LionHeart partnering on EG mental health project
LionHeart has been asked to partner on a long-term mental health in property project being led by Estates Gazette.
The campaign is highlighting not only the impact of mental health issues among people working in the real estate sector, but also the unique position the industry has in promoting positive mental health through the built environment and effective placemaking.
LionHeart and our mental health project John O'Halloran Initiative will be working alongside other partners The Crown Estate, Hollis and This Can Happen with EG.
Damien Wild, EG editor-in-chief, said: "One in four people has had to leave at least one job in the last five years because of pressure and the negative impact it had on their mental health. Meanwhile poor mental health costs employers between £33bn and £42bn a year, with low productivity, absenteeism, and staff turnover all affected by employee wellbeing.
"As well as affecting individuals and businesses in real estate, the built environment also has a unique and vital important role to play in promoting positive mental health. Good quality residential is an established factor, with the role of effective placemaking also increasingly recognised.
"That's why EG is working with a number of partners to promote positive mental health - in property's own workplace and in the buildings and places this industry creates."
One of the first things the project is trying to do is create a benchmark for where mental health is in the real estate sector as a whole and people are being encouraged to fill in a short anonymous survey.
EG will also be addressing mental health at their Future of Real Estate event and at the landmark This Can Happen conference, which will both take place in November. LionHeart will be supporting both events.
Juliet Smithson, head of operations at LionHeart, said: "We'd really encourage surveyors to get on board and fill in the survey being run by Estates Gazette. A better understanding of how the sector is affected by mental health issues can really help inform better support and ultimately help make healthier workplaces.
"The LionHeart team has been working hard to promote positive mental health and wellbeing in the property industry through our ongoing John O'Halloran Initiative. Over the last few years since we have been running annual symposium events and associated mental health workshops for RICS professionals and our corporate partners, we have seen a definite positive shift in attitudes towards talking about and acknowledging mental health in the workplace.
"It seems like the perfect time to partner with Estates Gazette and other organisations in order to help reach an even bigger audience and have an even bigger impact. We very much look forward to working with them to not just keep these important conversations going but to shout them from the rooftops!"
The first John O'Halloran Symposium was run in 2016, in memory of retired chartered surveyor and company director, John O'Halloran FRICS, who sadly took his own life after suffering depression for most of his adult life. The ongoing initiative in John's name which is now organised by LionHeart includes mental health 'ambassadors' from the surveying industry, support for workplaces, and workshops and webinars that support positive mental health and wellbeing.
Find out more:
Complete the EG mental health survey
Check out the new Estates Gazette mental health hub online
LionHeart's John O'Halloran Initiative
LionHeart counselling
