This policy links to Health and Safety, Well-being in the Nursery, Return to Work, Supervisions and, Safeguarding and Prevent policies.
At The Nursery we promote the good health and well-being of all our staff. Well-being is described in the Oxford English Dictionary as ‘the state of being comfortable, healthy or happy’. As a Nursery, we endeavour to support staff well-being, not only to ensure that children receive high quality care, but also to ensure our employees feel supported and cared for, as part of a team.
Mental ill-health is usually caused by a combination of work and non-work-related factors. There is a myriad of reasons for mental ill-health; from the pressure of ongoing change at work to longer or more intense hours exacerbated by financial pressures at home, or relationship problems and greater caring responsibilities. Striking the balance between what is considered appropriate results or output, and robust mental health is tricky. We are committed to constantly upskilling ourselves so that we know about how to create and maintain conditions that support and encourage good mental health, as well as recognise the signs of ill health and provide appropriate support.
At The Nursery we recognise the importance of safeguarding the mental health of all of our employees, by providing a happy and nurturing working environment. With statistics in the UK showing that each week 1 in 6 of us experiences a common mental health problem, we are committed to acknowledging and supporting our staff’s physical and emotional needs.
Our ethos
At The Nursery we know that the care and education of young children is highly rewarding. However, we are also aware of the day to day demands and pressures of modern life such as family life, financial worries, health concerns and work-life balance; and how these pressures, alongside the role of providing high quality care and education to babies and young children, can place a high level of demand on all of our employees.
In order to support our staff team, we, the management team, will put procedures in place that ensure staff well-being remains one of the key focuses of our practice. In doing this, we aim to provide our team with a safe, inclusive and nurturing working environment that acknowledges their needs, not just within the workplace but as a whole person.
Louise Brooks and Julie Marshall are the named member of staff who leads our setting’s well-being practice. They will offer support on staff well-being and know where to access external support. Louise and Julie are also committed to keeping their well-being and mental health knowledge up to date and will review our practices; supporting the developing knowledge of the whole staff team, to ensure we are implementing the necessary strategies to safeguard the well-being of our staff.
Procedure to minimise work related stress:
- To ensure staff are supported within the setting, new staff will receive a full induction, so they feel competent and capable to carry out their role and responsibilities
- Staff will receive ongoing training, coaching and mentoring to ensure that they are supported to feel confident in their role to minimise stress within the workplace
- Regular supervisions will take place every term in which staff well-being will be discussed and recorded.
- Practitioners are respected and valued in their work, whatever their role. Tasks are shared out appropriately according to their role and level of responsibility, the workload is monitored and reviewed on a regular basis
- Staff will be encouraged to have a work-life balance; this will be supported by ensuring the workload is monitored so that it is not necessary for staff to work outside of their scheduled hours. All contributions to work will be valued and celebrated
- We will carefully review our expectations around the amount of paperwork that staff must complete, including observations and assessments of children. We will work as a team to ensure all record keeping is meaningful and kept to an appropriate level so as not to add undue pressure to staff members
- We will work hard to maintain a reflective culture within the setting that encourages feedback from staff about management procedures and working relationships. This reflective culture will support an environment of teamwork, facilitating the involvement of every member of staff in the practice of our setting
- Staff will be encouraged to take their required breaks at appropriate intervals to ensure they have time to rest and recuperate, with time away from busy rooms
- The nursery leader/well-being representative are available for staff to come and discuss any issues or concerns
- The nursery will ensure that confidential conversations take place in private, away from other staff members and children
- All information will remain confidential or on a need-to-know basis to support the facilitation of open and honest conversations. However, where the manager or the well-being representative feels there is a question around the safety of the staff member, they will refer to outside agencies for support and guidance. These measures will be discussed in a sensitive and understanding manner with the staff member, as appropriate
- We actively promote a culture of mutual respect, tolerance and cooperation tolerance, in line with the British values
- Team meetings will support with team development, to raise awareness of mental health and well-being by engaging staff in conversations about how we, as a setting, can be maintaining a supportive environment
- We promote a culture that supports any staff member who is experiencing a mental health related illness and reasonable adjustments will be made to support any staff experiencing stress and any mental health issues
- If the nursery is made aware of any member of staff who requires support, a plan for more regular support sessions and adjustments to their working day will be discussed and decided in partnership with the staff member. This plan will be reviewed regularly and adapted to ensure it is a relevant and appropriate (See Supporting Staff Members Individually Section)
- If adjustments are unable to meet the needs of the member of staff or the nursery, then further advice support will be sought.
- Staff well-being and staff self-care information is available within designated staff areas
- Leaders and managers support practitioners in a safe culture where bullying, harassment and discrimination will not be tolerated; along with a culture that will challenge and deal with any inappropriate behaviour in a timely manner.
Supporting staff members individually
At The Nursery we include well-being as part of our discussions at staff supervision sessions and appraisals. During these sessions, we will work with staff on an individual basis, and have well-being discussions to ascertain any individual well-being needs. Where the Manager and staff member feel it is appropriate, they will draw up an individual action plan, this will include looking at the workload and any stress triggers. With the needs of the nursery also in mind, reasonable adjustments will be made for the member of staff; this could include flexible working agreements, changes in environment, adjustments to jobs role and responsibilities; more frequent breaks, a working buddy, or any other appropriate measure that it is felt could be helpful.
If returning to work after a period of absence, a back to work interview will be carried out as per our ‘Return to Work Policy.’
We follow all statutory guidance on the safeguarding of our workforce and as stated, if the Manager is concerned about the safety of a member of staff, we will work with the Designated Safeguarding Lead to ask for support from the appropriate external agencies; this is to ensure the continued safety of our workforce at all times.
| This policy was adopted on | Signed on behalf of the nursery | Date for review |
| March 2024 | Louise Brooks | March 2025 |