It’s World Mental Health Day on Tuesday 10th October 2023, and this year the global campaign will also mark the 75th anniversary of the organisation that founded it, the World Federation for Mental Health. Chosen through a global public vote, the official theme for this year’s World Mental Health Day is ‘Mental Health is...
Stress linked to third of social care sick days
New research has found that just under a third of sickness absences among social care workers are linked to stress and poor wellbeing. Data collated by the British Psychological Society (BPS) reveals that 30% of the 500,021 sick days taken by social workers were due to mental health issues such as stress and work-related...
Youth Mental Health Day focuses on building confidence
Youth Mental Health Day 2023 is focused on the theme #BeBrave, to help boost the courage and confidence of young people. Tuesday 19th September 2023 is Youth Mental Health Day, an awareness campaign founded by teenage mental health charity stem4 in 2020 to improve understanding and increase discussion of mental health in young people....
IOSH recommends suicide prevention strategies for the workplace
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has shared suicide prevention strategies which are relevant for the workplace. The world’s leading professional health and safety body spoke out as World Suicide Prevention Day was observed on 10th September. Organised by the International Association for Suicide Prevention, the annual initiative helps raise awareness of...
IOSH says flexible working can boost health and safety
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has welcomed new regulations that support flexible working, saying it leads to “positive mental health and physical health.” The world’s largest professional health and safety body says the benefits of flexible work patterns also include “healthier and more sustainable lives” for workers and “lower absenteeism or...
Pupil mental health and teacher welfare a key concern for parents
A new survey has found there are high levels of parental concern about pupil mental health and teacher welfare in Britain’s schools. The Ipsos survey focused on attitudes to education in Britain and how well people rate the quality of the nation’s schools, colleges and universities. Over 2,200 British adults aged 18 or over...
Talk to us: campaign raises awareness of suicide support
Talk to Us is an annual awareness campaign run by the Samaritans throughout July. Samaritans Awareness Day falls on the 24th July (24/7) each year to highlight the fact that the national charity helpline is there to listen to people 24 hours a day, 7 days a week throughout the year. The Talk to...
10% increase in children struggling with exam stress
Childline has reported a 10% increase in counselling sessions about exam stress since the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK. The confidential charity helpline for children said that almost 2,000 children contacted them to talk about exam stress last year as formal exams returned following the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns...
Mental Health Awareness Week focuses on anxiety
Anxiety is the theme for this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week, which is observed from 15th to 21st May in the UK. Anxiety is one of the most common mental health problems experienced by people. It can be sparked by worries such as exam pressures, relationship problems, starting a new job or losing one,...
Charity wants to get children’s mental health #OutInTheOpen
National charity YoungMinds is encouraging people to bring children’s mental health out into the open with a new step challenge for Spring. The charity’s #OutInTheOpen campaign challenges people to walk 310,000 steps in 31 days during May to raise money for children and young people’s mental health, and encourage open and honest conversations about...
HSE refreshes guidance on work-related violence and aggression
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued updated guidance to help employers protect their staff from work-related violence and aggression. Britain’s health and safety watchdog has refreshed the guidance as reported incidents of work-related violence and aggression have risen in recent years – numbering 688,000 in 2019-20. They say that experiencing violence and...
HSE campaign tackles work-related stress
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has launched its Working Minds campaign to help employers and workers prevent work-related stress. Britain’s health and safety watchdog is working with a number of partners, including IOSH, ACAS and Mind, to bring together a range of tools and support to help people tackle work-related stress and promote...
Take action this Stress Awareness Month
April is Stress Awareness Month, and this year the theme is all about taking action. Spearheaded by the Stress Management Society, Stress Awareness Month has been held every April since 1992 in a bid to raise awareness of the causes, negative effects and effective treatments for stress. Stress can be defined as the experience...
IOSH calls for coordinated focus on mental health in the workplace
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has called for a coordinated response to boost mental health in the workplace. The world’s largest occupational safety and health (OSH) body has responded to a European Commission consultation, saying that more effective leadership and governance frameworks are required to help improve mental health in the...
NSPCC campaign tackles ‘heart-breaking’ loneliness
The NSPCC has launched a new campaign to tackle the “heart-breaking” loneliness experienced by children and young people across the country. The ‘Day in the Lonely’ campaign uses day-in-the-life style videos to illustrate how three young people experience loneliness. The videos, based on real-life calls received by Childline, are designed to encourage children to...