PSYCHOLOGICAL bullying accusations have surfaced within a council department in which absence due to stress and anxiety are at ‘epidemic levels’.

A former member of staff in Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s (BDBC) law and governance unit has spoken out after a Freedom of Information (FoI) request showed staff absence to stress, depression and other mental health problems in the unit stood at 566 days between June 2016 and September 2017 - nearly 80 per cent of overall absence.

In the year 2016/17 sickness leave due to stress or anxiety across the council was around 28 per cent of total staff absence.

The former member of staff told The Gazette: “For the last year or so I worked there I absolutely hated going into the office. Lots of my colleagues felt the same.

“It’s become normal in there to be made to feel stupid, to be put down with snide remarks, to be blamed and not to be recognised for what you do.

“I had to get out, I could tell my health was suffering; I wasn’t sleeping and it was affecting my home life.

“What made it worse was that everyone knew it was pointless raising the issue higher; there was no confidence that they would keep your confidentiality.”

The FoI request also shows in the June 2016 to September 2017 time frame, within the roughly 40 person-strong law and governance unit, ten people left the unit, nine by resigning.

The former member of staff added: “When I left I put in the Freedom of Information request because the facts need to come out. That way they [the council] can’t deny the levels of sickness and that cases of stress and anxiety in the team are at epidemic levels. The figures speak for themselves.

"I want to help my ex-colleagues in some way. It has to stop.”

BDBC head of human resources and organisational development Shella Smith said: “Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council takes the wellbeing of its staff very seriously. As an Inspire Business Awards Employer of the Year it is very important to us that we attract and retain the very best people to serve our customers and communities. Mental ill health is the highest reported reason for sickness absence within the public and private sector and this is reflected in the sickness absence at the council.

“The majority of absence related to mental health in the council, including Law and Governance, is triggered due to personal reasons, for example, bereavement. Support is essential to help prevent and reduce short and long term absence and the council provides counselling, flexible working options, support through an occupational health provider and training on coping with change and resilience. We also have a wellbeing group which supports the organisation by raising awareness of how people can improve their health and avoid and manage stress.

“Bullying is not tolerated and we treat any allegations seriously. We have the support structure in place through regular one to ones with managers, appraisals and support through our HR team which ensures employees can report any concerns they may have. We also have formal procedures in place should there need to be an escalation. We would encourage any member of staff current or previous to raise their concerns with us directly. As an employer we support our staff to provide excellent services to our residents and our staff survey supports this with 86  per cent telling us they are proud to work at the council.”