Events and news
Here you'll find information on our upcoming events, links to recordings of past sessions, and news related to the Thrive at Work programme.
You can get in touch with the Thrive at Work team for more information at thriveatwork@wmca.org.uk
Upcoming events
Mental Health Support in the Workplace - Access to Work
Date: Tuesday 28th January 2025
Time: 10:00 - 10:45 AM
Location: Online (MS Teams)
January can be a challenging month for some, where mental health challenges are exacerbated, this session will provide information on how organisations can support mental health in the workplace. We're delighted to share that Clive Thomas from Maximus will run this short session on: What support is available through Access to Work Mental Health Support Service.
Join us to learn more about The Access to Work Mental Health Support Service with Clive Thomas from Maximus.
The Access to Work Mental Health Support Service is available at no cost, to help employees stay in work. This service is quick and easy to access, and offers advice on workplace adjustments, wellbeing support and coping strategies for SME's.
This session will include a 30-minute presentation and a 15-minute Q & A section.
If you have any questions that you would like answering during the event please email them to: ThriveAtWork@wmca.org.uk
Past events
The Wellbeing Project recordings
Understanding more about Loneliness
With longer, darker winter evenings and the approaching festive season, this time of year can highlight and even worsen feelings of loneliness for many people, so this December we were glad to be joined by Paul Kelly from the Marmalade Trust, who in this 30-minute session opened up the conversation on loneliness, helping your organisation to better understand this topic and to better support your employees this winter and beyond.
By raising awareness of loneliness within your organisation with this webinar, we hope to help you:
- understand what loneliness is,
- understand how you can support your employees
- and ultimately help to reduce feelings of loneliness in the workplace.
Marmalade Trust is a leading loneliness charity for all ages, dedicated to raising awareness of loneliness and empowering people to make connections. As experts in their field, they are passionate about sharing their knowledge to help others.
Watch the recording of the webinar below:
Boost Employee Financial Wellbeing
In this session Citysave Credit Union Ltd shared knowledge, skills, and resources to better support financial wellbeing in your workplace and provided practical solutions for reducing financial stress as the holiday season approaches.
In the session they covered:
- Some of the data surrounding this topic
- Strategies for managing Christmas financial stress
- Practical tips employees can use to improve their own financial wellbeing
- How employers can provide meaningful assistance
Watch the recording of the webinar below:
Make a Difference: The Impact of Employee Volunteering with Re-engage
In this session Re-engage introduced the loneliness crisis, explained the impact of volunteering, and shared an opportunity for your organisation to volunteer over the festive season to help spread joy to an older person and reduce loneliness with just a few phone calls.
What You’ll Learn:
- The impact of employee volunteering
- The loneliness crisis people face at Christmas
- How Re-engage’s Christmas Call Companion service combats isolation
- Inform and inspire your organisational employee volunteering activity
- Simple steps for your employees to sign up and make a meaningful impact in just a few hours
Watch the recording of the webinar below:
Menopause in the Workplace with Henpicked
Ahead of World Menopause Day, this webinar provided an introduction to Menopause Awareness within the workplace.
We were thrilled that Julie Glyn-Jones from Henpicked Menopause in the Workplace returned to run this short session, covering:
- Why we all need to talk about menopause at work
- Some practical suggestions in how to put the right support in place
- How can becoming a Menopause Friendly Employer save you money
Watch the recording of this webinar below:
Pregnancy Loss and the Workplace with The Vilomah Foundation
We were pleased to host this webinar during Baby Loss Awareness Week, and glad to be joined by Catherine MacLennan from The Vilomah Foundation who will led this introductory session covering themes including:
- how pregnancy loss and pregnancy after loss impacts performance, absence, retention and morale
- good practice around returning to work following a pregnancy loss
- good practice around supporting employees who are pregnant after loss
- how to communicate effectively and compassionately with someone who has experienced pregnancy loss
- the importance of creating a supportive workplace for all employees
Watch the recording of this webinar below:
Drug and Alcohol Misuse Awareness with Change Grow Live
We were pleased to host this webinar discussing drug and alcohol misuse awareness within the workplace led by Manbir Rai from Change Grow Live, covering topics such as:
- the guidance available on alcohol, opiate and non-opioids
- 'how to' interventions that are practical and compassionate for employees within the workplace
- empowering both employees and employers to confidently initiate open and supportive discussions
- practical ideas to benefit your business and a better understanding of the subject overall
- what support is available within the West Midlands region
Recording coming soon...
