Supporting employees struggling with poor mental health or mental ill health is a crucial priority in the working world and it’s important for employers to seriously consider the challenges they face in this space and take greater responsibility for supporting the mental health and wellbeing of their people.

Not only is promoting employee wellbeing a cornerstone of any employer of choice, organisations have a legal duty of care to their employees – so it’s imperative that the right tools are in place to support both physical and mental health.

Read on to discover how you can cultivate a supportive culture around mental health at work and how you can provide safe spaces for confidential discussions and embed it into your working culture.

How can leaders support their employees’ mental health?

Firstly, set the tone from the top. Role modelling habits and behaviour conducive with positive mental wellbeing sends an important message. Whether that is by taking a proper break over lunchtime, leaving the office on time or having healthy digital boundaries when working from home. When your team sees you taking care of your mental wellbeing you give them permission to do the same.

It’s also important that all leaders and people managers have the skills and knowledge to identify when someone is struggling and offer support. One in six people experience challenges with their mental health in the workplace, so it’s something any leader should be able to provide support with. This doesn’t mean being able to diagnose, or counsel, but simply recognise that something isn’t right and effectively signpost the right support.

If workers don’t believe that their employer provides a positive and inclusive working environment, or trust that it’ll provide the support they need when the occasion arises, organisations may not be able to break the stigma around mental health.

The promotion of wellbeing support, be it through Mental Health First Aiders (MHFAs), internal communications on mental wellbeing or mental health training, should be consistent, continuous and showcased from the top down. Not only does this put support services in the spotlight, but it can also help to reduce the stigma that often surrounds mental health support and encourage those that may be hesitant to access it, to do so.

Introducing a network of Mental Health First Aiders (MHFAs)

Once your leaders are on board, you can look at establishing a network of support across the wider business. One initiative you might consider adopting is setting up and training a group of MHFAs – a handful of empathetic and engaged staff who are passionate about wellbeing.

The Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) course teaches passionate volunteers how to identify, understand and help someone who may be going through a challenging time due to their mental health. Many organisations invest in this training to improve their employees’ awareness of mental ill health, encourage conversations on mental health topics, reduce stigma in the workplace and empower volunteers to signpost their colleagues to useful resources or coping mechanisms.

At Hays, we set a target to train 50 Mental Health First Aiders by the end of FY24. As of June, we are delighted to have trained over 70 people across the UK and Ireland who are available to support our colleagues if they need someone to talk to.

When setting up a network of MHFAs, remember to choose people who are approachable, can maintain confidentiality, are engaged in mental health topics and can commit the time required to be a successful MHFA. You should also be sure to look after the mental wellbeing of your MHFAs, by offering regular opportunities to check in on them, providing upsklling opportunities and ensuring they can access support following challenging conversations.

To encourage employees to speak to your MHFAs, regularly mention the MHFA service in your internal communications to inform your employees that this support is available.

It’s important to bear in mind that MHFA is not a silver bullet, it should be considered as one part of a wider Mental Health strategy.

Some excellent resources that we’d recommend for both employees and employers to look at are those provided by Mind and Anxiety UK. In addition, here at Hays we offer free courses via My Learning to support individuals with their mental health, including sessions on tackling anxiety, building confidence, mindfulness, working on your mindset and much