Balancing work with caring responsibilities can take a significant toll on mental health. Employers have a vital role to play in creating environments where working parents feel supported, understood and able to prioritise their wellbeing.
Promote mental health & wellbeing
With around 1 in 5 women developing mental health issues during pregnancy or within the first year of their baby being born, mental wellbeing is be a top priority for leading employers.
Implement a mental health policy
This will outline what your company’s approach is to employee mental health, the support you’ll provide, and how employees can access it. This policy should be more than just a document though – it should undermine how you operate as a business, and the values should be lived and breathed by your employees.
Offer mental health resources
Along with access to information and guidance, you can also provide advanced mental health support, such as counselling services, mental health first aiders, and allowing employees to take mental health days.
Encourage self-care
New mums and dads can often forget to take care of themselves, but they need to stay happy and healthy to thrive both at home and work. Gym membership discounts, free yoga sessions, and subscriptions to wellness apps are amazing perks to offer. You could also promote healthy habits by having meetings outside, providing healthy snacks, and encouraging everyone to take 15 minutes out of each day to practise mindfulness.
Provide manager training
Equip your managers with the knowledge they need to recognise the signs of poor mental health, have better conversations with their team, and offer effective support.
Find out about Anya’s parenting support
Encourage boundary setting
Clear boundaries are essential to achieve a healthy balance between work and family time. You don’t want work to overshadow your employee’s parenting responsibilities, but at the same time, you want to ensure they’re performing to a high standard and have the same opportunities as other colleagues.
- Unplug from work. Encourage employees to finish work on time, and lead by example by not answering emails or calls outside of work hours. Scheduling breaks in the work calendar is also a good way to establish healthy boundaries in your team.
- Offer alternative work spaces. While working from home is a godsend for parents, there might be times when they need a quiet space to get their head down. By offering access to shared workspaces, or the option to work from anywhere such as cafes, they can separate work from home life.
- Respect boundaries. It can be difficult for employees to say no to managers if they’re asked to stay late, or work a different shift, but for new parents, these requests can be incredibly disruptive to their already hectic schedule. By respecting your employees’ boundaries, you help to protect their time and energy. This can have a positive impact on productivity and overall job satisfaction.
Offer support during sickness and school holidays
Babies and children are susceptible to catching all kinds of bugs, causing them to fall sick unexpectedly. This, along with multiple school holidays throughout the year, can disrupt your employees’ routines. By helping your employees navigate these events, you demonstrate empathy and understanding. When employees feel supported, they’re more likely to be motivated and engaged with their employer.
- Be sympathetic. Having to concentrate at work while dealing with a sick child can be emotionally taxing. Be aware and understanding of the fact your employee might need to take urgent phone calls, or they might take several small breaks instead of one long lunch break.
- Offer flexible working. Being able to work from home without any prior planning helps employees accommodate unexpected illness without reaching out for additional support. You could also discuss flexible start and finishing times so they can manage childcare arrangements without the added stress of running late. Remote working would also enable your staff to be at home during the school holidays, which not only saves them money in childcare, but it means their kids get to see more of mum and dad.
- Support financially. Employers can offer subsidiaries to help cover the cost of holiday clubs and activities. Partnering with local childcare providers and sports clubs to offer discounts could also be a good way to support parents while boosting your business’ profile.
- Host family-friendly events and workshops. This is not only great for bonding and employee morale, but it takes the pressure off arranging childcare on given days. Holding virtual workshops for little ones also means parents can work while their child is occupied for a few hours.
Final thoughts
Protecting the mental health and wellbeing of working parents requires more than good intentions. It relies on open conversations, healthy boundaries, and access to the right support at the right time. When employers prioritise wellbeing and equip managers to respond with empathy, parents are more likely to feel safe, supported, and able to perform at their best. Complementing internal support with digital tools like Anya can help parents access trusted guidance whenever they need it.