It’s the festive seasons, a time for family, friends, celebration, and a well-earned break. But after such a difficult year many of us are facing more pressure than normal as well as personal or financial hardships.

As employers it’s more important than ever to offer support to staff. Forbes estimated that for every £1 invested in employee well-being an organisation can see a £3-5 return. Now that is something to celebrate! Mental ill-health exists everywhere and by creating supportive environments and open-minded cultures, organisations reap the benefits of increased loyalty, morale, and productivity.

So where to start? Proper rest is key so prioritise wellbeing.

A few ideas:
-    Stick to work hours. Statistics show that individuals produce their best work in the first 7 hours. Anymore and you’re doing your staff and your clients a disservice.
-    Set delays on emails so that they only arrive during work hours. Don’t call outside of work hours.
-    If someone is not managing the workload, then your client is not getting your best quality. Don’t overload. Invest in training and create teams that can support each other.
-    Create a winter and a summer office close-down where everyone gets a break and doesn’t return to a stack of email.
-    Create an annual well being day.
-    Have trained Mental Health First Aiders so that they can fully support your team and empower the First Aider to make the changes to create a richer and more understanding culture.
-    Get feedback from employees about their workplace experience
-    Be emotionally aware of others. It’s been a difficult year. Some people may be keen to socialise, others keen to avoid.
-    Give yourself time off too. You need and deserve it.
And whatever your organisational plans are for 2022, make sure that you have a mental health and well being strategy at the heart of your approach.