Workplace Wellbeing Academy
Training Courses
Course Descriptions
Our evidenced led training offers a structured approach in promoting positive mental health and wellbeing, based on our model of a mentally healthy organisation. They are carefully designed to encourage conversation and shared learning.
Taking you on a journey through mental health and wellbeing implementation, our courses offer a range of learning from supporting you to create a sustainable culture that promotes positive mental health and wellbeing, to leadership and management training, onto personal development. They all have one aim in mind:
To support you to create an environment where everyone can thrive.
We deliver well researched, evidence-based concepts that have been widely recognised and have been turned into action-based strategies, which you are empowered to immediately act upon.
Mental Health and Wellbeing
Our learning ranges from 90-minute modules to introduce concepts and how they apply to the workplace, half-day awareness raising workshops for a deeper dive and, to two-day courses aimed at people supervising or leading wellbeing programmes in the workplace, which include practical and proactive approaches designed in supporting your strategy to develop healthy cultures in which people can flourish.
Understanding and promoting positive mental health
This multi-module course is designed to educate participants in how to promote positive mental health in organisations and teams. Each module can be delivered separately or combined with others to achieve individual learning outcomes as required.
Tools and Techniques
This course comes with a comprehensive catalogue of evidence-based tools and techniques that have been shown to enhance wellbeing and to manage and mitigate risk.
As the course builds so does the learner’s toolbox, helping to both create a sustainable culture of care and to support colleagues, friends and family when they are struggling, read on for a module-by-module breakdown of what you will learn.
Learn more
Module 1 – An Introduction to Mental Health and Wellbeing
What does mental health and wellbeing really mean? The business case for taking care of your employees/teams and the risks of not.
This module explores the fundamental principles of human performance and explains why looking after employees is essential for every business.
Module 2 – Key Elements of a Supportive Culture
What makes a culture where everyone can thrive? This module explores the elements of culture that, when done well, enhance employee wellbeing, but if done poorly can have a negative impact.
If you want to understand the principles of a long-term sustainable wellbeing culture this module is essential.
Module 3 – Promoting Positive Mental Health and Wellbeing
The “Five Ways to Wellbeing” are evidence-based actions that have been shown to enhance wellbeing. In this module we explore them and demonstrate how you can use these to form the foundation of your wellbeing strategy.
Module 4 – Common Mental Health Issues
The statistic that 1 in 4 people will experience a common mental health problem in any year is perhaps well known. But what does this really mean? This module explains what is meant by the term “a common mental health problem” and provides a broad overview of how mental health issues are classified.
Module 5 – Understanding Workplace Stress
Workplace stress is a key risk to workplace wellbeing. Understanding the causes and consequences of workplace stress offers the foundation to mitigating and managing it. This module explores the subject using the Health and Safety Executive’s “Management Standards” approach and provides tools and techniques to reduce stress and improve performance.
Module 6a & 6b – Recognising Signs of Concern and Offering Support
We don’t need to be a professional to support a friend, family member or colleague who may be struggling with their mental health and wellbeing. This module explains how to spot when someone might be struggling and provides a structure for the conversation that might follow using our “C.A.R.E model”.
Module 7 – Managing Employees who may be Struggling
Are you a manager? Do you know your responsibilities when it comes to managing staff with mental health issues? This module gives the legal context for managing staff who may be struggling, from manging performance, to monitoring people on long term sick and what to do when they come back to work.
i–act Managing and Promoting Positive Mental Health and Wellbeing
Accredited by the Royal College of Psychology and designed to help your organisation make effective progress if you have identified manager training as a priority.
This one-day course:
- Gives managers a greater understanding of what they are required to know about mental health and wellbeing issues in the workplace, including appropriate legislation and how to manage and recognise when colleagues may need help and support
- Offers guidance and advice for managers on ways to connect with colleagues who may be experiencing a mental health or wellbeing issue
- Equips managers with practical tools, a resource pack and signposting to further help and support, concerning mental health and wellbeing issues
- The i–act course comes with a 168-page evidence-based course manual, toolkit and resource pack for each manager.
