers have a legal duty to ensure their workplace is a safe and supportive space, and Mental Health First Aiders are an essential part of fulfilling this responsibility. This course builds the foundation to meet these standards, emphasising the importance of mental health in the workplace.
What You’ll Learn
By the end of the course, you will:
- Understand what First Aid for Mental Health is and its importance in the workplace
- Learn to identify mental health conditions, including stress and anxiety
- Develop the skills to start conversations and provide advice confidentially
- Understand how to address mental health conditions related to stress, drugs, and alcohol
- Implement the First Aid for Mental Health action plan effectively.
Course Syllabus
The course covers key topics, including:
- What is First Aid for Mental Health?
- Identifying mental health conditions and early warning signs.
- Providing advice and starting a conversation.
- Understanding stress and its impact on mental health.
- Mental health conditions related to drugs and alcohol.
- Creating and applying a First Aid for Mental Health action plan.
- Implementing First Aid for Mental Health in the workplace.
Course Details
Duration: 1 day. 9.00am to 4.00pm
Assessment: Practical exercises, open-ended questions, and multiple-choice assessments.
Certification: Upon successful completion, participants will earn:
- FAA Level 2 Award in First Aid for Mental Health (RQF) or
- Award in First Aid for Mental Health at SCQF Level 5.
These certifications are valid for three years. Annual refresher training is recommended, and participants must retake the full course to requalify after three years.
To book onto this course, please email training@hrchampions.co.uk
| Benefits to the Business | Benefits to the Delegate |
| Build a team of listeners who can signpost colleagues to the right support | Recognise poor mental health signs in colleagues |
| Pay now, save later: poor mental health costs UK businesses £1,300 per employee | Feel confident in holding conversations with vulnerable colleagues in the workplace |
| Reduce unexplained staff absences | Know the appropriate support services available internally and externally |
| Avoid long-term sickness by recognising the signs of poor mental health in colleagues early | Contribute to the company’s well-being culture |
Mental Health in the Workplace: Skills for Managers
This course is designed to build the manager's confidence in understanding mental health conditions and holding conversations with team members around mental health. With 25% of employees suffering from a mental health condition, ACAS has released reasonable adjustments for mental health. Mental health related issues cost UK businesses £34.9 billion annually. With this skill-set, managers and team leaders will be able to support employees, discuss low performance related to mental health and direct employees to appropriate support services. Managers will then be able to embed a workplace culture where positive and comfortable conversations about mental health take place.
What you’ll learn:
- The Mental Health Continuum
- Employment Law, Occupational Health within the context of Mental Health & ACAS code
- What are Mental Health Conditions: Understanding Supporting, and Signposting your Team
- Using Wellness Recovery Action Plans (WRAP) in Supportive Conversations and Performance Reviews
- Promoting a Positive Mental Health Culture
- How to manage Mental Health in the workplace:
- Mentally Healthy – maintain well being and work life balance
- Mentally Unwell and absent – processes to follow
- Mentally Unwell in work – how to support them and the business
Who should attend:
Team leaders, managers & senior managers within all sizes of organisation
| Benefits to the Business | Benefits to the Delegate |
| Increase chances of keeping a mentally healthy team | Build confidence in holding perceived difficult conversations - “Know What to Say” |
| Pro-actively pre-empt a mental health situation by facilitating an open culture around mental health | Learn techniques to support meaningful conversations |
| Reduce staff absences due to mental health conditions | Appreciation of mental health conditions |
| Promote positive and productive conversations | Skills and knowledge immediately implementable |
We can probably all agree that we spend a LOT of our time at work. Our own work space can often feel like an area where we’re not in control. Given the impact that our physical environment can have on our mental health, it’s easy to see how a disorderly workspace can lead to increased stress or exacerbate other underlying mental health issues.
