Five by Five Marks Mental Health Awareness Week, and Looks Beyond It Too

Above: the Five by Five team marking 'Wear It Green Day'.

This year, Mental Health Awareness Week fell between the 13th and 19th of May. The aims of the week are to bring a focus to the importance of looking after one’s mental health and destigmatising conversations around it. Mental health isn’t an issue that individuals can address without the right support and resources, nor without an acknowledgement that a working environment can often have a negative influence too. Yet work can also be a source of support in difficult times and a place that prioritises employees’ wellbeing first and above all else.

That’s exactly the kind of attitude that exists at the independent creative agency, Five by Five, with the team adding, “Mental health should be seen as one part of our overall health and wellbeing.” Group HR director Katie Whittam-Hayes notes that the issue is “much more on people's radar than ever before but I think there is still some reticence in discussing it openly at work. We believe we should talk about our mental health in the same way we would our physical health. By encouraging people to open up or seek help at an earlier stage if they are struggling, and proactively supporting our teams to manage their mental health, we hope it will reduce more serious illness.”

The theme for this year’s Mental Health Awareness week, set by the Mental Health Foundation, is Movement: Moving more for our mental health. Five by Five embraced the theme wholeheartedly with a number of activities and initiatives taking place at both UK offices throughout the week. “We looked at opportunities to encourage our teams to get more active and also reflect on how this might support their overall mental wellbeing,” adds Katie. These included massages, a step challenge (we certainly learned who our competitive team members are!), an energising snacks and smoothie station, a team-building quiz, and meditation and relaxation zones. Standing and walking meetings were encouraged to add a little bit of extra movement as part of day-to-day work life. And on the Thursday, the team marked ‘Wear It Green Day’ in support of the Mental Health Foundation.

A focus on mental health has always been present at the agency and a part of a broader conversation about wellbeing, says Katie. “Our approach has naturally evolved and we've introduced additional resources or areas of focus over the years - like utilising our engagement survey platform which has a mental health questionnaire, with individual personalised recommendations and resources, strengthening the mental health support available via our private medical and ensuring our EAP also provides access to face to face counselling sessions.”

Alongside the week’s activities and initiatives, Five by Five has worked hard to embed mental health awareness and mental health care into what it offers every employee when they join the fold. “We have our benefits platform, which allows employees access to health and wellbeing support such as private medical insurance which has specific mental health coverage, and our Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) – which is a completely private and confidential advice and counselling service which provide help on a variety of diverse issues  including  financial wellbeing, stress and anxiety, family and relationship issues, life support, work life support, physical and emotional health. What’s more, EAP isn’t limited to employees but covers their immediate family too.

“We also have a number of other benefits which we feel support our team’s overall health and wellbeing, contributing to positive mental health. There’s a health cashback scheme to support proactive and holistic health; discounted gym memberships; life loans - for the unexpected things that happen; and enhanced gender-neutral parental leave and pay,” Katie adds.

By acknowledging the stresses and pressures facing its employees head on, through Mental Health Awareness Week and beyond, Five by Five is stating loudly that ‘it’s okay to not be okay’ while reminding its employees that the resources to help with (and help prevent) mental health challenges are available whenever needed.

The company’s sustained efforts to build a healthy work culture have been recognised by the Sunday Times Best Places to Work list, with Five by Five featuring for the second year running. The survey monitors employee engagement, recognition, satisfaction, and well-being in the workplace and Five by Five scored highly across the board in all categories. The agency scored an impressive 90% in the ‘My employer cares for my wellbeing’ category – a testament to the importance it places on looking after employees and embedding that into company culture at every touchpoint.