Leaders' and Managers' Mental Health and Stress Toolkit

The University of Exeter is committed to creating a positive work environment that promotes mental wellbeing, allowing colleagues to thrive at work and fulfil their potential. Each and every member of staff has a role to play in this. As a line-manager, your responsibilities are outlined in the University’s Managing Mental Health and Stress Standard.

This evidence-based toolkit is designed to help you in your line-manager role to proactively support the mental wellbeing of your team and respond to mental health difficulties experienced by individuals.

Complementing this toolkit, an online training module is available called Supporting the Mental Wellbeing of your Team, which is highly recommended for all those with line management or other leadership responsibilities (i.e. all at band G or above).

Proactively Manage Wellbeing at Work

Respond to Colleague Stress

Workplace Pressures Risk Assessments

Support with Long-term Mental Health Conditions

Managing Sickness Absence and the Return to Work

Supporting yourself and your team through change

Additional resources

Supporting the Mental Wellbeing of your Team - online training module

This online training module was developed by academic experts in psychology from the University as well as our Occupational Health specialists. For more information on the module, and to read feedback from colleagues who have completed it see: Supporting the Mental Wellbeing of your Team.

All staff can self-enrol on this training via LearnUpon. To access the catalogue of courses and self-enrol click on the ‘Dashboard’ tab in the top left corner of your LearnUpon home page. Scroll through the courses until you find the module (or use the search function), click on the green ‘enrol’ button on the right hand side. The course will now appear on your dashboard.

HSE's Stress Management Competency Tool

The HSE's Stress Management Competency Tool is an evidence-based tool to help line-managers assess whether they are adopting behaviours found to be effective in the prevention or reduction of stress at work.

Useful Resources for Leaders and Managers

CalmZone - Campaign Against Living Miserably is a suicide prevention charity

D

Domestic Abuse Support

E

Protected Characteristics (Equality and Human Rights Commission)

F

Mental health Facts and statistics (MIND)

G

Good Work – The Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices

Guide for Line Managers: Wellness Action Plans (WAPS) (MIND)

H

HR Advisors/Business Partners

I

Mental health and employers | Refreshing the case for Investment (Deloitte)

L

Learning & Development

Line Manager Competency Indicator Tool (PDF) (HSE)

M

Management referral to Occupational Health

Managing Mental Health & Stress Standard University of Exeter

Managing sickness absence code of practice

Mental health and employers | Refreshing the case for investment (Deloitte)

Mental health facts and statistics (MIND)

Types of Mental health problems (MIND)

O

Management referral to Occupational Health

P

Protected Characteristics (Equality and Human Rights Commission)

R

WPRA - Workplace Pressures Risk Assessment tools University of Exeter

S

Self-help Guides - Devon Partnership Trust (NHS)

Spectrum Life University's Employee Assistance Programme (including counselling service)

Signs of stress? (MIND)

Mental health facts and Statistics (MIND)

Managing Mental Health & Stress Standard University of Exeter

Work-related Stress webpages (HSE)

University of Exeter Strategy 2030 (.pdf)

Stress Indicator Tool (SIT) is an online survey tool that teams can use to help identify workplace stressors and improvements

Suicide - awareness and support

Suicide awareness training

Support and Report

Supporting the Mental Wellbeing of your Team - online training

T

Tackling Work-Related Stress Using the Management Standards Approach (HSE)

Talking Toolkit (HSE)

Good Work – The Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices

Thriving at Work Guide - How to Implement the Thriving at Work Standards in Your Workplace (full report below)

Thriving at Work Review Farmer-Stevenson review of mental health and employers (implementation guide above)

Training, Learning and Development pages including A-Z of courses

Types of mental health problems (MIND)

U

Understanding Job Burnout (video) Dr. Christina Maslach, Prof. of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley

W

Colleague Wellbeing

Guide for Line Managers: Wellness Action Plans (WAPS) (MIND)

Wellbeing Conversations: Professor Barney Dunn, Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Exeter, has created a series of videos demonstrating conversations between a line manager and a member of his team who is seeking guidance and support. (Please note that the videos are role play only but draw from real experiences.)

Video 1 - Setting up wellbeing as part of every line management meeting

Video 2 - Exploring stress and signposting

Video 3 - Reasonable adjustments

Video 4 - Reviewing progress and the next steps on the journey

7-minute Q&A by Michael West (video)

Longer talk by Michael West (video)

Working From Home Wellness Action Plan (MIND)

Working with Disability (Occupational Health)

Work-related stress webpages (HSE)

Tackling Work-Related Stress Using the Management Standards Approach (HSE)

WPRA - Workplace Pressures Risk Assessment tools University of Exeter