The London Healthy Workplace Award has been refreshed for 2019. The Award is an accreditation scheme coordinated by the Mayor of London’s Office and supported by Public Health England. It aims to help businesses work towards better health and wellbeing for their employees, and covers areas such as mental health, physical activity, healthy eating, alcohol, smoking and substance misuse.
There are five different awards for organisations with different working practices and at different stages in the implementation of their wellbeing strategy:
- Micro – for organisations with 10 or fewer workers that offer health and wellbeing support for their staff. This award is equivalent to the Foundation level (below).
- Foundation – for larger organisations (greater than 10 workers) that have recently implemented health and wellbeing practices.
- Achievement – a higher level award for organisations (of all sizes) that have a more advanced and comprehensive approach to employee wellbeing.
- Excellence – for organisations that demonstrate that health and wellbeing are embedded in their corporate culture and values.
- Communal Workspace – for companies that provide shared office space for individuals, micro-businesses and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It recognises what leading workspace providers do to support their customers’ health and wellbeing
There are huge business benefits to developing a healthy and committed workforce. These include:
- Lower absence rates
- Fewer accidents
- Improved productivity
- Greater employee engagement
Working towards the London Healthy Workplace Award can help you achieve these benefits, whilst gaining recognition as a top employer in London. 34 organisations in the borough have been awarded the charter so far, which covers over 28,000 employees. They include: Greenwich Co-operative Development Agency, Charlton Athletic Community Trust, Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust and Balfour Beatty, Peninsula Construction Site. Accredited organisations are invited to an exclusive awards ceremony at City Hall and can attend London Healthy Workplace Award networking events.
The Royal Borough of Greenwich offers advice to businesses in the borough to achieve the Award. To find out more and to register your interest visit https://livewellgreenwich.org.uk/helpothers/healthyworkplaceaward/
The overview document for the Award can be found here.