Mates in Mind Support Employee Mental Health

Palletways, an Imperial Group company and one of Europe’s largest and fastest-growing express palletised freight networks, has partnered with Mates in Mind, a UK charity that helps organisations improve their workforces’ mental health.

Mates in Mind was established in 2017 to address mental ill health in the construction sector and more recently, has partnered with an increasing number of logistic and transport companies. They specialise in providing training and support for staff and employers to raise awareness, improve understanding and address the stigma that surrounds mental health.

Over the next month, Mates in Mind will run nationally accredited Mental Health First Aid training with participants from all Palletways’ sites across the UK. The two organisations have also carried out an all-staff mental health survey and are in the process of implementing a three-year wellbeing strategy to improve Palletways’ mental health provision and better support all employees.

Rob Gittins, Palletways’ UK managing director, said: “This year has been incredibly challenging for everyone, and we recognise the impact it has had on our employees’. The mental health and wellbeing of our employees is of paramount importance and that is why we are committed to investing in our staff. Our new partnership with Mates in Mind is an important step in providing extra support and training to our employees. We want to create a cultural shift where mental health is viewed on a par with physical health in our business.”

Martin Lockham, growth development manager at Mates in Mind, added, “We are delighted to welcome Palletways as a supporter of our charity at Mates in Mind. Three in five employees experience mental health issues because of work and this needs to change. As we all navigate the pandemic and the changes it has brought, and continues to bring to our lives, it has never been more important to raise awareness, improve understanding of and support our workforces by develop a culture of openness on this subject. By working with us to develop their own mental health programme, Palletways has shown the kind of progressive leadership that acknowledges that employee mental wellbeing should be at the forefront of organisational health and the future of the wider transport and logistics sector.”