Whether it’s an untidy desk space, poor lighting, noisy colleagues, or even topics of conversation within the office that make you feel uncomfortable, unwelcome elements in a workplace can sometimes be difficult to overcome, no matter how minor they may seem. It all adds up – and can make or break the enjoyment of being in the working environment.
However, that doesn’t mean that everything is out of your control. Here, we’ve come up with a few tips to help you regain control of your working environment and ensure that those little niggles don’t become the final straw of an already stressful day.
Here's part 2 of our guide to improving your working environment.
Time away from desk
Ensuring you actually have a little break from your desk really does make a huge difference. And the irony here is that the reason people often don’t do this is because they’re ‘too busy’! It’s likely that these are the individuals who will benefit the most from stepping away for 10 minutes to have some breathing space. So, make sure you take a break when things are getting too much; you’ll often find you’re in a much better place afterwards.
Conversation topics
There are times when the topics of conversation in the office can be the cause of discomfort – whether it’s because somebody’s talking about something that hits close to home, or just something you’re uncomfortable discussing in a workplace. This can be a tricky situation to deal with without causing unnecessary friction. Excusing yourself from the conversation is often easier said than done, and asking people to change topic can come across confrontational. Depending on your relationship with your colleagues, most people won’t mind discussing something else if you say you’re uncomfortable, so don’t be afraid to ask, especially if you feel it’s having a detrimental effect on your mood.
Food & drink
Does your workplace have a ‘bring cakes on your birthday’ rule? The constant stream of cakes in the office can be great, but it can also have a negative impact on mood. It could be that you’re trying to watch your weight so the constant influx in sweet treats just adds more pressure. It could be that you’re happy to have the occasional cake, but the sugars in treats have a negative effect on your mood.
So, what can you do about it? This can be a tricky on to deal with, as it involves getting agreement from everybody in your workspace on how to move forward. But putting forward suggestions of limiting office cakes to perhaps once a month (regardless of birthdays!), or to swap cakes for healthier snacks, and not necessarily fruit which can also be high in sugar, can have a positive impact on everybody’s mental and physical health.
Dogs at work
This is Betty. She’s in our office 99% of the time, and is always open to cuddles, treats, and walks. She’s can be an absolute godsend on a stressful day.
There’s plenty of research to show that dogs in the workplace have a positive impact, on both mental and physical health. If a regular dog in the office isn’t feasible, then you could suggest a ‘Bring Your Dog to Work Day’ or similar.
Obviously make sure that you check everybody in the office is okay with dogs, and that if multiple people are bringing a dog in on the same day that they’re happy to socialise with other dogs.
So, there we have it – a few simple ways to help ensure your working environment isn’t having a detrimental effect on your mental health. Remember, if things are getting too much for you, whether in the workplace or otherwise, it’s always better to talk through potential problems before they become too big. Speak to somebody you trust – a friend, family member, or colleague; and if your workplace has them, a Mental Health First Aider. We have training courses for this.
Having held our Mental Health Seminar last week, it’s clear that employers’ responsibilities regarding the mental wellbeing of their employees is an issue that will continue to be at the forefront of HR and Employment Law for some time to come. Already a concern for many businesses, the view of speakers during the seminar was that more preparation is needed to prevent poor mental health escalating into a significant risk for employers. There is plenty we can do however.
Following a presentation from Abbie Warren of the day’s nominated charity, Sunshine Suicide Support, delegates heard from a variety of presenters who covered a wide range of topics associated with mental health and wellbeing in the workplace. As you might expect, presentations were sprinkled with various facts and figures, some of which were quite shocking and brought the scale of the mental health issue in the UK to the fore.
