Cafcass introduces meditation sessions as part of staff mental health drive
Neil Puffett
Friday, June 29, 2018
Members of staff at Cafcass are being offered sessions on how to decrease stress and anxiety through meditation in order to promote mental wellbeing against a backdrop of increasing demand.
As part of a new "holistic wellbeing model" launched this year, a total of 45 health and wellbeing sessions have been delivered to approximately 900 staff members, the organisation's annual report, published today, reveals.
The sessions have covered topics including mindfulness, which involves meditating to become more aware of thoughts and feelings, as well as mental health awareness and resilience.
Meanwhile 135 members of staff received individual, expert support via referrals to the in-house one-to-one support service.
"The [holistic wellbeing] model is a foundation upon which our staff can be productive, build a positive work life balance, and maintain high levels of resilience in a high-pressured environment, all within a context of increasing workload demands," the report states.
"We worked with managers to ensure that working environments are safe, workloads are manageable and that staff are equipped and supported to carry out their roles.
"We are committed to creating an environment that enables our staff to feel engaged, motivated and able to provide the best service possible to the children and families we work with."
The report states that feedback about mindfulness sessions has been "overwhelmingly positive".
Cafcass has experienced a significant increase in demand for its services. The number of applications for children to be taken into care have increased by 27 per cent in the past three years, from 11,519 applications in 2014/15, to 14,218 in 2017/18.
In the first two months of 2018/19 there have been 2,408 applications, an increase of 7.4 per cent on the 2,242 recorded over the same period in 2017/18.
The report also reveals that Cafcass increased the number of accredited mental health first aiders to 18 and has delivered three workshops to managers to increase awareness of, and reduce stigma around, mental health.
Earlier this year Ofsted rated Cafcass as "outstanding" following an inspection. Cafcass chief executive Anthony Douglas is due to step down in March 2019.
