Staff Wellbeing MOT’s? At Weston this is now a reality, as part of our education based Mental Health support initiative

As the Principal at Weston, I have been pioneering and investing in an education based mental health support service for both our students and our staff for some time, and it is the staff initiatives in terms of organisational workforce development  that I wanted to share today with FE News readers and leaders of education.

As an Investor in People Platinum organisation, I wanted to create a sustainable wellbeing workforce development model, that would not only survive this pandemic (and others that follow), but one that would also ensure our staff are supported even on the brightest of days, because as mental health practitioners will tell you – mental ill health is highly unpredictable and we never quite understand what is going on in a person’s mind. You may be adept at seeming to be flourishing on the outside – but is important that we all have the time to explore and reflect on our inner selves.

This is why at Weston, we have developed the concept of the ‘Staff Wellbeing MOT’ in conjunction with our mental health practitioners and welfare staff, where staff are able to take 45 mins for themselves to connect virtually with a specialist therapist or mental health specialist to work through and talk about how they are feeling in order to locate strategies that could be useful to navigate their current emotions and state of wellbeing.

The MOT does not prescribe a specific approach and has a recognition that one size does not fit all. It is a fluid and adaptable process dependent on individual need. The focus of the MOT is to support, offer guidance and provide solution focused communication and collaboration. The staff MOT has been a key focus of our Let’s Chat initiative, introduced using the College Collaboration Fund in partnership with Gateshead College, which has allowed our  positive workforce culture of wellness to grow, recognising that all staff should take the time within the working day to look after their own wellbeing.

Staff have been encouraged to take up the Let’s Chat opportunities and access specific training that develops positive wellbeing as well as access the Let’s Chat website and take some time for themselves to explore and find effective mechanisms to holistically improve their own wellness. Upskilling students and staff with the knowledge and tools to tackle the daily challenges we face has been a key focus for 20/21 at our college. To date we have had over 800 staff attend various wellbeing CPD activities such as Emotional Literacy workshops or achieving Mental Health First Aid certification (MHFA)        

At Weston, an education based triage mental health support service is becoming a reality, and I would urge government to consider future funding to support Colleges and Schools to capacity build with mental health expertise, in order to make education based mental health support a reality across the UK.

Dr Paul Phillips CBE, Principal and Chief Executive, Weston College