“Most people now accept and realise that good mental health is just as relevant and important as physical health,” says Nick Hurley, our CAPability and Mental Health Partner. “It may be invisible to the outside world but it can be as debilitating and serious as any physical ailment.”

With this in mind, we set out to expand our ongoing wellbeing activities, including organising a four-week programme of opportunities to be more closely connected, take better care of ourselves and create a safe space to share our concerns. Wellbeing Month focused on mental wellbeing, but also incorporated a wide range of events, activities and resources to support better physical, spiritual, social and financial wellbeing.

One popular habit-forming initiative was the ‘Walk a Mile a Day’ for a month, bringing benefits to their health and raising money for the Charles Russell Speechlys Foundation and its partner charities.

Khulisa, a Foundation partner charity, played an important role during Wellbeing Month, providing training to 65 staff and Partners on developing resilience in their personal and professional lives.

The theme of Mental Health Awareness Week this year was nature. On one notable evening, staff were virtually transported to Costa Rica for a live-streamed wildlife drawing session. The event offered employees the opportunity to reconnect with art and travel and provided a welcome break from day-to-day stresses.

Innovative technology also played its part during the week. Through our Webex Wheel of Connections we recreated the informal office chats that help us find new friends across the Firm and welcome new colleagues. We also launched a new employee wellbeing app that provides easy access to resources to help us sleep, eat and breathe better.