News: Mind your own business in Rotherham

The latest round of grants for Rotherham businesses to promote staff wellbeing is underway.

NHS Rotherham's Employee Wellbeing Small Grants Scheme provides grants of up to £300 to employers who wish to undertake innovative new activity to promote staff wellbeing as stress and mental health problems rise as more people struggle to deal with the effects of the economic crisis.

Rotherham based small to medium sized enterprises with fewer than 250 staff can utilise the fund for sustainable activities that focus on engaging employees in improving their workplace and encouraging people to be more physically active and eat more healthy.

Other initiatives could focus on promoting stress management skills and self help techniques and tackling stigma relating to mental illness or distress.

Mind Your Own Business is a mental health and employment project run by NHS Rotherham which helps employers to support members of their workforce who may have mental health problems.

The deepening recession means more workers are suffering from stress and fear of redundancy, says Health Promotion Specialist Jess Wilson, who is leading the project.

Jess said: "The effects that the economic downturn might be having on employees in terms of fear of redundancy or worries about partners or family members being laid off is quite serious."

"Mind Your Own Business can offer support and training for employers to deal with these issues"

"It's all about increasing employers' awareness of mental health in the workplace, giving them advice and support on best practice and preventing problems before they start."

NHS Rotherham website
Rotherham