University Mental Health Charter

Anyone who has been involved in the process of achieving any charter status knows how valuable, and also how rigorous and consuming, the process can be.

We are confident the auditors will recognise the good things we’re doing. The university created additional wellbeing roles in 2019, agreeing with students, colleagues, trade unions and the students’ union to focus on the four themes of physical health, mental health, financial wellbeing and community. This gave Leeds Beckett a strong platform to support students and colleagues through the pandemic and the ongoing transition out of it.

But we’re not working towards University Mental Health Charter status to give ourselves a pat on the back. We want the process to accelerate our work and join up all the positive things happening across Leeds Beckett. It will also provide the university with a framework to continually improve as a place to work and study.

Leeds Beckett is determined to take a whole-university approach to wellbeing, and that colleague and student experience continues to influence change. We have worked together to develop a Wellbeing Commitment. It outlines why wellbeing is important and what impacts it, while articulating Leeds Beckett’s ambition and asking everyone in the university community to play their part.

Our wellbeing commitment

We know that working and studying in a mentally healthy community supports us all to attain good wellbeing, feel happier, have clarity of purpose, and meet our goals. Our background, experiences, environment, and relationships can all affect our mental health, and mental health in turn affects all parts of our lives – how we feel, function, and interact with others.

We are all unique, as are our experiences and needs. To achieve a whole university approach to wellbeing that is meaningful for the whole community, we will create an inclusive and understanding environment that values and listens to all voices.

As a university we recognise the work that has already been done to increase awareness, open conversations and improve student and colleague wellbeing.

We have more to do – we want to be a university where stigma doesn’t exist; where any student or colleague who experiences distress finds this is met with openness and compassion; and where they are supported to access helpful resources and services.

A whole university approach to wellbeing and mental health requires us all to take action, for ourselves and for others.  It recognises that, like physical health, we all have mental health that we need to recognise and value. Together, we will actively encourage healthy behaviours to improve wellbeing.

What the commitment means for colleagues and students

This commitment will mean positive action from part of the university. We are developing more tools to support colleagues, including trialling new wellbeing assessments to support the wellbeing action plans and Stress Risk Assessments already in place.

One very visible change is the introduction of the school-based practitioners in September 2021. The practitioners work with schools to focus on early intervention and prevention. Students get an increasingly coherent and consistent support environment, which in turn facilitates positive wellbeing for colleagues.

This academic year the school-based practitioners launched the Thrive programme. This provides workshops and other practical support in areas like sleep for study, academic stress, anxiety, procrastination and perfectionism.

Colleagues across the university are also developing tools that will benefit academic and professional services and create a culture of wellbeing across our community. This includes educational development workshops on creating compassionate learning and teaching environments, and a pilot module which might act as a model for embedding wellbeing in the curriculum.