This evidence-based proactive approach aims to create healthier workplace cultures in which mental health and wellbeing issues are less likely to arise.
Duration: 1 day (7 hours)
Maximum participants: 14
Delivery: Face-to-face or online
A similar course is available for the wider workforce on how to promote positive mental health and wellbeing.
Workplace Wellbeing Academy – Understanding and Promoting Wellbeing in your organisation
Designed with a focus on promoting e positive mental health in organisations and teams. It is ideal for employees and managers who have a broader responsibility in their organisations, such as Wellbeing Directors, Champions, Ambassadors etc.
The course explores the benefits and principles behind creating a positive wellbeing culture and comes with a comprehensive catalogue of evidence-based tools and techniques that have been shown to enhance wellbeing and to manage and mitigate psychological risks.
Participants also learn how to recognise when someone may be struggling and gives the a practical ‘road map’ for supportive conversations.
Key topics include:
- What does mental health and wellbeing really mean? The business case for taking care of your employees/teams and the risks of not.
- What makes a culture where everyone can thrive? Explore the elements of culture that, when done well, enhance employee wellbeing, but if done poorly can have a negative impact.
- Evidence based tools that have been shown to enhance wellbeing. Explore them and see how you can they form foundation of a sustainable wellbeing strategy.
- How to spot when someone might be struggling and provides a structure for the conversation that might follow using our “C.A.R.E model”.
- Managers and their responsibilities for managing staff with mental health issues.
Participants receive a 3-year licence to our online manual developed in partnership with Frog Systems. A comprehensive library of videos, podcasts, and fully curated resources covering all subjects related to wellbeing.
At the end of the course participants will understand the benefits and principles for promoting positive wellbeing in their organisations and have a toolkit of evidence-based actions that will help them create a culture where every employee can thrive.
Duration: 1 day (7 hours)
Maximum participants: 14
Delivery: Face-to-face or online
This course comes with a 3-year licence to our Ashia online wellbeing portal. A holistic streaming platform providing video-led content to help people take personal ownership of their wellbeing. Ashia makes finding the support you need simple and safe. Select a topic, or a channel, and Ashia automatically signposts you to the relevant support organisations, resources, apps and services, from its extensive libraries.
Workplace Wellbeing Academy – Wellbeing for Managers
Developed by subject matter experts in collaboration with industry this course delivers everything a manager needs to create an environment where their team can thrive and perform at their best.
Delivered in 8 sessions online, each 90-minute module covers a core topic and provides practical and proven tools for engaging and enhancing team morale and performance.
Part 1 – An introduction to mental health & wellbeing
Part 3 – Supportive conversations
Part 4A – Team culture
Part 4B – Creating a psychologically safe team
Part 5A – Understanding workplace stress
Part 5B – Managing workplace stress
Part 6 – Bringing it all together
Designed around manager’s busy lives, as the course builds so does the manager’s toolbox, helping both create a sustainable culture of care and to support their team and colleagues.
Participants also receive a 3-year licence to our online manual developed in partnership with Frog Systems. A comprehensive library of videos, podcasts, and fully curated resources covering all subjects related to wellbeing.
Duration: 8 x 90-minute sessions
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: Online
By the end of the course participants will have the knowledge and skills to enhance the wellbeing of their team, leading to increased performance. They will also be able to identify and support a team member who may be struggling with their mental health and wellbeing.
This course comes with a 3-year licence to our Ashia online wellbeing portal. A holistic streaming platform providing video-led content to help people take personal ownership of their wellbeing. Ashia makes finding the support you need simple and safe. Select a topic, or a channel, and Ashia automatically signposts you to the relevant support organisations, resources, apps and services, from its extensive libraries.
Mental Health First Aiders (England)
The new MHFA England Course was launched in 2022 and is designed to certify you as a Mental Health First Aider.