Making and Breaking Eating Habits in the Workplace with Sarah Grant from Gut Reaction
Registered Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and Intuitive Eating Counsellor, Sarah Grant, led this session exploring the potential for sustainable eating habit change within the workplace, covering:
- How eating patterns can affect employee's health, energy, mood and performance at work.
- The science behind effective habit change when it comes to food and eating.
- Why focusing on 'healthy eating' in the workplace can be difficult.
- A fresh perspective on how businesses can approach this topic effectively.
- Common barriers to eating well in the working day and potential solutions that enable and empower employees.
You will take away practical ideas and resources to benefit your business.
Watch the recording of this webinar below:
Carers in the Workplace
Combining work and caring responsibilities can be difficult and isolating for a working carer, find out how your workplace can support them.
This session was delivered by Gabrielle Borro, Coventry City Council (Joint Carers and Engagement Lead) and Anna Luczyna, Carers Trust (Working Carers Development Officer), and covered:
- An overview of the Carers Trust Heart of England – our local Carers Services and legislation update.
- Identifying carers in the workplace and what a caring journey might look like.
- Creating a caring culture, how can we support carers in the workplace and look at best practice.
- What are the local authorities’ duties towards carers (Care Act 2014) and new legislation (Carer's Leave Act 2023).
- An overview of services provided by Carers Trust Heart of England, what a Carers Assessment is and who is entitled to one.
- How can you develop your approach towards carers – Including a toolkit with resources.
Watch the recording of this webinar below:
Musculoskeletal (MSK) Health with Posturite
Posturite is the UK's leading specialist in ergonomic office furniture, supporting over 4,500 businesses and organisations. Posturite believes that hybrid working is a real opportunity to make headway to support good health and wellbeing at work.
Katharine from Posturite lead this session, covering:
- Taking a holistic approach to supporting MSK Health; it is not just about applying Display Screen Equipment 'DSE' regulations
- How to improve engagement, productivity and wellbeing.
- How hybrid working has impacted computer set-up and use.
- The positive and negative effects on peoples’ health, and potentially on their productivity.
- A recap on the essentials of computer set-up and use.
Watch the recording of this webinar below:
Unlocking Apprenticeship Opportunities
Thrive at Work was pleased to host this 30-minute session during National Apprenticeship Week, informing you on how to source, fund, and work with your apprentices to develop a workforce with future ready skills.
David Tomalin from West Midlands Combined Authority and Sian Roberts from Black Country Chamber of Commerce lead this session, covering:
- Navigating Apprenticeship Basics:
Understand apprenticeships and how they work. - Finding Support for Recruitment:
Discovering resources and avenues for recruiting apprentices. - Tailoring Apprenticeships to Your Needs:
Understanding how apprenticeships can align with your organization's requirements. - How easy is it to hire an Apprentice:
Sian Roberts from the Black Country Chamber of Commerce shares their experience - Q&A Session:
Your Path to Apprentice Recruitment Support
Watch the recording of this webinar below:
Grief in the Workplace with Cruse Bereavement Support
We were pleased to host this 1 hour session during National Grief Awareness Week to inform how you manage bereavement in the workplace and how your response can have a positive impact on employee wellbeing.
Alison Winter from Cruse Bereavement Support lead this session, covering:
- how grief impacts performance, absence, retention and morale
- good practice around returning to work following a bereavement
- how to communicate effectively and compassionately with someone who is grieving
- the importance of creating a supportive workplace for all employees
The session included a 45-minute presentation and a 15-minute Q&A session.
