Working For Wellbeing

Providing Excellence in the Prevention of Psychosocial Risk

The stress management industry is evolving. Driven by a critical need for regulation, new BSI guidelines are being published to manage psychosocial risks in the workplace. Developed with several key organisations, including the HSE, EU, and CBI, these guidelines meet the increasing need for a systematic approach to stress management and are fully supported by numerous key members of the insurance industry.

These guidelines are relevant to any professional involved in:

• Human Resources
• Risk Management
• Health and Safety
• Occupational Health
• Stress Management
• Policy Implementation
• Training and Development
• Counseling/Therapy

Working For Wellbeing Ltd provides administration, assessment and quality assurance of training and services relating to these new guidelines.

Any professional who successfully completes the respective training module will become one of the first fully licensed practitioners. These practitioners will be provided with a recognised, uniform and quality assured framework for effective stress management. Demand in the marketplace for certified practitioners is quickly becoming high, across all industries and all sectors.

What exactly are the BSI guidelines?

To address the rising stress epidemic, a number of international bodies joined forces to develop new guidelines in managing stress in the workplace. Responding to the demands for formal regulation from government, the insurance industry and the business community, the British Standards Institute (BSI) worked in conjunction with The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Nottingham University, Confederation of British Industry (CBI), Canada Life and Aviva Insurance, EU Trade Unions, Working for Wellbeing to establish a benchmark within a structured framework.

The three standards are:

• PAS 1010 (Organisational Stress) - This covers the obligations as documented by the HSE and EU and the ways to undertake a sufficient risk assessment.
• Management Standards and Management Competencies - Will aim to cover both the aforementioned HSE Management Standards and Management Competencies guidelines and reduce pressure in the workplace using this proven model.
• Code of Practice relating to Resilience, Wellbeing and Returning to Work - Soon to be published, this is primarily a code of conduct. Accredited practitioners following these guidelines can be content in the knowledge that they are offering a professional service.

Representatives from the insurance industry, who sit on the BSI steering group, see these new standards as a vital step towards the regulation and standardisation of stress management professionals globally.

How can I make sure I am working to these new guidelines?

Working for Wellbeing provide administration, assessment and quality assurance of training and services relating to these new standards. The only training provider adhering to all three standards, every Working for Wellbeing training course guides delegates on a process for their continued professional development, using training programmes, manuals and aids designed to represent the guidance provided within the new standards.

Those wishing to become a certified practitioner must successfully complete the Working For Wellbeing three day practitioner training modules units 1, 2 or 3.

On successful completion of one of these modules, delegates will be added to the Prevention of Psychosocial Risk Practitioner Register. This register is openly available to the insurance industry and to any organisation who may be seeking a specialist who can offer services in accordance with the new UK and EU recognised guidlines.

The three day Masters training programmes have now started with courses being scheduled regularly. The one day training courses aimed at company management, human resources and risk management assessors will be introduced in 2012 as will the e-learning programme modules, focused on improving employees understanding of stress and the processes to manage it.