This comprehensive program equips you with:
- Extensive knowledge and understanding of mental health, including factors impacting wellbeing
- Practical skills to identify triggers and signs of mental health issues
- Confidence to engage, reassure, and support individuals in distress
- Enhanced interpersonal abilities, such as non-judgmental listening
- Strategies to aid in the recovery of someone’s mental health, guiding them towards additional support resources, whether through self-help methods, employer assistance, or NHS channels
Upon completion of the course and integration into the MHFA community, participants gain access to a range of member benefits, including:
- Ongoing learning and support from Mental Health First Aid England
- Attendance at online events hosted by MHFA England
- Utilization of the MHFA Support App, along with continuous support in their MHFAider role
Duration: 1.5 days (12 Hours)
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: Face-to-face or online
Mental Health First Aid (England) – 3-year refresher
The 4-hour MHFA Refresher course serves to bolster your MHF Aiders by:
- Practical skills to identify triggers and signs of mental health issues
- Renewing their proficiency in Mental Health First Aid
- Updating their knowledge regarding mental health supports
- Providing opportunities to practice implementing the Mental Health First Aid action plan
- Granting access to three years of MHF Aider support and benefits
Facilitating the refreshment of skills for your MHF Aiders, as with your physical first aiders, underscores your organisation’s dedication to parity between mental health and physical health.
Investing in this course ensures that your MHF Aiders remain motivated, empowered, and confident in executing their duties, thereby affording you the reassurance that they can effectively fulfil their responsibilities.
Duration: 4 hours
Maximum participants: 25
Delivery: Face-to-face or online
Building Trust in your Team – An Introduction to Psychological Safety
The ability to create a culture where everyone in the team can contribute and work together to deliver the best solution is a vital skill for any manager.
Psychological Safety cultivates a working culture free from fear and ego, a place where teams are more than the sum of their parts and seek to achieve success together. It creates an environment where people can speak up, make mistakes, question things, and raise concerns without humiliation or retribution.
This course:
- Introduces the concept of Psychological Safety
- Illustrates the principles on which it is based
- Highlights the research that shows why it is fundamental to team success
Duration: 90 minutes
Delivery: Online
By the end of the course participants will understand why psychological safety if fundamental to team performance and know where to look if the want to learn more.
Building Trust in your Team – Delivering Psychological Safety
Developing the principles on which psychological safety is based this course provides practical tools that managers can use to establish a thriving environment within their team.
Psychological safety is crucial for cultivating an environment where individuals feel comfortable expressing themselves, taking risks, and collaborating openly.
Based on extensive studies and research by subject matter experts this course includes:
- Recognising signs of psychologically unsafe environments
- Communication skills for creating safety
- The importance of team norms and how to develop them
- Embracing challenge
- Leadership and psychological safety
- Practical application and case studies
Duration: 4 hours or 3 x 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: 4 hours – Face-to-face or online
90-minute sessions – online
By the end of this course, participants will have a comprehensive understanding of psychological safety and a toolkit of practical skills. Attendees will leave with the confidence and know-how to cultivate an atmosphere that encourages collaboration, creativity, and overall wellbeing.
Delivered as a half day course or three 90-minute sessions.
Getting Comfortable with Conversations about Mental Health
Learning something new is hard, especially at the beginning when we’re likely to struggle and make mistakes. It is often the fear of making those mistakes that creates a barrier for people starting conversations about mental health and wellbeing. Getting good at something takes practice.
We can make these conversations a bit easier through a loose structure, or road map, that can move the conversation from those sometimes difficult opening words towards a conclusion that helps the individual we are concerned about.
This course:
- Provides an opportunity to discuss lived experience with the facilitator
- Introduces a road map for supportive conversations
- Allows learners to get comfortable talking about depression and mental illness
Limited to 8 participants to allow in depth engagement the tutor uses his own experience to guide participants through a supportive conversation to help build confidence. We also provide the opportunity for 1-2-1 practice for participants who might benefit from it.
Duration: 2 hours
Delivery: Face-to-face or online
At the end of the course participants will have a road map that can guide their supportive conversation and will be much more confident in approaching colleagues they may be concerned about.
Suicide and Self-Harm
Suicide and self-harm are very emotive subjects. Sadly, there are still myths about why people self-harm or choose to take their own life. The purpose of this course is to break through those myths and equip learners with approaches and responses to someone who may be thinking about taking their own lives or doing themselves serious harm.