Watch the recording of this webinar, below:
Henpicked: Menopause in the Workplace
Following our introductory webinar earlier in the year, we were pleased to be back on World Menopause Day to host a follow-up 30 minute session providing a more in-depth look at Menopause Awareness within the Workplace.
We were thrilled that Julie Glyn-Jones from Henpicked Menopause in the Workplace returned to run this short session on:
- How can we start the conversations around Menopause Awareness in the workplace
- Some practical suggestions in how to put the right support in place
- How can becoming a Menopause Friendly Employer save you money?
The session included a 20-minute presentation and a 10-minute Q&A session.
Watch the recording of this webinar, below:
Mastering Microsoft Teams: Infuse Kindness & Resilience into Your Culture
Thrive at Work partnered with Microsoft to introduce a wide range of wellbeing and productivity insights within Microsoft Teams.
You are invited to join Ryan Fraser, Workplace Solutions Specialist at Microsoft for an informal educational session on enhancing wellbeing using Microsoft Teams.
Watch the recording of this webinar, below:
Pension Power-Up: Unlocking the Financial Future of Your Employees
Rewatch our insightful webinar from Bravo Benefits and delve into the world of pensions, where you'll gain valuable knowledge and actionable strategies. Learn how to maximize the benefits of your company pension scheme and empower your employees to secure their financial future.
Watch the recording of this webinar, below:
Disability in the Workplace - The hidden talent pool
The hidden talent pool: why businesses are ignoring disabled employees. Why are 75% of businesses globally experiencing a talent shortage while 47% of disabled people in the UK are unemployed? That’s over 10% of the working-age population. Disabled people are an untapped talent pool, often ignored by EDI strategies. The disability employment gap is growing, currently at 29.8%, and businesses need to do more to support disabled colleagues present and future. During this webinar, Alice Hargreaves, COO and Co-Founder of SIC covered:
- Disability in the here and now
- The language of disability
- Societal bias
- How to appeal to disabled talent
- How to retain disabled employees
- The next steps to becoming an ally
Watch the recording of this webinar, below:
Menopause Awareness in the Workplace
This 30-minute session provides an introduction to Menopause Awareness within the workplace, Julie Glyn-Jones from Henpicked Menopause in the Workplace ran a short introduction session on:
- Why we all need to talk about menopause at work
- What the menopause is and how someone could be affected by it
- Key ways of managing menopause
The session included a 20-minute presentation and a 10-minute Q&A session.
Watch the recording of this webinar, below:
No jab, no job? Let's talk about COVID-19 vaccines and company policies
On Thursday 29th April, Thrive at Work hosted a 'No jab, no job? Let's talk about COVID-19 vaccines and company policies' webinar. During this webinar, the latest positions on Employers looking to introduce vaccination and/or testing policies into their organisations in response to Covid-19 were discussed and some of the best practice tips for developing, consulting, and introducing relevant policies and procedures were looked at as well as the risks and points for considerations upon implementation.
Watch the recording of this webinar, below:
Suicide: Let's talk about prevention
Every ninety minutes someone in the UK ends their own life. Many of these people are not known to the health services and have kept their struggles hidden from friends and family. Employers can play a crucial role when a person reaches a place of personal internal crisis. On 4th March 2021, we hosted a Q&A webinar with a panel of experts where they discussed:
- How to spot signs that someone is at risk
- Tips and best practice to prevent situations from escalating
- An understanding of what safeguarding is and how and when to use it
- Does UK-GDPR prevent an employer from assisting at a time of crisis
- The role of wellbeing conversations in the workplace
You can watch the recording below:
Thrive at Work Wellbeing Awards 2020 and 2021
We are delighted share the Thrive at Work Wellbeing Awards Celebrations, which moved online in 2020 and 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. We were able to celebrate the success of accredited businesses and the organisations taking the first steps to Thrive accreditation.
A recording of our Thrive at Work Wellbeing Awards 2020 is still available, as well as our Thrive at Work Wellbeing Awards 2021 on the WMCA YouTube channel.