Championing positive mental health at work across Leeds and West Yorkshire
Leeds Mindful Employer Network
Championing mental health at work
across Leeds and West Yorkshire
1st June 2022
Dear network Members,
Welcome to our June newsletter.
This month we are helping you to get ready for Men's Health Week (13th-19th June). We are also bringing you two fantastic blogs from our members as well as our usual round-up of local events, guidance and reports.
Firstly we wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate Mental Health Awareness Week on 11th May. It was lovely to see so many people in one room again and we received some wonderful feedback.
For those who couldn't make it, you missed an inspiring opening talk from Tom Riordan (CEO, Leeds City Council) as well as some great case studies from contributors to our newly updated Ten Steps Toolkit. Please do take a look at these to learn more about what other local employers and businesses are doing to improve mental health and wellbeing within their workplaces.
There are some fantastic local events coming up this month. We will be heading to them ourselves so please come and say hello if you attend! (see info in the news, reading and events section below).
Please do continue to share with us anything that might be of use to fellow network members. And as always, we welcome your feedback, ideas and suggestions on how we can improve what we do - we'd love to hear from you.
Welcome to new network members
and charter signatories
The Mindful Employer Network is free to join for all local employers and their staff across Leeds and West Yorkshire. This month we are extending a warm welcome to new network members from the following businesses and organisations:
Communities 1st
Fusion Unlimited
Kirklees College
Leeds City Council
Leeds City Council Care Delivery
Lighthouse Futures Trust
North Brewing Company
Phoenix Health and Wellbeing
Retail Express Ltd
Sense
Studio Background Ltd
TLE Sports Coaching
West Yorkshire Combined Authority
Woodland House
As always it's fantastic to see the wide range of local employers represented within our network. If you know someone who would benefit from being involved please do forward them this bulletin - they can sign up here.
New Charter signatories We would also like to congratulate the following employers who have recently signed the Mindful Employer Charter for employers who are positive about mental health:
Leeds Marriott Hotel
Little Motel Motion Studio LTD
The Swan Song Project
Have you signed the Mindful Employer Charter? We encourage all our network members to consider signing the Mindful Employer Charter. This is a great way to demonstrate your organisation's commitment to better mental health. Being a Mindful Employer brings many benefits including access to an affordable 24 hour staff support line MINDFUL EMPLOYER Plus for only £1 per staff member per year.
Please get in touch if you have any further questions about the Mindful Employer Network or Mindful Employer Charter.
Looking for some help getting started on your Mindful Employer journey?
Our Ten Steps Toolkit has been recently updated and now includes 13 brand new case studies from fellow local employers. It is a fantastic place to start - full of information, helpful tips and useful links.
"Such a good resource! Can't wait to get stuck in and make some real changes for my team!"
Please get in touch if you'd like us to deliver a free in-house workshop for your team.
Reminder to join our new Facebook Group!
We have created a brand new Facebook group for you, our Leeds Mindful Employer Network members.
We hope this will be a vital go-to resource: a portal for information, latest guidance and inspiring blogs, as well as a way to connect with peers, share your tips and learn from each other's experiences.
Men's Health Week is a great opportunity to raise awareness of men's health and this year Men's Health Forum are promoting lots of resources to encourage Men to take notice of how they are feeling and what their bodies are telling them. You can download a free resource pack here.
Three great ways to celebrate Men's Health Week in your area
1. Promote the CHECK-IN suicide prevention campaign
West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership (WY HCP) has launched a new campaign to create awareness around male suicide across the area and is calling on everyone to get involved:
The campaign promotes a wellbeing culture by normalising the conversation around suicide and mental health as well as providing communication assets, links to credible sources such as the life-saving Zero Suicide Alliance training, and signposting to local support.
Find resources and support on suicide prevention across West Yorkshire here.
2. Get involved in a local activity for men
Men's Health Unlocked is a network for individuals and organisations working to promote men’s health and wellbeing in Leeds.
The Let's Unlock directory contains a huge range of activities and groups for local men. Look out for activities to celebrate Men's Health Week in the coming weeks.
3. Volunteer for Leeds Dads at Dadstastic Day on 19th June
On June 19th they will be celebrating Father's Day by hosting Dadstastic Day - a wonderful day of free family fun at Leeds City Museum and Millennium Square.
reflecting on our learning from COVID and how we are planning our recovery
demonstrating the power of connections, with examples in art and health, and the environment and health
looking at the impact of a deficit in social connection
a range of speakers from across Leeds, with partners describing how working together has shown to be most effective, and sharing their plans to build on this success
opportunities for delegates to reconnect with colleagues and to make new connections to support their vital work
In the current climate incomes are becoming more squeezed as outgoings increase (e.g., to energy bills, petrol costs, national insurance contributions etc). Are your employees worried how they will manage? Do you know how this crisis could impact on your business?
Come along to our webinar and find out what FREE services can be offered to help your employees and help you understand how poor financial wellbeing can impact your staff and the effectiveness of your business.
Why is Financial Wellbeing important in the workplace – the benefits to the employer and employees.
How free and impartial MoneyHelper tools and resources can be used to support your employees. https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en
Launch of the Women Friendly Recruiter Checklist
Join Women Friendly Leeds and Women’s Lives Leeds, in partnership with the Labyrinth Project at Leeds Women’s Aid and Smartworks to launch their Women Friendly Recruiter Checklist 23rd June
10am-11am (in-person)
St George’s Conference Centre, Leeds.
The Women Friendly Recruiter’s Checklist is a tool for employers and HR personnel to support them to make their recruiting processes “women friendly” and demonstrate they are an inclusive organisation or business. Packed full of benefits such as increasing the pool of candidates applying for their jobs and demonstrating being an attractive employer to women, the checklist will be launched at this informative hour long meet and greet briefing. Employers will be invited to sign up to the initiative, and will receive a digital welcome pack, with “Women Friendly Recruiter” logos and resources.
Employer Blog: Workplace Wellbeing at Leeds Marriott Hotel
"We know that being a good employer is the best thing we can do for business"
We caught up with Jayne Uren, Human Resources Manager at Leeds Marriott Hotelto learn about her approach to staff wellbeing and why it's something every business should prioritise.
"It's not what you do, it's the way that you do it"
Geraldine Montgomerie, Partnerships and Engagement Manager at the Swan Song Project has kindly shared her reflections on her approach to developing staff wellbeing.
Without the resources often taken for-granted within larger companies, small businesses can face unique challenges when thinking about staff wellbeing. However they can also be some of the most positive, nurturing and supportive places to work.
In March we published an article in South Leeds Life specifically highlighting the benefits of Leeds Mindful Employer Network to small local businesses. You can read the article here.
We are pleased to follow this up with some fantastic wellbeing tips for small businesses shared by local business owner and Mindful Employer, Lou Henry from independent coffee shop, Opposite Cafe.
Firstly we wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate Mental Health Awareness Week on 11th May. It was lovely to see so many people in one room again and we received some wonderful feedback. 
Nick shares his reflections on setting up his business and how he has prioritised his own mental health in the process. 
"We know that being a good employer is the best thing we can do for business"
We are pleased to follow this up with some fantastic wellbeing tips for small businesses shared by local business owner and 
