Mental Health Champion
Rationale
This document explains the role of a Mental Health Champion at Infinity Works and helps you to understand what is expected of you when performing the role.
Background
A workplace Mental Health Champion is an employee or volunteer who takes action to raise awareness of mental health problems in the workplace. They are encouraged to support and challenge the way people think and act about mental health.
Champions are there to raise awareness of mental health and help break down this stigma in the workplace. They encourage colleagues to feel comfortable with expressing their feelings or opinions within a secure and safe environment.
We will provide our Mental Health Champions with appropriate support, including a quarterly meet up to share thoughts and improvement ideas.
What are the key relationships?
- Mental Health Champions meet regularly to exchange ideas and plan events.
- You will be a champion for mental health for the whole of Infinity Works and could be contacted in that capacity by any employee.
- You may have an ongoing supportive role with an employee to help them access resources and talk things through.
Responsibilities
Core Skills
The role of a Mental Health Champion is open to everyone at Infinity Works. However, carrying out the role will support the development of your Infinity Works core skills.
Information sharing
- Be a named point of contact for Infinity Works colleagues who would value support in managing their mental health.
- Highlight and signpost Infinity Works colleagues to various sources of support that are available both internally and externally.
- Organise activities that promote mental health wellness.
- Ensure any relevant activities and resources are shared internally.
Share your thoughts
- Involvement in cross-company initiatives, collaborating with other Mental Health Champions.
Behaviours
- Passionate about finding ways to positively and constructively challenge the stigma that is sometimes associated with mental health.
- Promote a greater understanding of wellbeing at work.
- Motivated to improve your colleagues' understanding of and attitudes towards mental health.
- Approachable, willing to support and actively available.
- Are aware of the sensitivity of this area of people's wellbeing and understand the need for complete confidentiality.
- Be present to help guide the person in distress to the relevant help that they need.
- Promote a greater understanding of mental health and help build a mentally healthy workplace.
- Are not trained, medical professionals. Champions will actively listen and support others by signposting them in the right direction.
- Highlight and signpost Infinity Works colleagues to various sources of support that are available, both internally and externally, and recognise that your role as a Mental Health Champion does not replace the need for ongoing support.
- Participate in the mental health and wellbeing community with other Mental Health Champions to create a peer support group.
- Keeping yourself safe and well and being able to discuss your mental health with other Mental Health Champions in a confidential space.
- Other people's mental health is their responsibility, not yours. The role of a Mental Health Champion is to support people and signpost them to someone they can talk to in a safe environment.
- Actively listen and do not judge or put your own opinion on others. Instead, offer suggestions to support.
- Establish appropriate boundaries between yourself and colleagues you may be supporting.
- When encouraging professional help, work with the person to discover what professional support might be available to them locally. The support available to a remote worker might differ as their place of work is different.
- Talk to the remote worker to find out what other supports are available to them. Share guidance about how to support mental health when working from home.
- Be mindful of remaining objective and keeping your other roles separate when acting as a Mental Health Champion (as much as possible).