‘You know that if you need help you will be supported, no matter what it is’

4PS was given the Best for Mental Health Award at this year’s WM People Top Employer Awards. The judges praised them for their focus on addressing the work-based causes of mental health problems through tailored work plans to address workload, regular check-ins by managers, mental health workshops that are open to all, all supported by senior leadership. The company also offers a range of ways of boosting wellbeing, for instance, through its allotment and bring and share lunches. Here we talk to one employee, dad Daniel Ahchiev, about the way his employer has supported him and what it means to him and his family.

Daniel Ahchiev started working for 4PS as a support consultant three years ago. He works full time from home, but goes to the office in Birmingham around once a month for meetings or company events.  

He loves the flexibility of working from home and says it has a positive impact on his mental health, particularly as commuting to work from his home in Bristol would take four hours a day and be fairly costly.

The flexible working is part of a culture that promotes wellbeing. “You know that if you need help you will be supported, no matter what it is,” says Daniel.  So when he was having problems last summer due to a close family member’s mental health-related issues he talked to HR and told them how it was affecting his ability to focus on work.

He was told that he could flex his day when the stress got too much for him. 4PS also allowed him to travel with his 13-year-old daughter to his home country of Bulgaria and work from there while she spent time with her extended family. He was also able to take his daughter, who suffers from scoliosis, to physiotherapy appointments. After around two months of extreme stress, Daniel’s family situation improved.

He says: “I really felt I could share how I was feeling and that the people at 4PS would understand. It makes me feel more likely to stay. That kind of care changes the way you think about your employer. If I got a job offer from another company I would be much less likely to accept it, however tempting the salary, because if you change jobs you have no way of knowing what the atmosphere will be like.”

He combines working from home with access to online mindfulness sessions offered by the company and has recently been doing more physical activity as well as meditation. “That kind of support makes me want to give my best,” he says.

*Daniel features in the forthcoming Best Practice Report 2024 which includes interviews with all the winners of the WM People Top Employer Awards. The report will be published in May and can be ordered from the WM People website here.

• Vote  
• 2
• 0
• You already voted!