Worried you will do more harm than good? Concerned you’ll open a can of worms? Haven’t got a clue where to start? Perhaps these are questions you have been asking yourself about how to support the mental health of your workforce. The good news is it’s probably not as scary as you think.

Mental health issues are common. 1 in 4 people will be affected by mental health issues every year. In the workplace 1 in 6 people will experience a common mental health problem in any given week. Despite these big numbers more businesses are beginning to focus more on this agenda. Proactive workplace mental health initiatives help to raise awareness and begin to reduce stigma and fear.

Top 3 ways to support mental health at work

1. Create the right culture. Senior leaders need to be visibly endorsing the support you are providing in this area. It needs to be genuine, sincere and become part of your business agenda. One-off initiatives rarely deliver impact and may do more harm than good as they can come across as half-hearted tick box attempts address the issue.
2. Get people talking. It all starts with a conversation. Mental health is still heavily stigmatised. Many people feel embarrassed, ashamed and perhaps scared to reveal they are struggling. Workplaces need to create open, safe environments where mental health is talked about just easily as last night’s football results. Think about adding mental health as an agenda item in team briefings and 1-1’s. Host a tea and talk morning so people can connect and share. Support mental health awareness days or create a group of mental health champions to deliver a series of initiatives throughout the year.
3. Understand where to start. Workplace mental health programs often fail because they haven’t fully met the needs of those involved. Ask your workforce what support they need. Identify where your areas of need are by using data. Is there a high rate of absence due to mental health problems? Do people need support to manage stress effectively? If you haven’t, think about carrying out an internal mental health audit. Healthy Performance have an innovative mental health support tool called Pascal. This allows you and your employees to measure home and work pressure, ensures you comply with HSE regulations and employment law, and importantly, provide your employees with more support surrounding mental health.

Right now, there is so much information out there to help you support the mental health of your employees. By following the 3 top tips above you’ll have a great foundation to build upon.

Want to provide better mental health support to your entire workforce?

Pascal® is an innovative online mental health support platform that allows you and your employees to measure home and work pressure, ensures you comply with HSE regulations and employment law, and importantly, provide your employees with more support surrounding mental health.

Taking less than 10 minutes to complete, employees will receive a confidential report with recommendations and links to existing support pathways. Your company report then identifies hotspots and trends to focus your mental health strategy around.  Learn more about Pascal here.