April marks Stress Awareness Month, a nationwide campaign aimed at raising awareness of the causes and impacts of stress, and encouraging people and organisations to take meaningful action.

Stress is one of the leading causes of work-related illness in the UK. It can affect productivity, morale, and mental and physical well-being, and contributes significantly to long-term sickness absence.

For employers, it can mean reduced output, increased staff turnover and growing claims for work-related stress.

Employers also have a legal duty to protect employees from stress at work, and to help them in practical terms by doing a risk assessment, and acting on it.

To help employers during Stress Awareness Month, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is focusing on its Working Minds campaign – a practical initiative that helps employers take simple, effective steps to manage stress in the workplace.

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At Robert Gerrard, we’re joining the call to action by sharing those steps – known as the 5 Rs – to help you make stress awareness and prevention part of everyday working life.

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What is the Working Minds campaign?

The Working Minds campaign is an HSE initiative to help businesses better understand and manage the risks of work-related stress.

Its message is simple: you don’t need to be a mental health expert to support your team. What matters is taking practical, proactive steps to manage stress before it becomes a problem.

Offering free, easy-to-use tools, Working Minds is ideal for businesses who want to create a supportive work environment without adding complexity or cost.

At the heart of the campaign are the 5 Rs – a five-step framework designed to help employers Reach out, Recognise, Respond, Reflect, and Make it Routine.

The 5Rs – Practical steps to manage stress at work

HSE’s Working Minds campaign encourages employers to follow five simple steps to help manage stress in the workplace:

1. Reach Out – Start the Conversation

Talking is the first step to tackling stress. Start regular, open conversations with your team – whether that’s during team meetings, one-to-ones or casual check-ins.

You don’t need to wait until someone is struggling. Asking “How are you doing – really?” shows that support is available. If someone is feeling under pressure, early conversations can help prevent the issue from escalating.

📌 Try this: Use HSE’s Talking Toolkit to guide these conversations and make it easier for line managers to open up dialogue.

2. Recognise – Spot the Signs of Stress

Stress is not always easy to see. But there are often tell-tale signs, such as:

• Changes in behaviour or mood
• Difficulty concentrating or making decisions
• Fatigue, absenteeism or reduced performance

Training line managers to recognise these early indicators can make all the difference. Encourage a culture where people feel comfortable raising concerns – for themselves or their colleagues.

📌 Try this: Share resources from HSE or Mates in Mind to help staff understand how to spot the signs in themselves and others.

3. Respond – Take Action Together

If someone flags an issue, respond quickly and supportively. Work together to identify what’s causing the stress, whether it’s workload, unclear expectations, poor communication, or something else.

Once you understand the problem, make adjustments where you can. This might mean redistributing work, adjusting deadlines or improving clarity around roles.

📌 Try this: Use a stress risk assessment to help uncover triggers and agree practical solutions.

4. Reflect – Learn from Experience

After an issue is resolved, take time to reflect. What went well? What could have been done differently?

Reflection helps improve your approach for next time, and shows staff that you’re committed to learning and evolving.

📌 Try this: Build in regular feedback sessions or debriefs after any workplace challenge involving well-being or stress.

5. Make it Routine – Keep the Conversation Going

Supporting mental wellbeing is not a one-time job – it needs to become part of everyday working life.

Embed stress prevention into your company culture through regular check-ins, clear communication and visible support from leadership.

📌 Try this: Add mental health to your regular team agenda, offer wellness resources, and review policies to ensure they’re supportive and inclusive.

Useful stress management tools & resources

You don’t have to start from scratch when it comes to tackling workplace stress. There are plenty of free, practical tools designed to help businesses take action.

🔧 HSE’s Working Minds resources

HSE has created a dedicated Working Minds campaign hub, packed with accessible materials to help employers manage stress more effectively:

• Talking Toolkit – Conversation prompts to help managers reach out and listen
• Risk assessment templates – Simple formats to identify and address work-related stress
• Posters & guides – Ready-to-use resources for your workplace noticeboard or intranet
• Stress Awareness Month calendar – Daily wellbeing actions to promote throughout April

🔗 Explore the tools here: HSE Working Minds Campaign 

💡 Other useful resources

Stress Management Society – Their #LeadWithLove campaign includes a Kindness Calendar and workplace wellbeing activities

Mates in Mind – Mental health charity offering practical support and free resources to employers and individuals in high-risk sectors

Every Mind Matters (NHS) – Get a free personalised mental health action plan in just 5 questions

Whatever your starting point, these resources can help you take meaningful, positive steps toward supporting your people.

Why employers should act NOW to manage stress in the workplace

Tackling stress in the workplace is not just a nice-to-have – it’s a legal requirement.

Under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations, employers have a duty to assess risks to mental health and take reasonable steps to prevent work-related stress.

But beyond the legal obligation, there are powerful business reasons to act:

🔒 Better staff retention – People are more likely to stay in a supportive workplace

📉 Fewer absences – Preventing stress helps reduce long-term sickness leave

📈 Improved productivity – A mentally healthy team is more engaged and motivated

💬 Positive culture – Talking openly about mental health builds trust and morale

Putting simple processes in place now can help protect both your people – and your business – in the long run.

Tackling workplace stress at Robert Gerrard

Here at Robert Gerrard, we have two mental health first aiders. Senior Account Executives Marcus Hill and Claire Matthews completed a two-day Lift Industry Mental Health Charter course in 2023.

As well as being on hand to provide a listening ear for members of Team RG, Marcus and Claire are prepared to help RG clients and contacts. Marcus has kindly made himself available on mobile for anyone who is personally struggling and would find it helpful to talk to someone – his number is 07802 679096.

You can also access more resources in our blog we put together for last year’s Mental Health Awareness Week.

Let’s Talk About Protecting Your Business AND Your People

If you haven’t reviewed how your business manages workplace stress, now is the time.

• Use HSE’s free tools
• Start the conversation with your team
• Reflect and build stress prevention into your day-to-day culture

And if you would like support reviewing your wider risk profile – from health and safety to liability and commercial protection – we are here to help.

🔗 Get in touch with the team at Robert Gerrard for tailored advice on protecting what matters most.