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This page was developed in collaboration with colleagues from Active Devon, Active Herts, Active Oxfordshire, Active Partnerships, England Netball, Everyone Active, Mind and Wesport.

Working to tackle inequalities in sport and physical activity is hard but important work. It’s often complex, time consuming, requires relentless focus and involves tackling injustice and driving change. For some leaders, it also involves drawing on their own or other’s lived experience. Working to tackle inequalities and advocating for change can heavily impact leaders’ wellbeing.

WELLBEING1

What is wellbeing?

Wellbeing is a broad, subjective term. Every leader will have their own views on what it means and, importantly, what it feels like to them.  

In its simplest form, it’s about how we’re doing and feeling. It refers to a person’s overall state of health, happiness and fulfilment which includes their emotional, social, mental and physical health. Wellbeing isn’t static, it’s always in a state of flux. It changes when we experience highs and lows, both at work and in our personal lives, and as we pass through different life stages.

‘Health relates to a person’s physical and mental condition. Wellbeing is the subjective state of being healthy, happy, contented, comfortable and satisfied with one’s quality of life… This includes self-esteem and the ability to socialise and cope in the face of adversity. It also includes being able to develop potential, work productively and creatively, build strong and positive relationships with others and contribute to the community.’

Definition from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence

What is workplace wellbeing?

Leaders, workplaces and the teams and practices within them, can have a big impact on people’s wellbeing.  

Pregnant woman writes on a whiteboard whilst three other leaders watch, they are all smiling.

The term workplace wellbeing describes the overall effect that all these aspects can have on people’s physical, mental and emotional health.

  • The way work is designed
  • The physical work environment
  • How people are developed and managed
  • The strength of people’s connections to their organisation
  • Relationships with their colleagues

Really matter!

Having a positive culture towards workplace wellbeing helps leaders to improve their team’s readiness to accommodate and adapt to the ever-changing challenges that present when working to tackle inequalities. Without this, leaders and their teams can feel like that have no autonomy or influence over the things that affect them.  

The role of leaders

The sport and physical activity sector play a vital role in improving and maintaining people’s health and wellbeing. Sector leaders are often well versed in articulating the importance of wellbeing and work hard to create safe, inclusive and accessible environments, opportunities and programmes to support this.

  • Leaders' wellbeing

    Leadership is rewarding, but it can also be tough and lonely sometimes. We know that sector leaders have high demands on their time and energy, often juggling competing priorities and deadlines and working with limited resources. Driving change to tackle deep-rooted inequalities, takes time, energy and commitment. 

    It can be easy for leaders to overlook their own wellbeing. But it’s vitally important to remember that you can’t pour from an empty cup, so be sure to regularly check how you’re feeling and intentionally make time for self-reflection and self-care to avoid burn out.

‘…you cannot hope to effectively lead others to sustained success if you’re neglecting the needs of your own wellbeing… Your mindset and your habits have an immediate impact, not only on your own wellbeing but on that of people around you.’

 The Promise of Giants, John Amaechi OBE

Supporting and promoting workplace wellbeing

Leaders play an essential role in creating and embedding a positive culture of workplace wellbeing. Their behaviour, habits and approach set the tone for others around them. 

For workplace wellbeing to thrive, it’s important leaders foster a culture that puts people first, is sensitive to different needs, working environments and lived experiences and fulfils their organisation’s duty of care responsibilities.

We know that this can be challenging, especially if budgets and training are limited, there’s a lack of clarity on responsibilities, you’re managing a mix of home, lone, hybrid or office-based staff or are working for an organisation with an established workplace culture that doesn’t yet actively promote wellbeing. Finding the right balance between stretching your team, to help them develop, and putting them into a stress state can also be tricky. 

Greater Manchester’s Wellbeing Toolkit is a good example of how organisations work towards fostering a positive culture of workplace wellbeing.

Reflective questions

  • Thinking about your own wellbeing, how’re you doing? Are there any aspects of your wellbeing that require attention?
  • Thinking about the culture of your organisation, what policies, practices, initiatives or support exist to promote positive workplace wellbeing for your teams? 
  • How do your team feel about the wellbeing culture at your organisation? Are there any changes they’d like to see?
  • Reflecting on your role as a leader, what positive workplace wellbeing behaviours do you role model to others in your team or organisation? What else could you do?

Benefits

Looking after yourself as a leader can have a positive effect on you, your team and your life outside of work. Inevitably there’ll be times when wellbeing is under pressure, through things like bereavement, maternity, paternity or carers leave, menopause or illness. Having a culture that allows for adjustments to accommodate for these circumstances can bring about a range of different mental, physical and emotional benefits including:

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  • A trustful and mindful working environment and the ability to manage expectations.    
  • Better workplace relationships, improved connectedness and a stronger sense of understanding and belonging.
  • Better work-life balance and less work-related stress.
  • Improved physical health.
  • Improved psychological safety and the ability to explore and overcome challenges and concerns together.
  • Increased levels of job satisfaction, effectiveness, productivity and staff engagement.
  • Potential reduction in sickness absence.
  • Reduced staff turnover.

