Journal Clubs

Create a dedicated time (maybe once a month) for staff to join and discuss new and emerging research; take turns presenting and suggesting articles!

Mindfulness

Run a lunchtime mindfulness session with colleagues, or take 5 minutes to do some breathing exercises at your desk (see our breathing exercises here)

Tea/Coffee Mornings

You could do this during a journal club, or just set some time to have a dedicated space for catch up & chance to switch off & catch-up with colleagues and peers.

Break-Out Space

Create a space within your working environment that allows staff to ‘break-out’ and have a chance to be peaceful if they may have had a difficult session or feel they need a break from the office.

Supervision

Ensure that all staff receive regular supervision in an appropriate format.

Shadowing & training

Allow staff to develop and have new opportunities. This may include attending conferences and linking in with professionals at other institutions.

Well-being Days

Put some days in the calendar that are dedicated to well-being for staff; or offer staff one/two well-being days that they are able to take off during the year if they are feeling burn out.

Peer supervision /reflection

Give staff the opportunity to speak with other colleagues. If you are the only individual in your team doing your role, try and link in with other Universities & professionals nationally.

“The team have mental health skills, but no one sits down and says genuinely, you know how’s your caseload or are you ok at the moment or anything like that. Sometimes that’s really difficult to go back into an environment where people may be laughing and joking and having a great time, and I’ve just come out of something really difficult….There’s no break out area or space, there’s nowhere for staff. So something like that would be really, really helpful”

(University Counsellor)

“I think everyone should at least go to one conference a year, if not two, you know once every six months, to just kind of regenerate and refresh, and the inspiration that can give you is really important for the role.” 

(University Mental Health Advisor)

“We always say we must read that research paper, but years later we still haven’t. So I think time as a group would be really helpful to have that space. I remember once myself and my colleague had the chance to attend a conference in London and we learnt so much, it was absolutely amazing…we used our train journey to just brain stormed about the service and what the service would look like and our roles and it was just amazing. So it was really helpful to have that time away, and meeting people from other Universities and other professionals.”

(University Counsellor)