ACWA Support Mental Health At Work

Good mental health is a priority for ACWA and it is vital we raise awareness amongst our employees that it is ok to not be ok. In many workplaces mental health is still a taboo subject with 67% of employees feeling scared, embarrassed or unable to talk about mental health concerns with their employer, at ACWA we are taking steps to change that.

Training our employees in mental health awareness is the first step to changing our culture and behaviours to make it good practice to be open and discuss any mental health issues. The training course from Mental Health First Aid England is an interactive instructor-led live online session and after the course our employees will:

  • Know what mental health is and how to challenge stigma
  • Have an introduction to some common mental health issues
  • Be confident enough to support someone who may be experiencing mental ill health
  • Be able to look after their own mental health and maintain their own wellbeing

Karen Young, Senior Process Engineer and Mental Health Lead for ACWA is helping to facilitate the change within ACWA, “By training a quarter of our employees it is helping to reduce the stigma of mental health challenges and promoting engagement and positive mental wellbeing across the workplace. The second step is to train up some of our employees to be Mental Health First Aiders. We have physical first aiders and at ACWA we have decided that we also need Mental Health First Aiders.”

Leading by example is Simon Langley, ACWA’s Managing Director, who is not only sponsoring this cultural and behavioural change but actively participating in the training sessions. Simon’s comments after the first session included, “It was a really good course and it was well delivered. It was great to see everyone engaging and opening up. This is a really positive start and we are building good foundations to ensure we have a pro-active approach to mental health and wellbeing.

The course was delivered by Claire Beharrell at The Mental Health Jigsaw.