Statistics shared included:
- In the last 6 years the number of working days in the UK lost to stress, depression and anxiety has increased by 24% and now stands at over 15 million - Mental Health Foundation
- Mental health problems at work cost employers £33bn-£42bn - Centre for Mental Health 2018
- And the total impact on the UK economy ranges between £74 and £99 billion - UK Govt. Thriving at Work 2017
- 33% of employees have been diagnosed with a mental health issue - Mental Health at Work 2018 Report
- And 1 in 5 people take a day off work due to stress - Mental Health Foundation
- 10% of managers reported sick for stress & Mental health issues during 2018 - CMI, 2018
From a legal perspective, delegates heard from Anne-Marie Boyle, partner at Menzies Law – Specialist Employment Lawyers, who clearly set out the legal viewpoint around mental health and disability in general.
As mental health conditions can be classed as disability, Anne-Marie’s presentation covered definitions of disability and impairment and went on to explain the types of claim that could arise from somebody with a disability. Apart from the obvious unfavourable treatment from an employer, bullying, harassment and victimisation from colleagues were also highlighted as risk areas that remain the responsibility of the employer.
After lunch, presenters from HR Champions took the floor, tackling the subject of managing mental health conditions in the workplace. Whilst we looked at the practical aspects of managing absence and making reasonable adjustments, we also discussed employee wellbeing in general and how to spot the signs of and deal with potential mental health issues before they got out of hand.
We finished the afternoon session studying a range of case studies to give delegates a flavour of how mental health conditions actually manifest themselves in the workplace and the impact this can have upon employers.
Altogether the seminar we exceptionally well received with plenty of praise and thanks to all presenters. Our nominated charity for the day, Sunshine Suicide Support was the beneficiary of 100% of the attendance fee charged to delegates, a sum of over £1,000.
Keep an eye on our events page at https://hrchampions.co.uk/events for details of future events including our new mental health training courses.
We can probably all agree that we spend a LOT of our time at work. Our own work space can often feel like an area where we’re not in control. Given the impact that our physical environment can have on our mental health, it’s easy to see how a disorderly workspace can lead to increased stress or exacerbate other underlying mental health issues.
Whether it’s an untidy desk space, poor lighting, noisy colleagues, or even topics of conversation within the office that make you feel uncomfortable, unwelcome elements in a workplace can sometimes be difficult to overcome, no matter how minor they may seem. It all adds up – and can make or break the enjoyment of being in the working environment.
However, that doesn’t mean that everything is out of your control. Here, we’ve come up with a few tips to help you regain control of your working environment and ensure that those little niggles don’t become the final straw of an already stressful day.
Weather & lights
The British weather can be varied, and it’s recognised that it can really impact our mood. This is can be especially true on a damp Monday morning when getting into the office after a relaxed weekend feels particularly challenging.
So how can we make sure that our working environment always feels nice and sunny? SAD lamps could be one way of doing this – sat on your desk or near your work station they’re designed to replicate natural light, and can help treat those with Seasonal Affective Disorder. Whilst there’s mixed opinion of the effectiveness of these to treat SAD, brightening up your work space with more natural-feeling light will certainly help on those dreary mornings and possibly help to lift your mood.
Desk space
It may seem trivial, but ensuring your desk space is clean, tidy, and a comfortable place to be can make a huge difference to feeling happy at work; especially if you’re in a role that means you’re at your desk a lot.
Making sure that paperwork is tidied away, rubbish is binned or recycled, and clutter is minimised can work wonders when it comes to keeping a clear head.
Making your workspace your own with photos, plants, or the occasional ornament can help too. Whilst there will be limitations depending on where you’re working (so no building of desk forts), adding a small plant or two can make a huge difference to how you feel at your desk. Workplaces are often sterile and unnatural feeling places, so bringing nature indoors can work wonders for making your desk feel like a more homely place.
Hotdesking and clear-desk policies can make this difficult – but that doesn’t mean that you can’t pop a couple of desk items in your laptop bag that you can whip onto whatever desk you happen to be working on.
Noise
Offices can be noisy places, especially when you’re trying to get your head down to really focus on something. Headphones are the obvious answer to this – but not everybody can work with music on. Plus, if you can still hear the muffled conversation in the background it’s probably way more irritating anyway.
