Winter Wellness Toolkit
Winter can feel like a challenging time for many, especially when you’re busy working and trying to juggle lots. This Winter Wellness Toolkit for NHS and Primary Care colleagues is designed to offer ideas and support for making the winter months a more enjoyable time.
It includes self-guided activities together with a range of practical support sessions designed to help our people through the winter months.
Winter Wellness – People Portal (hiowpeople.nhs.uk)
National Grief Awareness Week
2-8 December
National Grief Awareness Week is dedicated to raising awareness about grief, providing support to those who are grieving, and fostering a better understanding of the grieving process. It acknowledges that grief is a natural response to loss and aims to break the stigma surrounding this deeply personal experience.
Compassionate Employers
We are delighted to have joined the Compassionate Employers programme through Hospice UK. The Hampshire and Isle of Wight NHS Trusts have been awarded silver – a demonstration of our commitment to better supporting our employees who are affected by terminal illness, care, and bereavement, and to create a more compassionate culture for workers in the UK.
Compassionate Employers commended the following standout support during the assessment process:
- ICB: Lived Experience Library where employees courageously share their stories on sensitive topics like baby loss.
- SHFT: capturing vital data and supporting carers by including caring responsibilities in their yearly survey.
- UHS: offers a generous carer leave policy at nearly double the national industry average.
- Solent: the most engaged in relevant awareness events, taking part in six different campaigns related to grief and caring in the last year alone.
- SCAS: commended for their internal communications and engagement, thanks to a comprehensive range of support resources.
- IoW: commended for their peer support offer and using employee feedback to shape organisational processes.
As a member of Compassionate Employers, our employees have access to a range of benefits including:
- Workshops and webinars
- 24/7 access to the online members’ hub
The online members’ hub can help with issues such as:
- Practical and legal advice following a bereavement
- Carers’ rights and support
- Support after a life-changing diagnosis
- Guidance and signposting for line managers
- Knowing what to say and what not to say
- HR toolkits
Visit the Bereavement hub on the People Portal: Bereavement – People Portal (hiowpeople.nhs.uk)
Southeast Neurodiversity Employee support package
NHSE South East regional Workforce Team commissioned HIOW to develop a suite of tools to raise awareness of neurodivergence, particularly for line managers with neurodivergent team members.
The support package includes:
- Tip sheets for managers
- Two recorded sessions with Genius Within Occupational Psychologists and our EDNA Advisors
- Coming soon: Bitesize e-learning modules and evaluation questionnaire
The training package will be free for all NHS and Primary Care staff working in the South East region, and more details on access will be shared by January.
Find the resources here:
Neurodiversity Awareness – People Portal (hiowpeople.nhs.uk)
Password: geniuswithin
NHSE South East regional Workforce Team also recently delivered a Regional Masterclass with Differing Minds and this resource is also on our Futures site.
