A TEAM at Basingstoke-based Reality HR has developed a 10-point guide for employers to help them create Wellness Action Plans for their staff.

Reality HR chief executive officer Sally-Ann Hall-Jones says implementing a Wellness Action Plan can help employers communicate with their staff about mental health issues, and deal with them when they arise.

Advice in Reality HR’s 10 Step Guide includes tips on how to choose the right moment for a conversation around wellness, how to build trust, and the best ways to manage absence.

It also includes a template for employers to use to create their own Wellness Action Plans, which record employees’ preferred contacts and set out who should be contacted for support.

The guide comes as measures to support mental health and wellbeing remain a hot topic for UK businesses. The government’s 2018 Thriving at Work report revealed 14.1 per cent of workers considered themselves to have a mental health problem. Meanwhile around 70 million working days in the UK are lost to mental health issues each year.

Sally-Ann said: “As an HR consultancy, we’re often asked for guidance on the best ways for businesses to support their employees.

“It makes good business sense to have a structure in place that can help address problems such as staff turnover, sickness absence, decreased motivation and lost productivity.

“A Wellness Action Plan is a very effective tool to ensure staff are supported and employers are clear about how they can help in the event of a problem. It’s a way for every employee – whether they have a mental health problem or not – to work with their manager to identify what keeps them well at work.”

To download the guide, go to realityhr.co.uk/wellness-action-plan-wap.