Suggesting your workplace has a quiet area might be an option. It’s unlikely you’ll be the only person needing a bit of peace to be able to crack on with some work, so it’s not like you need to lock yourself into a dark meeting room to get away from it all.
Working from home
If the office environment is proving too much and your employer allows it, then working from home occasionally might be an option. Most companies now have the technical infrastructure to be able to offer this, so it’s worth asking if you’re able to do so if you feel it’ll be productive, particularly if you need a day without distractions. Working from home means you’re in an environment you’re comfortable with, so can pay dividends in terms of productivity, as well as help keep your mental health in check.
That’s provided of course you don’t get distracted, and don’t do it too often. We’re social creatures after all, so being at home alone all of the time can be detrimental. Not only that, but the majority of job roles require interaction with larger teams of people – something you’ll miss out on if you make a habit of working from home, especially if you’re a part of a team that is otherwise all office-based.
That's all for part 1 - read part 2 here.
This course is designed to build a manager's confidence in handling difficult conversations with employees. Failing to have difficult conversations hinders business growth, team-building and team productivity. We believe that it is only a perception that conversations can be difficult. Perceived difficult conversations can often result in conflict as both sides feel that they have been unheard and misunderstood. With our training, we aim to breakdown what makes a conversation difficult, teach the fundamentals of knowing what to say and how a manager can respond to employees. We will change the perception that conversations can be difficult.
Develop a manager’s confidence in having what they perceive to be difficult conversations
Who Should Attend?
This course is suitable for line managers, senior managers and HR professionals who have a people management and performance management responsibility. This course can be complimented by our Communication in the Workplace training for your employees.
Course Content
Module 1
What makes a conversation appear to be difficult?
Module 2
The consequences when these conversations don't happen
Module 3
"Know What to Say" - Having the conversations
Module 4
Understanding different communication styles and preferences
Module 5
How to actively listen to find solutions
Role play and interactive Sessions
Throughout the training there are role plays, interactive sessions and games to help delegates practise and understand the processes and methods
| Benefits to the Business | Benefits to the Delegate |
| Increase effective and to-the-point communication reducing potential conflict | Build confidence in holding perceived difficult conversations - “Know What to Say” |
| Create an open organisational culture which resolves issues before they escalate | Feel confident when communicating |
| Confident managers work more efficiently | Understand how to react professionally during perceived difficult conversations |
| The team works more efficiently together because they have the confidence and resources to speak up | Skills and knowledge immediately implementable |
To find out more about this course or to book on, just get in touch.
In July 2023, the UK government announced the Bullying and Respect at Work bill which seeks to legally define bullying, provide a Respect at Work code and overall create a framework to protect employers and employees. This will ensure all employees' 'Dignity at Work'. Dignity at Work describes how we should treat colleagues in the workplace including respect for their values, qualities and differences. Today, there are now up to five different generations in the workplace, all who have varying sets of behaviours, values and beliefs. As a manager, it is your responsibility to deal with these situations on a case-by-case basis whilst maintaining the dignity of all stakeholders involved. Without it, a business can face high turnover, high absenteeism and an unmotivated workforce. Our training provides your mangers with the essential skills to ensure a fundamental understanding of dignity at work and a safe environment to ask any questions.
In October 2024, the Worker Protection Act will come into force. This legislation will place onus on the employer to protect employees from sexual harassment in the workplace. Whilst guidance is set to be released, training managers on their responsbilities is a good place to start.
Who Should Attend?
Suitable for line managers, senior managers and HR professionals who have a responsibility for safeguarding their team’s wellbeing and ensuring respect for all colleagues. It is complimented by our half day training course 'Dignity at Work Briefings for Employees'.
Course Content
Module 1 -
What is Dignity at Work and when do breaches happen?
