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Action planning to achieve the standard

Standard 4: Wellbeing

Wellbeing

Even if you now meet the wellbeing standard, keeping this up needs ongoing attention. It’s advisable to have an action plan in place for most, if not all, standards to ensure continued compliance and improvement. 

Effective communication is crucial for any successful action plan focused on employee wellbeing. Using SMART planning can help to address many important considerations which are explained in this section. SMART means Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound.

Clear communication is important to any successful action plan. This is especially true for plans about employee wellbeing. 

You should share findings from the health check or monitoring. It is a good idea to highlight strengths and areas for improvement. Also, show commitment to fixing issues. You could think about creating an open environment where employees feel able to share concerns and feedback freely. This helps them take part in action plan discussions. 

Clearly define objectives. Specify the action plan’s goals and describe: 

  • what it will address 
  • its reasons for priority 
  • when it will finish 
  • how to measure it 

Use inclusive language as it promotes a collective effort. A commitment to co-design is another important tool. It stresses the importance of creating solutions together. It shows how input from employees and stakeholders will shape the action plan. 

Regular updates will ensure transparency and engagement with ongoing progress reports. Feedback mechanisms are a way for employees to contribute feedback and act on it. 

Make sure that your organisation has easy access to information. It's important to develop good communication skills in your organisation. You could consider providing communication training, especially for leaders. This is a useful tool to support open dialogue.

You should celebrate achievements and progress. This encourages a positive organisational culture. 

How the wellbeing standard supports the whole organisation 

Cutting the high costs of poor wellbeing and maximising the benefits of a safe, supportive workplace demands evidence-based interventions at all levels. These should focus on:  

  • protecting wellbeing  
  • addressing concerns effectively  
  • building capacity 

 You should consider if: 

  • your workplace culture promotes psychological safety and inclusion 
  • leadership is compassionate and aware of the emotional demands of social work 
  • current wellbeing policies and resources are inclusive and effective 
  • initiatives adequately protect wellbeing, respond to concerns, and build capacity 
  • employees are involved in developing and evaluating wellbeing initiatives 
  • Conditions are in place to enhance resilience and wellbeing 

Effective action planning and meaningful change in wellbeing means targeting all organisational levels. To help you develop an action plan, here are some ideas to consider for each level.

Organisational level focus

Organisations should create a culture that: 

  • prioritises the physical and psychological safety of practitioners 
  • encourages an environment where people can discuss concerns 
  • promotes diversity, actively promotes equality, and removes barriers so that all employees can access wellbeing resources 
  • is committed to removing mental health stigma 
  • acknowledges the emotional effect from exposure to distressing situations 
  • takes actions to reduce and manage risks 
  • understands the emotional distress that practitioners from ethnic minorities may face due to race related discrimination and provides tailored support 
  • establishes conditions that improves wellbeing at all levels in social work settings 

Leadership level focus

Create a psychologically safe workplace that supports: 

  • positive relationships and compassion for work-related challenges 
  • safety and wellbeing, using evidence-informed tools for risk management 
  • high quality, regular, reflective supervision and broad-based support  
  • understanding the impact of change and uncertainty wellbeing and performance  
  • the value of co-design for effective change implementation and evaluation 

Line manager level focus

Develop strategies that promote self-care: 

  • recognise how social work’s complexity impacts employee wellbeing and practice 
  • provide skills and professional development to enable effective, supportive conversations and guidance on additional support 
  • allocate adequate time for wellbeing support, both in-person and remotely 
  • emphasise the importance of self-care and equip practitioners to integrate it into their routines 

Practitioner level focus

Encourage open communication by: 

  • providing chances to discuss practice-related emotional responses and receive support 
  • offering practical guidance and tools for wellbeing and capacity building 
  • encouraging self-care and a healthy work-life balance 
  • enabling input into developing and assessing wellbeing initiatives

References

Health and Safety Executive. (2022). Work-related stress, anxiety or depression statistics in Great Britain.

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The resources have been developed by Research in Practice in collaboration with DfE.
Published: 30 October 2024
Last updated: 30 October 2024