Here Be Dragons, the creative PR & communications agency, has introduced a new wellness initiative, called the Here Be Dragons ‘Parachute Package’. The initiative consists of three strands, covering access to mental health help for all Dragons, training of senior staff, and physical wellbeing - and with research showing that more than half the UK workforce feels uncomfortable talking about mental health, it’s more important than ever.
Kickstarting from now, Here Be Dragons will partner with Self Space, offering all members of staff access to the company’s wide array of therapists, and a workshop to introduce the team to the importance of everyday mental maintenance. With its therapy space just around the corner from the HBD office in Shoreditch, all team members will be encouraged to visit for their own personal needs.
In addition, the full Senior Leadership Team will attend Mental Health First Aid Training provided by the social enterprise, MHFA England, providing all managers with the tools needed to deal with the mental health of the people they manage. This will incorporate an external training course, certification plus ongoing support through the MHFA network.
Finally, a programme of physical wellbeing activities will be rolled out and updated regularly based on the changing seasons.
Matt Crowhurst, head of people, culture and media at Here Be Dragons, said, “Wellness is something we’ve had on the agenda for ages at Here Be Dragons - from free yoga sessions through to access to CALM memberships, as well as ad hoc support for our Dragons. But it’s important that we’ve created this package, in consultation with team members, to ad rigour to our existing offering in a way that will have a real impact on our most important asset, our people.
Self Space co-founder, Chance Marshall, added, "We’re proud as punch to be supporting Here Be Dragons. Their commitment to proactively supporting their people’s mental health sets them apart. A lot of companies talk about it, but very few follow up as tangibly as this”.