Working Minds Supports Stress Awareness Month 2023

THE HEALTH AND SAFETY EXECUTIVE (HSE) has compiled a list of resources to assist employers and workers during Stress Awareness Month this April as part of its Working Minds campaign.

Launched in November 2021, the Working Minds campaign aims to prevent work-related stress and promote good mental health in the workplace. Since then, Working Minds has grown from nine to 22 partners. The next two members, the Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH) and See Me – Scotland’s national programme to end mental health stigma, will both join this month.

Preventing Stress in the Workplace 

Whether it’s a small business or a large corporation, the law requires all employers to prevent work-related stress to support good mental health in the workplace. Employers have a legal duty to protect workers from stress at work by doing a risk assessment and acting on it, says HSE.

To help them achieve this, HSE has collated multiple resources into one document.

Liz Goodwill, Head of the Work-Related Stress and Mental Health Policy Team at HSE, said: “There are six main areas that can lead to work-related stress if they are not managed properly. These are: demands, control, support, relationships, role and change. Factors like skills and experience, age, or disability may all affect someone’s ability to cope.

“Stress Awareness Month is an opportunity for employers to check in and support their staff’s mental health. Working Minds helps employers to follow five simple steps based on risk assessment. They are to Reach out and have conversations; Recognise the signs and causes of stress; Respond to any risks you’ve identified; Reflect on actions you’ve agreed and taken, and make it Routine. It needs to become the norm to talk about stress and how people are feeling and coping at work.”

Stress Awareness Resources

• Visit the Working Minds campaign website
• Visit the HSE’s work-related stress webpages
• Listen to the podcast
• Watch the stress and mental health at work video
• See HSE’s Stress Management Standards
• Download a Talking Toolkit
• Download a risk assessment template
• Take the NEBOSH stress training qualification & training course
• Call the Mind helpline (open 9am-6pm weekdays) on 0300 123 3393

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