The Charter for Employers
bWell is working in partnership with MINDFUL EMPLOYER®*and promotes their Charter for Employers who are Positive about Mental Health.
Signing up to the Charter shows that your organisation is committed to supporting and promoting the mental health and wellbeing of your staff.
Signatories to the Charter so far include:
- NHS South Birmingham
- SIFA Fireside
- Health Exchange CIC Ltd
- Rape & Sexual Violence Project (RSVP)
- Better Work Consulting Ltd
- West Midlands Employer Coalition
- NHS Birmingham East and North
- Birmingham Voluntary Services Council (BVSC)
- Heart of Birmingham Primary Care Trust
- West Midlands Local Government Association
*MINDFUL EMPLOYER is a Registered Trade Mark of Devon Partnership NHS Trust
Quick links on this page
About the Charter
What the Charter says
Reviewing the Charter
How to sign up to the Charter
The Charter is a voluntary agreement that seeks to support employers in working within the spirit of its positive approach.
It is not legally enforceable and doesn’t negate the need for employers to get the right person with the right experience, qualifications and skills for the job.
The Charter fully respects there will be many different priorities, policies and practices which influence the way staff are recruited and retained – the employer is the expert on their business.
Employers can be involved in bWell/MINDFUL EMPLOYER without signing up to the Charter but many employers use it as a tangible display of their commitment to improving the working lives of their staff.
The Charter is about working towards the principles of it not the immediate fulfilment of them – signing up is a step along a journey not the end of it.
The name MINDFUL EMPLOYER® and the logo can only be used by Charter signatories and supporting organisations who have signed the Partnership Agreement.
On signing up to the Charter, employers receive a personalised certificate and are entitled to display the MINDFUL EMPLOYER logo on literature, letterheads, websites, job advertisements and other material their business produces.
Charter signatories will also receive posters to display on staff noticeboards etc.
The Charter was originally created by MINDFUL EMPLOYER and is facilitated by WorkWays - part of Devon Partnership NHS Trust.
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Charter For Employers Who Are Positive About Mental Health
As an employer we recognise that:
- People who have mental health issues may have experienced discrimination in recruitment and selection procedures. This may discourage them from seeking employment.
- Whilst some people will acknowledge their experience of mental health issues in a frank and open way, others fear that stigma will jeopardise their chances of getting a job.
- Given appropriate support, the vast majority of people who have experienced mental ill health continue to work successfully as do many with ongoing issues.
As an employer we aim to:
- Show a positive and enabling attitude to employees and job applicants with mental health issues. This will include positive statements in local recruitment literature.
- Ensure that all staff involved in recruitment and selection are briefed on mental health issues and the Disability Discrimination Act, and given appropriate interview skills.
- Make it clear in any recruitment or occupational health check that people who have experienced mental health issues will not be discriminated against and that disclosure of a mental health problem will enable both employee and employer to assess and provide the right level of support or adjustment.
- Not make assumptions that a person with a mental health problem will be more vulnerable to workplace stress or take more time off than any other employee or job applicant.
- Provide non-judgemental and proactive support to individual staff who experience mental health issues.
- Ensure all line managers have information and training about managing mental health in the workplace.
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The Charter should be seen by others as a public and tangible commitment by the signatory that they are working towards the aspirations set out within it. To that end, each Charter signatory will be asked to demonstrate that commitment.
bWell will be able to provide you with support in implementing your commitment to the Charter at any stage.
Reviews will follow every two years, in line with MINDFUL EMPLOYER.
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Simply download the Information Pack and complete the 'Our Response' at the end of the pack or contact us. For details of the Administration Fee, click here.
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