On October 10th, it is World Mental Health Day, and the theme this year is;

“It is time to prioritize mental health in the workplace”.

We don’t usually mark specific days to raise awareness, as we work to do this every day, but the theme of this year rings true with our goals, and we wanted to use this opportunity to speak about why it is so important to prioritise mental health in the workplace. 

According to a recent report from Deloitte on mental health and employment, 59% of people who left their job or are planning to leave their job said it was ‘somewhat, largely or entirely due to personal mental health and well-being related issues’. 

The report states that the cost of sickness absence has increased by 20% in the last year to £7billion and presenteeism costing £24billion. 

It also found that 63% of respondents had experienced at least one characteristic of burnout, which it defines as ‘feeling of exhaustion, mental distance from their job, or decline in performance at work.’ 

This report makes a clear case that mental health is having a profound and detrimental impact on the workplace. These statistics show that it is not just employers that are suffering losses, but that employees are losing out on their ability and motivation to find and keep work due to their mental health struggles. 

It is abundantly clear how important and necessary it is for employers to invest in supporting workers and creating a mentally healthy workplace, and we strongly believe that training is an effective way for employers to begin to make impactful change. 

In 2023, we delivered courses to around 1,000 participants seeking to increase their awareness of mental health and suicide prevention, and this year has been equally busy.  We are seeing first hand that employers are investing more to make positive change for their workforce and we hope that this year’s WMHD theme helps to inspire more to do the same.

Our Courses

We offer a range of courses that can be beneficial to employers, and can also create bespoke courses that are tailored to your company. We know it can be a bit overwhelming to know where to start, so we have some great courses to get you going on the path to creating a mentally healthy workplace.

This course teaches a greater understanding of mental health. You will gain knowledge of what it means to have good or poor mental health, increased alertness to the signs of mental ill health in the workplace, and an increased confidence to address them and put support in place.

In this training you will learn why we need to be alert to suicide. Understand what to look out for among employees, how to ask about suicide, and learn about the legal obligations as an employer. 

We offer a range of courses to suit your needs, whether you are an organisation seeking support, or an individual seeking a more in-depth knowledge, our courses are for everyone. If you can’t find what you’re looking for in our Training Guide, please contact us as we are always happy to create bespoke courses tailored to you.