Module 2 -
The characteristics and different types of discrimination
Module 3 -
Need to know discrimination legislation
Module 4 -
Tips for holding perceived uncomfortable conversations
Module 5 -
How to contribute to a positive company culture
| Benefits to the Business | Benefits to the Delegate |
| Promote an inclusive culture where different generations work productively | Knowledge of discrimination legislation to protect the business’ interest |
| Knowledge of discrimination legislation to protect the business’ interest | Understand how to respond when employees feel their values are challenged |
| Creates zero tolerance policies to maintain the team’s dignity | Develop staff relationships to recognise others needs as well as your own |
| Managers understand their legal responsibility to the team | Have an appreciation of the different types of people you may work with |
To find out more about this course or to book on, just get in touch.
Rewarding a high performing employee with a promotion to manage their peers is a widely accepted business practice. However, the transition from successful employee to successful manager isn’t as straightforward as a new job title and a pay rise. Your best salesperson can become your worst sales manager because they don’t possess what is a completely new set of skills. According to a CIPD report, 60% of first-time managers fail because the skill set required is entirely different to what their old job involved. Our Accidental Managers workshop prepares new managers for success by providing the relevant skills to effectively manage, motivate and lead their team.
Build confidence to get the job done right the first time
Who should attend?
This one-day course is suitable for new and aspiring managers who want to learn the essential skills to be effective in their new role. We also offer an Accredited 4-day Qualification which goes into more depth and provides a qualification that can further support your team's management development and be built upon through their management careers.
Course Content
- Module 1 - Understanding the Fundamental Characteristics of Leadership
- Module 2 - Effective Communication
- Module 3 - How to get the best out of your team
| Benefits to the Business | Benefits to the Delegate |
| Build a capable management team | Build your confidence during transition from team member to manager |
| Retain your best talent through investment | Earn respect from employees through effective managerial behaviour |
| Create a smooth transition from employee to manager minimising inefficiency | Feel competent and ready to take on the challenge of people management |
| Ensure that good working relationships remain when an employee becomes a manager | Skills and knowledge are immediately implementable |
| See a return on investment as managers are immediately effective |
To find out more about this course or to book on, just get in touch.
Blanchard's SLII is the most comprehensive and practical method of effectively managing and developing people and businesses in the world. Today, business' needs change rapidly therefore an agile, visionary and nimble leadership team is required. SLII provides leaders with the model and the tools for creating open communication and developing self-reliance in those they manage. It is designed to increase the frequency and quality of conversations about performance and development. As a result, employee's competence is developed, their commitment is gained and talented individuals are retained. Leaders will learn the effective theory on Day 1 and will then put it into practice on Day 2.
Who should attend?
This two-day course is suitable for leaders with a responsibility for performance management and employee development. We also recommend Blanchard's Self Leadership for your team.
Course Content
Day 1 - Blanchard's SLII Model
- What is your employee's development level? Commitment vs Competence
- Which leadership style is appropriate for your employee? Directive vs Supportive
- What is your preferred leadership style? SLII Questionnaire and an action plan to improve your less natural leadership style
Day 2 - Putting it into Practice
- The Performance Management Cycle
- How to support and motivate high performing teams
- Leading and controlling challenging conversations
- Practice holding challenging conversations with an action plan
- How to utilise the SLII model in the workplace
The programme is designed to be highly participative and focused around making a difference in the business longer term as a result of a limited approach to people management.
| Benefits to the Business | Benefits to the Delegate |
| Promote team accountability by empowering employees to provide own direction | Learn good vocabulary and techniques to confidently support employees |
| Create a common and consistent language of performance between employee and leader | Lead meaningful conversations and provide constructive feedback in performance reviews |
| Accelerate the pace and quality of employee development | Partner on performance by understanding different leadership styles to effectively respond to your environment |
| Avoid misunderstandings and time wasting by facilitating open communication | Develop your people management approach to ensure that you are managing efficiently |
To find out more about this course or to book on, just get in touch.