Ways to wellbeing

There’s lots of ways that leaders can look after their own wellbeing and promote and embed workplace wellbeing across their teams and organisations. The five ways to wellbeing, is just one example. Developed by the New Economics Foundation (NEF), it promotes:

Being physically active

Moving your body in a way that works for you can improve your physical and mental health.

Connecting with others

Talking to, listening to and supporting others can make you feel valued, strengthen your relationships and improve your wellbeing.

Taking notice

Being present, enjoying the moment and taking notice of your thoughts, feelings and the people and things around you can boost your wellbeing.

Learning

Learning and experiencing new things, or rediscovering past interests, positively stimulates your brain.

Giving to others

Helping or giving to others, through volunteering or acts of kindness, can increase happiness, improve life satisfaction and enhance wellbeing.

Source: Adapted from NEF and Mind information on the five ways to wellbeing.

Reflective questions

  • How do you currently embed the five ways to wellbeing in your everyday life? What’s missing? 
  • How do you and your organisation currently encourage and empower your team to embed the five ways to wellbeing to create positive habits? 

Areas for action

Some leaders and organisations already have positive workplace wellbeing deeply engrained in their culture. Others want to check and challenge what they’re currently doing, and some need more support and advice on how to get started. Wherever you are in this journey, our learning and insight shows it’s beneficial to:

Make wellbeing everyone's responsibility

It’s important to understand and look after your own wellbeing and support and empower others to do the same. Every organisation has a duty of care for its people’s wellbeing, doing nothing isn’t an option. Ensure everyone understands your organisation’s wellbeing related policies, practices and initiatives and be clear about what support’s available to you and your team.

Some examples of initiatives and different approaches can be seen in our further resources section.

Understand what affects wellbeing

Understand what affects your wellbeing and encourage your team to do the same. Everyone will be different. From a work perspective, consider workload, working patterns, breaks, having a sense of purpose, working relationships, development needs and leadership styles. Outside of work, consider connections with others, caring responsibilities, finances, health, diet and activity, resting and sleeping habits, these all have a big impact too.

Provide a safe, supportive space and reassurance

Build in and protect time to regularly discuss wellbeing outside of conversations about performance. Creating a safe, reassuring and supportive space to check-in with each other is an effective, person-centred way of understanding your colleagues and peers and helping everyone to thrive. Be authentic, respectful, ask open questions and genuinely listen, with compassion and empathy, during the discussion. Encourage and empower people to take action themselves and celebrate their successes.

If there’s appetite you could also support team members to buddy up and offer peer to peer support or allyship by providing appropriate training or in an informal way. Our leadership fundamentals page offers some useful tips.

Create an action plan

Wellness action plans or mental health at work plans are a great way of understanding an individual’s preferred working styles, what helps them stay mentally healthy at work, situations or behaviours that may trigger poor mental health and actions that can be taken if warning signs are noticed.

There are lots of resources available to support with this including Mind's Wellness Action Plans and HSE’s Talking Toolkit. They’re a great way to start a conversation. Be sure to keep these confidential and treat them as live documents.

Recognise warning signs

Some people will feel comfortable asking for help and others won’t. It’s important to be able to spot the signs that you, or someone else, might be struggling with their mental health or wellbeing. Look out for things like changes in mood, behaviour, concentration, engagement, appetite, weight, exercise, drinking, smoking, sleeping or decision-making habits. Comments about difficult thoughts and feelings, unexplained pain, restlessness or agitation can also be signs that someone’s struggling. However, sometimes there are no outward signs at all so promoting self-care and having regular conversations are helpful.

Be intentional about prioritising wellbeing

Self-care is vitally important to wellbeing. Consider the five ways to wellbeing and what’s important to yours and your team’s wellbeing. Setting boundaries, protecting diary time, taking breaks, regularly connecting with colleagues, being physically active throughout the day, being mindful while commuting, or starting a virtual commute can all be helpful.

Remember, as leaders, the approach and behaviours you model act as a benchmark for others. Looking after yourself gives others permission to do the same. 

Seek help, when needed

Offering or asking for support can feel daunting, but small actions can have a really big impact. Whatever you, or your colleagues, are going through, there’s no need to be alone, help is available. A wide range of organisations and confidential services exist and can provide support. Mind, Hub of Hope and the Samaritans are great examples.

Be sure to understand what’s available within and beyond your organisation so you know where to go, or where to signpost others to, for help. 

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