After a successful first mental health conference in Aberystwyth last July, commercial law firm Darwin Gray and business support consultants Mabis kicked off 2020 with another, this time in Cardiff’s St Fagans National Museum.
Titled “Taking Care of Business: Mental Health at Work”, the conference welcomed attendees from across the country on 29th January, raising over £1,100 for local mental health charity, Valleys Steps which offers in-house training for the workplace and delivers free community courses in Mindfulness & Stress Control.
Across the two conferences, the total now raised for charity is over £2,100, including the money raised in Aberystwyth for mental health charities The DPJ Foundation and Mind Aberystwyth.
The one-day Cardiff conference featured expert speakers from across Wales and the UK, with key talks covering various aspects of mental health including mindful employment, nutritional and financial wellbeing and how to develop a mental health strategy.
The feedback from delegates was overwhelmingly positive. Delegates remarked on how inspirational the speakers were, with one attendee commenting “an excellent day with great lectures by some inspiring individuals and good workshops”.
Fflur Jones, Head of Employment & HR at Darwin Gray said:
“We are delighted with the success of both conferences and that they have not only raised money for a number of good causes, but been part of a movement to educate more businesses and organisations in managing mental health at work as well as practicing good mental health in all aspects of life.”
Corinna Lloyd-Jones, HR Director at Mabis said:
“We are proud that the Cardiff conference was such a success! It was an excellent opportunity to learn about how good mental health is good for business as well as people, and what employers can do to effectively invest in improving workplace mental wellbeing. We are also delighted to have supported Valley Steps.”
Richard Bundy, Executive Director at Valleys Steps said:
“We were delighted to take part in the event. What became immediately apparent from the beginning of the day was the genuine passion and commitment both Darwin Gray and Mabis have for the promotion of mental wellbeing in the workplace. What was also heartening was the energy, dedication and skill applied to supporting those often marginalised in the workplace in asserting their rights to employment practices that support wellbeing. We would like to thank both organisations and delegates for choosing to support Valleys Steps. In spite of our reach, we remain a small charity without the profile of other larger organisations, making fundraising more of a challenge. The funds generated will greatly support the furthering and ongoing development of our charitable aims and objectives.”
Darwin Gray’s Employment and HR team delivers a wide range of training topics, both in English and Welsh, including training on managing mental health at work and other outcomes from this such as positive working practices around absence management and discrimination. For more information visit here.
Mabis work with private, public and third sector clients to provide advice and support across the HR field; from fundamental day-to-day people management and development to creating, implementing and embedding integrated HR strategies which support business goals.
