Buckinghamshire Mind, in partnership with Time to Change Buckinghamshire, held a Tea and Talk event at Aylesbury Library for Time to Talk Day, Thursday 7th February from 10am to 12 noon. Time to Talk Day aims to bring the nation together to get talking about mental health.
Andrea McCubbin signed the Time to Change Employer Pledge on behalf of Buckinghamshire Mind at the Tea and Talk event. By signing the Employer Pledge, Buckinghamshire Mind is demonstrating its commitment to change how we think and act about mental health in the workplace and to make sure that employees who are facing these problems feel supported.
“Buckinghamshire Mind is leading by example and we hope this will encourage other organisations in Buckinghamshire to sign the Employers Pledge,” says Andrea. “Looking after the mental health and wellbeing of your employees is as vital as looking after their physical wellbeing. It also makes good business sense: tackling stigma can make a real difference to sickness absence rates, presenteeism levels, staff wellbeing and productivity, and retention. Since signing the Employer Pledge, 95% of employers said it had a positive impact on their organisation.”
Mental health problems affect one in four of us, yet people still find it difficult to talk about it. For people with mental health problems, not being able to talk about it can be one of the worst parts of the illness. So, by getting people talking about mental health we can break down stereotypes, improve relationships, aid recovery and take the stigma out of something that affects us all.
As well as the Tea and Talk event, Buckinghamshire Mind also delivered mental health awareness assemblies throughout last week and encouraged children, teachers and parents to use Time to Talk Day as an opportunity to start a conversation about mental health.
Since Time to Talk Day first launched in 2014, it has sparked millions of conversations in schools, homes, workplaces, in the media and online. Find out more at: www.time-to-change.org.uk/get-involved/time-talk-day-2018
Find out more about the Employer Pledge at: www.time-to-change.org.uk/get-involved/get-your-workplace-involved/employer-pledge
Find out more about Buckinghamshire Mind and Time to Change Buckinghamshire at: www.bucksmind.org.uk/get-involved/time-to-change-buckinghamshire