Workplace Wellbeing Award overview - Print version

Workplace Wellbeing Award - The health and wellbeing commitment for employers

The Workplace Wellbeing Award health and wellbeing awards are the WMCA standard of good practice and a quality mark for health and wellbeing in the workplace.

This fully funded programme within the Coventry area has been created to offer help, guidance, to implement changes, improve health and wellbeing in the workplace.

The Workplace Wellbeing Award is a programme for businesses/organisations that are committed to improving health and wellbeing. Due to our unique funding structure, this is available to all sectors and suitable for anyone who employs more than five employees.

Our Workplace Wellbeing Award portal will help you monitor progress and upload evidence against the listed criteria to gain your accreditation.

Our free programme includes:

• Foundation Level begins with a diagnostic, from this, we create a bespoke action plan to accommodate your needs.
• Free HR policy and procedure support.
• You will receive 1:1 support from our team.
• Access to our comprehensive toolkit - This contains templates, information and guidance you may need.
• Access to free webinars [https://www.youtube.com/@cccthriveatwork] and LinkedIn group [https://bit.ly/3LP6qAF].
• *NEW* We now have a YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@cccthriveatwork] 
• Biweekly Teams meetings or telephone support.
• Through our network within Coventry City Council, we can assist you with any vacancies you may have and business grant support.

With over 600 organisations in Coventry and West Midlands already on board, we would love you to join and be part of our network - Register now to join the Workplace Wellbeing Award programme. [https://portal.whispas.co.uk/pages/welcome]

Signing up and getting started

Once you have registered, your designated member of staff will become the Workplace Health and Wellbeing Lead for your business/organisation.
Their role will be to lead and co-ordinate Workplace Wellbeing Award within the organisation. It is vital that they have the full backing of senior management, this is to ensure that the necessary changes within the organisation are possible.

Investing in employee health and wellbeing - Growing healthier, happier workplaces

Your employees are your most important and valuable asset. There is a strong business incentive to better support your employee’s health and wellbeing needs. A healthier and happier workforce is much more likely to be a productive workforce. Staff who feel that their employers are proactively supporting their physical and mental health feel better valued within an organisation and will be more able to manage any existing conditions with their work. This will improve work rates and reduce absenteeism and presentism in your organisation. The National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) estimates that implementing interventions to promote staff wellbeing could save employers between £130 and £5,020 per participating employee, by reducing absence or illness at work. The award framework helps employers to address issues such as reducing sickness absence costs, improving productivity and staff engagement.

Employers who take an active role in supporting staff by fostering a positive working environment through health and wellbeing initiatives, allows the organisation to thrive. Healthy employees will be more able to effectively engage in their work in a much more sustainable way and will be significantly less likely to need to take sick days.

Organisations that achieve accreditation of the Workplace Wellbeing Award Commitment receive the Workplace Wellbeing Award. This accreditation sets an organisation apart as an employer of choice when it comes to mental health and wellbeing, whilst also enjoying the benefits of a happier and healthier workforce.

Criteria and toolkit

Commitment /action plan - self-assessment

The framework contains criteria under each of the main themes that your organisation can address to improve the health and wellbeing of your employees. The purpose of the themes is to provide a guide as to what steps can be taken and give an indication of areas where you may need to improve, or where you are doing well.

Organisations can progress through the levels of the different standards but must fulfil the requirements of the foundation elements which focus on data gathering and gap analysis prior to moving on to the bronze level. Similarly the same applies to both the silver and gold level, each previous level must be fulfilled before reaching or progressing to the next.

Help and support

The Workplace Wellbeing Award team offers support and guidance to assist your organisation along its journey through dedicated 1-1 support meetings, a suite of webinars and in person events and a regular newsletter that includes information on upcoming events, new resources and learning opportunities.

There is also access to a helpful, supporting toolkit for businesses who join. The Workplace Wellbeing Award extensive 'toolkit' will help guide organisations to local and national resources and local authority providers to help support the implementation and meet the requirements of the commitment. The toolkit includes a health needs assessment template that employers can apply to their organisation to determine what the key areas of focus are to improve the health and wellbeing of their employees.

NB: This toolkit may contain links to offers of health, fitness and nutritional information and is designed for educational purposes only. The purpose of the toolkit is to guide and support employers to the most relevant and reputable resources to help them fulfil each criterion of the Workplace Wellbeing Award Programme. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for, nor does it replace, professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Once you sign up you will get access to the dashboard, commitment handbook and online toolkit which gives you ‘How to’ guidance for implementing workplace procedures and activities.

Workplace Wellbeing Award accreditation

Accreditation levels

The Workplace Wellbeing Award Commitment is a standard of good practice and a quality mark for health and wellbeing in the workplace. The programme helps employers improve staff health and wellbeing, engage and communicate more effectively with employees and help to achieve a range of business and organisational benefits.

By participating you are already on the road to addressing issues such as:

• Reducing sickness absence costs
• Improving productivity
• Improving staff engagement and commitment 

There are four levels at which an organisation can achieve accreditation - Foundation, Bronze, Silver and Gold.

Foundation Level

The Foundation level consists of a 5-step approach, giving you a comprehensive understanding of your current position and supports you to action plan in the right direction and demonstrate commitment to your improvement.

Bronze Level

Bronze level focuses on how to provide awareness and information to support employees to make healthier choices and continue the journey of organisational wellbeing in tandem.

Silver Level

Silver level focuses on understanding employee health needs and demonstrating action to meet those needs.

Gold Level

Gold level focuses on your business becoming experts in managing employee health and wellbeing and developing strategies for success. Greater emphasis on monitoring and measuring for sustainable improvement. 

Key themes

Each level of the accreditation is underpinned by key themes.

1. Enablers of health

Addresses organisational leadership, policies and procedures that can help effect change.

• Health and wellbeing lead(s)
• Attendance management
• Policies and procedures
• Line manager support
• Health and safety
• Social value

2. Mental health

Helps to develop identification, prevention and self-management mental wellbeing strategies, including training and support

• Identification
• Prevention
• Self-management
• Treatment

3. Musculoskeletal health

Addresses prevention, self-management and treatment strategies, and support, such as how posture and movement at work can impact physical health.

• Identification
• Prevention
• Self-management
• Treatment

4. Lifestyles

Tackles general wellbeing issues such as smoking, alcohol, substance use, weight management and physical activity.

• Smoking
• Alcohol and substance abuse
• Healthy eating, drinking and weight
• Physical activity
• Active travel

5. External risks to health

Considers wider impacts on health, such as financial pressures, domestic abuse and caring responsibilities.

• Financial health
• Domestic abuse
• Caring responsibilities