Workforce Requirements
Mental Health First Aid Training in the Workplace UK
Whether you already have Mental Health First Aid trainer in your organisation or are still considering it, please read below the benefits and information on how it can support the workforce.
Mental Health First Aid is a key component for creating a safe, healthy workplace where the mental health and physical health of employees are valued equally. It gives people the tools to support their own mental health and that of their colleagues and encourages them to access timely support when needed. But to be effective and have a sustainable impact, the training needs to be implemented as part of a strategic, whole organisation approach to wellbeing.
Every workplace is unique so we encourage you to identify the best ways to apply these in your organisation.
How healthy is your workplace now?
Understanding where you and your workplace is will inform your strategy or approach and how you communicate it to the organisation. If you are new to talking about mental health in the workplace, we recommend you gradually introduce the topic to the organisation, sensitising and raising awareness, before engaging with Mental Health First Aid Training.
What is your strategy?
Create a wellbeing strategy which centres around the whole person and promote this to staff. Our Mental Health Advisors at Elixir Education and Training can support the development of a strategy. Mental health is one element of wellbeing alongside others such as physical, financial and emotional wellbeing, which are all connected in a whole person approach.
The Thriving at Work report sets out six ‘mental health core standards’ – a set of actions for employers to support mental health. You can use these to build the mental health element of your wellbeing strategy:
- Produce, implement and communicate a mental health at work plan
- Develop mental health awareness among employees
- Encourage open conversations about mental health and the support available when employees are struggling
- Provide your employees with good working conditions
- Promote effective people management
- Routinely monitor employee mental health and wellbeing.
How many Mental Health First Aiders do you need?
Legislation for Mental Health First Aid provision in the workplace is not yet in place. The Health and Safety Executive says: “You should consider ways to manage mental ill health in your workplace which are appropriate for your business, such as providing information or training for managers and employees, employing occupational health professionals, appointing mental health trained first aiders and implementing employee support programmes.”
To demonstrate that your organisation views mental health as equally important to physical health, we recommend that you consider your organisation structure and the demands on the workforce. For some organisations it may be worthwhile aiming to have as many Mental Health First Aiders as physical first aiders. For multisite organisations it is important that there is always a Mental Health First Aider available to support employees at each location. Many organisations begin by piloting Mental Health First Aiders in one area of the business to establish what works for them before rolling it out more widely.
Evident from the HSE report is the importance of treating mental health in the workplace as you would any other first aid requirement within your organisation, and planning the training you require accordingly. Whilst 75 per cent of organisations currently offer mental health support, research from Benendon Health showed only a third of UK workers are aware of workplace support in place. The numbers support guidance introduced by the HSE earlier this year, which encourages organisations to include mental health considerations within their first aid needs assessments, to identify additional training requirements.
Cost to the Economy
In 2024, mental health was the 5th most common reason given for sickness absence, accounting for 7.9% of occurrence.
Mental ill health is now the most common cause of work-limiting conditions among those aged 44 years and younger.
Over the past decade, the number of workers aged 16–34 years who reported that their mental health limits the type or amount of work they can do has more than quadrupled.
Working conditions and environment can also have a significant impact on mental health
In 2023/24, there were an estimated 875,000 workers suffering from work-related stress, depression or anxiety, resulting in 17.1 million working days lost.
Poor mental wellbeing costs employers in the UK an estimated £42 billion to £45 billion annually through presenteeism, sickness absence and staff turnover.
Recent research finds that, on average, there is a positive return on investment of around £5 for every £1 invested in mental health interventions in the workplace.
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