#HelpGBworkwell - HSE add work-related stress to their Health Priority Plans

The Health & Safety Executive have added work-related stress to their Health Priority Plans in an attempt to reduce working days lost due to mental ill-health. This is fantastic news and shows that leading Health & Safety bodies are starting to take work-related stress and mental ill-health seriously in the workplace. 

The HSE reports that work-related stress is the second most commonly reported cause of occupational ill-health in Great Britain. Accounting for an astonishing 37% of all work-related ill-health cases and 45%, yes, that's FORTY-FIVE per cent of all working days lost due to ill-health. 

It has long been known that Stress and Mental Ill-Health are rife in UK workplaces and this could play a huge part in businesses finally being properly equipped to support staff. 

So what do the plans outline? 

The HSE have listed their outcomes and priorities, paired with a section on what the HSE will actually be doing. You can find the priority plan here. 

“We want to see a significant increase in the number of employers taking a proactive stance to managing WRS through the Management Standards approach or other suitable risk assessment methodology. More HR and Health & Safety Professionals trained and competent to implement Management Standards approaches within their organisations and cross-sector learning about ‘what works’” 

- The HSE 

The HSE have listed that they will do the following: 

• Host an 18-monthly National Summit to raise the profile of WRS 
• Engage influential industry stakeholders, HR professionals, trade unions and the wider health and safety community to drive forward behavioural change in raising awareness of the effect on individuals and business performance
• Promoting engagement via HSE’s stress ebulletin, ecommunity, and social media to extend our communications reach, particularly with SMEs
• conducting pilots in sectors with high reported levels of WRS (initially schools, healthcare and prisons) to promote the Management Standards approach and, where appropriate, consider the development of customised guidance to facilitate wider adoption across the sector

Read more here.

How iHASCO help UK businesses spread awareness of Stress and Mental Ill-Health 

We’ve helped our clients spread awareness of stress and mental ill-health in their workplaces through our range of fantastic eLearning courses. We have general mental health and stress awareness courses but also offer sector-specific training for schools, care homes and construction companies. 

To date, we’ve helped over 100,000 people become more aware of and/or cope better with their stress and mental health through our programmes. 

Whilst awareness training might not be the complete answer to better supporting your staff, it’s a fantastic first step and your staff will certainly thank you for it. Did you know that for every £1 invested in supporting/bettering your staff’s mental health, you can expect to see up to £4.20 in return!