Employee wellbeing: Caring for our people at DCMS

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport value the wellbeing of their staff and have a robust strategy with multiple avenues of support and resources available to support staff wellbeing and to empower and equip managers to support their employee’s wellbeing.

DCMS offer access to an ‘Employee Assistance Programme’, ran by external provider, which is available for all staff and their families to reach out for confidential support 24/7 from specially trained teams. It is designed to enhance employee wellbeing and resilience and they can support with a range of things such as, financial issues, legal matters, anxiety and depression, bullying and bereavement. They also offer management advice to give line managers coaching support for their teams. 

DCMS have also created a wellbeing conversation and resource pack for hiring managers to use to shape conversations with employees around the subject of wellbeing. It includes a ‘Five-step wellbeing conversation tool’ with examples of questions that they could ask to shape conversations and tips to share. It is mandated in HR policy that wellbeing is an agenda item within all monthly and quarterly reviews.

DCMS highly value the Mental Health and Wellbeing Network, a staff network led by staff volunteers at DCMS with Senior Civil Servant support. They advocate on behalf of colleagues with mental health conditions, support mental health champions and promote mental wellbeing and awareness in DCMS. This network is consulted on all departmental policy which may impact employees – demonstrative of the active voice they have and how well respected and valued they are internally.

DCMS offer all staff free membership to Headspace, a mindfulness app with proven results to reduce stress and burnout, and increase focus, amongst other benefits. This feeds into improved employee wellbeing. 

HR have recently delivered a series of workshops titled “Work-life balance, managing workload and improving employee wellbeing”. These workshops cover theory and practical tips on these themes, group discussions and an opportunity to hear from senior staff members on their experiences and reflections on these topics. 

Are you interested in joining a department which values employee’s mental health and wellbeing so highly? Take a look at the current vacancies available in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport.