Award Categories

This award recognises workplaces with over 750 employees that have implemented an exceptional strategy to strengthen mental health in the workplace. Entries should consider:

-       how strategies are implemented from top to bottom 

-       successfully breaking stigma around mental health with executive buy-in, resulting in company-wide cultural change

-       delivery of measurable improvement and success.

Entrants should also demonstrate an inclusive, preventive and supportive approach to mental health and wellbeing. This could showcase how considerations around mental health are reflected in a strategic approach and wider policies and systems that flex to the needs of all employees, for example, recognising that good mental health cannot be taken for granted, by encouraging reasonable adjustments and flexible working.

This award recognises workplaces with fewer than 750 employees that have implemented an exceptional strategy to strengthen mental health. Entries should consider:

-       how strategies are implemented at all employee levels

-       successfully breaking stigma around mental health with senior buy-in, resulting in company-wide cultural change

-       delivery of measurable improvement and success.

Entrants can demonstrate how a smaller organisation, which may not have in-house wellbeing expertise, has used outside resources successfully to integrate mental health into wider wellbeing strategies.

This award recognises workplaces that have successfully implemented a strategy to strengthen mental health in their workplaces in two or more countries. Entries should consider:

-       how strategies are implemented at all employee levels 

-       successfully breaking stigma around mental health with senior buy-in, resulting in company-wide cultural change

-       delivery of measurable improvement and success

-       recognising local and cultural differences in the implementation yet achieving a holistic approach throughout the different countries.

Entrants should also demonstrate an inclusive, preventive and supportive approach to mental health and wellbeing.

This award will be given to a workplace that has recently recognised explicitly the importance of addressing mental health, and within the past 18 months has taken first steps to change the culture via a holistic and focused approach to maintaining and improving the mental health of all employees. 

Due to the limited timeframe companies at this stage of their mental health journey have had to see the benefits of this work emerge, judges will not focus solely on outcomes but will consider the impetus and process behind the initiative and the action plan to deliver it.

This award is aimed at motivating and celebrating those teams – including project teams – who have a positive impact across their workplace. Whether large or small, the team – which could represent HR, Wellbeing and/or Diversity/Inclusion functions – should demonstrate that they have been crucial in driving the implementation of mental health initiatives and strategies and delivering measurable results for their workplace.

Many workplaces have established peer networks in their workplace to support colleagues and drive change within mental health. These include Mental Health First Aiders, ambassadors, champions, or advocating employee groups that commit to supporting colleagues in addition to their day job. This category looks to identify networks that can demonstrate how they have been instrumental in supporting colleagues in the workplace and give examples of how their network has been a success.

This category celebrates mental health campaigns and initiatives that workforces have implemented for either (a) a specific group of employees, or (b) a specialist initiative to solve a particular workplace challenge – for example, addressing working from home, furlough, men and mental health, addiction at work, menopause in the workplace, or stress in the workplace. Entries should clearly outline the target group or issue addressed and demonstrate how the initiative improved the situation for the target group or solved the challenge.  

This category recognises the impact of a product that assists organisations with their workplace mental health programmes. Products can include but are not limited to physical products, courses and technological products such as apps. Entries should be submitted in the form of two case studies and demonstrate how the product is supporting mental health in the client organisation(s), including the results and impact it achieved. Approved client testimonials will be required for this category.

This category recognises consultants, trainers or agencies that can demonstrate that their work with their client(s) has delivered a successful and implementable strategy. This category is looking for the outstanding mental health consultancies, trainers and agencies that help develop and implement mental health strategies together with their clients. This category looks for best-in-class organisations and individuals that can clearly demonstrate how their work has helped to break down the stigma around mental health. Judges will be looking for tailored strategies, evidence-based action plans and the delivery of measurable improvement and success.

Entries should be submitted in the form of two case studies, and client testimonials will be required for this category.

Covid-19 has accelerated the move to flexible working, blurring the boundaries between work and personal time and increasing reliance on technology. From working from home and hybrid meetings to returning to the office, workplaces faced several challenges in adapting to the changing environment. Winners in this category will demonstrate how they embedded the wellbeing of their employees in their people strategies, and how they created a healthy workplace culture to protect the wellbeing, work-life balance and mental health of their employees and leaders. 

This category recognises those senior leaders within HR / Wellbeing / D&I who have truly led from the front to banish stigma around mental health, and who have actively campaigned within their organisation to ensure colleagues are appropriately supported by their employer. Entrants are nominated by their company.

This category recognises those C-Suite / senior executives / directors who have truly led from the front to banish stigma around mental health, and who went above and beyond their day job to advance the mental health in the workplace agenda within their organisation to ensure colleagues are appropriately supported by their employer. Entrants are nominated by their company.

This category recognises an individual who has inspired their workplace by breaking stigma around mental health as well as growing awareness of how a workplace can focus on positive mental health. This role should be in addition the individual’s day job and they can be nominated by their company or colleagues.