Mental wellbeing

 

bringing together the diverse resources around the School that support mental wellbeing for staff

Life can bring unexpected challenges over time, and mental and emotional health is no exception. Whether it is a small blip or a long term experience, it's important we all recognise the importance of the mental and emotional wellbeing of ourselves and those around us. Recognising that living with, or supporting someone with a mental health concerns or conditions isn't always straightforward, increases self awareness, that in turn can benefit others. This page aims to bring together the diverse resources around the School that support mental wellbeing for staff. 

Meet LSE's Staff Counselling team

The School has an in-house counselling team for staff that allows you to discuss a problem or situation that is causing concern or distress that is taking place at work or home.

The counselling at LSE is fully inclusive where individuals should feel comfortable approaching staff counsellors regardless of age, sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, and religious faith. 

The counselling team also run personal development workshops that can help to overcome barriers and work towards better wellbeing.

Why not go on to the training booking system to reserve a space on one of the great workshops, such as:

  • Developing emotional resistance
  • Overcoming procrastination
  • Mindfulness and stress reduction
  • Sleep well

Places can be booked through the LSE training system.

Also, take a moment to look at all Staff Counselling Services for more details about their services and resources.

Access confidential telephone counselling with the EAP

Confidential telephone counselling is available for all staff courtesy of the Employee Assistance Programme). The EAP aims to provide staff with access to confidential support on aspects of wellbeing, including counselling, health information, legal advice and more.

You can contact the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)* by calling 0800 107 6147 (quoting LSE as the name of your employer) or access the online portal by visiting www.colleaguesupport.co.uk (entering code 206011 as your username and password).

There's no limit to the number of calls you can make and your anonymity is assured at all times. 

*Provided by BHSF Employee Benefits Limited in association with The Employee Resilience Company Ltd

Report an incident through our Safe Contacts or 'Report It. Stop It'

Violence and harassment of any kind has no place at LSE - we all have a responsibility to treat others with respect and dignity, working together to build a safe and welcoming institution for everyone at LSE. 

If you have experienced, or witnessed, any form of sexual violence, bullying or harassment, and you want to report this to LSE, you can do this in two different ways. 

1. You can first speak to a Safe Contact who will be able to offer further information and support to help you decide if you would like to report your experience to LSE. 

2. You can also report to LSE directly by using the online form Report it Stop it. This report can be completely anonymous. You can also choose to share your name and some brief contact details, if you want someone from LSE to contact you. 

Find out more on our How to report an incident page.

Develop your mindfulness with the 10 Minute Mind

With the 10 Minute Mind, just 10 minutes a day can help you to learn how to decrease your stress levels and increase your focus and happiness levels. Subscription is completely free and only takes a minute to do - just visit www.the10minutemind.com/lse

We'd love to hear your feedback, which you can share by contacting the wellbeing team staffwellbeing@lse.ac.uk

Access the Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Network

As part of the School's commitment to supporting mental and emotional wellbeing, a network of over 200 colleagues have been trained as Mental Health First Aiders so that they can: 

  • Use Mental Health First Aid to support someone experiencing a mental health issue or crisis
  • Listen non-judgementally and have supportive conversations
  • Signpost colleagues to professional help

In addition, the School has a number of Mental Health Staff Champions - these are colleagues who take action in the workplace to change the ways in which we all think and act about mental health. Take a look at the webpage to see who your Champions are and how you can get in touch to talk about mental health and wellbeing. 

At the time of writing, the Mental Health First Aiders Network is in the process of being reviewed and refreshed - if you'd like to be involved, keep an eye out for announcements about future training dates! 

Support your wellbeing with the Mind - Mental Health Awareness Module

The School has introduced an online Mental Health Awareness at Work module (offered by the national charity Mind) to support staff returning to campus. The module includes areas such as tips for self-care and building resilience, alongside understanding mental health problems and raising awareness of wellbeing in the workplace.

Just click here to access the module, which should take about 50 minutes to complete.

How to improve your mental health awareness

Mental health awareness for managers                  

The Staff Counselling Service joined forces with LSE Health and Safety to deliver a pilot one day Mental Health awareness course for managers. The slides used by the Counsellors and by the Head of Health and Safety are available, as well as a revised Stress Risk Assessment form. You require an LSE log-in to access these documents.  

Mental Health First Aid Training                  

Managers and other staff can attend a two-day nationally approved course for those without specialist mental health training, but who might encounter mental health issues in the course of their work. It aims to:                  

  • promote awareness of mental health issues
  • train non-professionals to recognise those affected by mental health problems
  • offer help and guidance towards obtaining professional support                    

On completing the course, participants should:

  • understand the symptoms and risk factors relating to common mental health issues
  • where appropriate, be able to offer "crisis first aid" safely and confidently to someone suffering from mental health difficulties
  • have a working knowledge of the treatment and resources available in order to direct people to the appropriate local or national services                    

Places can be booked through the LSE Training System.                  

Managers' guide to mental health issues                  

A practical guide to managing and supporting mental health problems in the workplace

Student mental health and wellbeing (online staff training)

A new online interactive training session will help you to identify when a student might need support, know how best to listen and respond to a student, as well as how to arrange support and get urgent help in a serious situation.

Please click here for more details and how to access the training session. 

Tips on managing stress

Stress management: resources for staff

10 stress busters (NHS)

Get help with stress (NHS)

 

Stress management: guidance for managers                  

The resources developed by the Health and Safety Executive also include a practical guide to managing and supporting people with mental health problems in the workplace.            

Self-assessment tool for managers: managing workplace stress                  

The Health and Safety Executive in conjunction with the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has produced a self-assessment Line Manager Competency Indicator Tool for managers to help them reflect on their management style to assess how their behaviour helps to manage workplace stress.       

Mental Health Skills Training for Managers

Training sessions for managers were previously run during Summer Term 2022, delivered by Mental Health First Aid England

The School is currently exploring dates for future sessions as part of expanding mental health awareness. 

Apply for financial help through the LSE Benevolent Fund

We understand that financial challenges can often have implications for mental wellbeing. LSE’s Benevolent Fund is a reserve of money dedicated to helping staff who are experiencing significant financial hardship and distress. For full details, including how to apply to the Fund, please see the webpage

Sign up to a wellbeing webinar

Why not sign up to a webinar specially designed to develop your resilience? Learn more about the concept of resilience, explore potential obstacles to improve resilience, and understand how you can respond to challenges effectively. Just click here to see what dates are available and to sign up. 

Use the tools in the Wellness Toolkit

The Wellness Toolkit, which was developed and launched in 2023, includes practical resources that can help individuals to address and manage their mental wellbeing. This includes Wellness Action Plans that can be used to identify and record everyday actions to address minor wellbeing issues, as well as a detailed section on stress identification and management (completed by a template for undertaking stress risk assessments). Staff and managers are encouraged to explore the Toolkit; we'd also welcome your feedback about the contents at Staffwellbeing@lse.ac.uk.

Useful external links

You may find these external links useful: 

  • The Access to Work Mental Health Support Service is a confidential service which is funded by the Department for Work and Pensions. This is a free service for any employees with depression, anxiety, stress or other mental health issues affecting their work. Please visit the webpage for more details.
  • We are Rethink Mental Illness provides information on mental health services by local area across the UK, as well as many other online resources. 
  • Your Mind Plan: just answer 5 quick questions in this interactive quiz and get top tips and advice tailored to you. 

 

We are continuing to develop this page in line with the needs of the School community. As always, please do get in touch at Staffwellbeing@lse.ac.uk if you have any questions about what is covered here, or if you would like to suggest anything else which the School could potentially introduce.