This course:
- Reflects on attitudes toward suicide and self-harm
- Identifies suicide/self-harm indicators
- Highlights appropriate approaches and responses to someone that may be experiencing/expressing suicidal thoughts
- Identifies the help and support that is available to support those experiencing suicidal thoughts and feelings
Duration: 4 hours
Maximum participants: 12
Delivery: Face-to-face or online
At the end of the course participants will have the resources and confidence to talk openly about suicide and self-harm to help break down taboos about the subject and encourage people who may be struggling to seek support.
Bespoke courses
We are often approached to create bespoke training for clients, in order to meet specific learning outcomes. Our experts will support you to identify your particular training needs and design courses to meet them.
Leadership and Management Courses
Effective Leadership and good management are foundation stones to building effective teams. It is often said, “people do not leave bad jobs, they leave bad bosses”. At the Workplace Wellbeing Academy we believe that if we can support you on your leadership journey then we are building the right environment for positive mental health and wellbeing in teams.
These courses are designed to do just that.
Leadership
The first thing to understand about leadership is how it differs from management. Management is the art of getting things done, whilst leadership is about setting the direction for your team or organisation and identifying the things that need to be done to get there.
Using models that have been perfected over the years, this course sets out how to:
- Set a future vision for your team
- Engage and influence your team
- Establish systems and processes to support and monitor delivery
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: Online
At the end of the course participants will have gained a fundamental understanding of leadership versus management. With proven models, the course introduces participants to the ideas of envisioning future team goals, effectively engaging and influencing team members, and implementing supportive systems for goal attainment. This equips them to consider how they will steer teams towards success with clarity and purpose.
Workload Management
How in control of things are you? At work, at home, generally.
Many people have more work to do that will fit into their working week. They find themselves going from meeting to meeting, picking up actions, but never have time to do the work. Many managers have full time roles but are to somehow find time around the edges to manage people as well.
To quote one famous guru: “The way we are working isn’t working”.
This course:
- Explores the topic of Workload Management
- Explains why current approaches needs to change
- Explores how to work in harmony with both our brains and our bodies to find a better way
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: On-line
At the end of the course participants will have insight into effective workload management, recognising the common struggle of juggling tasks both at work and home. The course delves into why traditional approaches are inadequate and offers strategies for aligning work practices with natural rhythms to optimise productivity and well-being.
Clarity of Role in the Workplace
Lack of role clarity can cause stress and anxiety as employees are unclear on what is expected of them or how to deal with potential role conflicts.
This course:
- Demonstrates the importance of role clarity for individuals and teams
- Sets out how to provide clarity and provide role boundaries
- Provides a framework for ensuring flexibility that can sit alongside clarity
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: Online
At the end of the course participants will be clear on why clarity matters, how it impacts on individual performance, team dynamics and wellbeing. They will leave with practical steps which they can implement immediately to have a positive impact with their teams.
Change Management for Managers
Organisations are effecting change all the time; from innovations, cost savings, implementing processes and more – whatever your reason for creating change by following some well tested principles such as clarity of vision, understanding the potential impact on individuals and providing support, and clear communication, the process can be successful.
This course:
- Provides a manager’s perspective on managing change
- Explains the psychological processes of change, from resistance, to ‘letting go’ to adapting to the change
- Illustrates some of the basic principles of change management to increase the likelihood of success
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: On-line
At the end of the course participants will have gained valuable insights into managing organisational change effectively. The course offers a manager’s perspective, delving into psychological processes such as resistance and adaptation. By illustrating fundamental change management principles, participants will be able to approach change with clarity, empathy, and strategic communication for greater success.
Management 101
As we build our careers many of us find ourselves taking on the responsibility of managing a team. This module is intended to be an introduction to some on the principles of good management as a foundation for new managers and can be built up with future personal development.
This course:
- Illustrates the importance of supporting your team
- Highlights the value of and why one to one target setting, and performance appraisal conversations are key to success
- Teaches the art of delegation, in a way that supports your team member and enables them to succeed as well as you.
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: Online
At the end of the course participants will have a foundational knowledge in individual and effective team management through this introductory module. They will walk away with practical tools that they will be able to immediately use to improve their management practice and therefore the effectiveness of their teams.
