UK event industry associations, The Association of Event Venues (AEV), The Association of Event Organisers (AEO), and the Event Supplier and Services Association (ESSA), have announced the launch of their new member benefit, the ‘heads up’ mental health toolkit.
The toolkit contains a variety of resources, advice, links, case studies, signposts and material for improving and maintaining mental health.
It was developed with the assistance of Mental Health First Aid England (MHFA England) and Event Well, the charitable, social enterprise.
Chair and vice-chair of the Industry HR Group, Cheryl Busby of Clarion Events, and Raj Pragji of QEII Centre, led the group in setting long-term objectives to address mental health awareness and the wellbeing of event industry professionals.
Busby explained: “It’s reassuring to know that almost one in every hundred adults in the UK has some form of training or experience in mental healthcare, and I’m proud to say that many of our members are numbered among them.”
“This toolkit is designed to help create a supportive and knowledgeable culture around mental health. We want to embed positive long-term change across our organisations so everyone in the event industry can thrive and succeed.”
Pragji added: “Mental health problems are common and widespread. Through the creation of ‘heads up’, we want to help event industry professionals understand the factors that affect their mental health and to look out for the mental health of their colleagues.”
