We recently had the pleasure of hearing from Sophie Easter, a Wellbeing Champion at Plymouth City Council who has been part of the network for five years. Sophie is highly active in her role, offering extensive support to her colleagues by sharing knowledge, providing advice, and signposting to relevant resources. We asked Sophie some questions about her role as a Wellbeing Champion and the impact it has had on her and her workplace…
It has been five years since I completed my Wellbeing Champion training. When I first participated in the training, my goal was to help people with anything wellbeing-related, promote wellbeing within Plymouth City Council, and signpost individuals to the most useful facilities. I feel that I have accomplished this since completing my training. Day to day, I see that we, as a business, are doing more to promote wellbeing in the workplace.
The course personally helped me by providing tools to balance work and life. I also learned practical techniques, such as breathing exercises, which I use in my personal life when experiencing anxiety and high workloads. Additionally, I have been able to use my wellbeing training to support friends and family when they needed help.
In my working life, the training has been extremely useful. I have been able to pass my knowledge on to others and help colleagues not only within my department but across the entire organization. The course has also enabled me to support staff during disciplinary procedures.
Recently, I have been predominantly supporting an individual during a disciplinary procedure. This has involved signposting, daily check-ins, and providing evidence to managers involved in the procedure. Additionally, I circulate the wellbeing monthly calendar, upcoming webinars, and wellbeing communications with my team, trying not to overwhelm them with their already high workload. I have also managed to use my skills in my part-time role outside of my full-time job, which has been really useful.
We’d like to congratulate Sophie for all the amazing wellbeing practices she has been providing within her role at Plymouth City Council and look forward to what more she does in the future as a Wellbeing Champion!
If you are interested in becoming a Wellbeing Champion, please get in touch with us today!