Autonomy and Control
Enabling team members to have an appropriate level of autonomy and control in their work increases feelings of ownership and loyalty, improves productivity, reduces overheads, promotes job satisfaction and improves the potential for team adaptability.
It also gives managers time and space to focus on their role as a manager, rather than becoming too involved in the work itself.
This course:
- Demonstrates the importance of allowing team members a level of autonomy and control
- Shows how to do this is a way that minimises risk
- Illustrates the benefits of such approaches
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: On-line
At the end of the course participants will have discovered the benefits of granting team members autonomy and control in their work. They will leave with strategies for implementing autonomy while mitigating risks.
Recognition and Reward
Recognition and reward are not just about money. They are about recognising the individual and team effort. Rewarding performance and identifying what encourages your people to develop and grow.
For some it may be a public ‘thank-you’ for others it might be opportunities to take on new responsibilities or challenges.
The workshop will particularly appeal to leaders who wish to understand how to motivate their teams and retain team members.
This course:
- Explains the difference between recognition and reward
- Describes the value of both for staff motivation and retention
- Highlights different methods to recognise good work and reward
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: On-line
At the end of the course participants will have gained insight into the nuances between recognition and reward in staff motivation and retention. The course elucidates the value of both, emphasizing various methods to acknowledge good work and incentivise growth. Ideal for leaders seeking to understand effective strategies for motivating teams and fostering employee retention in diverse workplace settings.
Personal Development Courses
Personal Development
Many of us find ourselves as busy as we have ever been at work, and that this situation at home is the same. Finding time and space to focus on ourselves, our skills and our career can perhaps seem impossible.
The trouble is, if we don’t, then our progress and development may be restricted. Whilst some of us might be lucky enough to have excellent leaders and mentors to support us, in the end our personal development is our own responsibility.
This course:
- Explains the importance of prioritising and finding the time for this subject
- Shows you how to create a development plan that works for you.
- Illustrates the importance of establishing a team that will help us to progress and support us when we need
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: On-line
At the end of the course participants will be able to see the value of prioritising personal development amidst busy work and home lives. They will leave with practical tools which will enable them to identify development areas, plan activities to fill these gaps and establish a support network which will help them to grow.
Change Management for Team Members
It has been said that we are now in a period of constant change and that this may never stop. You might find yourself having to deal with technological change, political change, organisation change. Whatever the change is, it can have a large effect on us.
This course:
- Looks at the ways that change impacts our feelings of well-being and control
- Explains why we have these feelings
- Offers some real-world strategies on how we can prepare and cope
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: Online
At the end of the course participants will have gained an insighted into the profound effects of constant change on well-being and perceived control. They will leave with practical, real-world tools to navigate change effectively, promoting resilience and adaptability.
Staying in Control in Difficult Times
How in control of things are you: at work, at home, generally? The last few years has seen us through a period of serious change, and it seem as unlikely that things will calm down any time soon.
Our ability to cope with this and to exert some control, where we can, matters in terms of our productivity, our management competence and our own wellbeing.
This course:
- Helps to explain a little about how our brains work and why we feel out of control
- Offers techniques to review our situation and take back control, both proactively and in the moment
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: Online
At the end of the course participants will have gained insights into how to manage feelings of being out of control. They will leave with strategies which they can immediately implement to focus their efforts on what they can control and influence to improve their performance and wellbeing.
Imposter Syndrome
A term created in the 1960’s this was a concept originally thought to mainly effect women. Since then, much more research has been undertake that this is a condition that impacts the daily lives of both genders and all ages.
This course:
- Investigates the concept and where it came from
- Identifies who it effects and how
- Offers practical tips to deal with these feelings both before and when they happen
Duration: 90 minutes
Maximum participants: 16
Delivery: Online
At the end of the course participants will have a grounding in the topic. The course delves into its origins, effects, and provides practical strategies for managing these feelings effectively both pre-emptively and in real-time situations.
Get in touch
If you would like to know more about any of these courses, or how we can support you in identifying key training needs to support workplace mental health and wellbeing