Championing Mental Health

2020, has been a difficult year for many and medical reports have announced a spike in mental health cases and people suffering due to the unforeseen measures that Covid 19 has created in the UK and the rest of the world. We are living in unrepresented times, which many are finding difficult.  

At Contego, our employees are our family and we care about our families health and well-being, especially during these difficult times, which is why we decided to make sure our Contego family had the best support that Contego could provide while at work through our mental health champions.

Kirsty Taylor, our business development manager, has always expressed an interest in mental health and helping out in the community. She is always offering her team a sympathetic ear and has become the teams confident when anyone is struggling with personal problems in the office.

Kirsty could see the impact the Covid 19 restrictions were having on her team, so she decided to put her name forward as one of Contego’s Mental Health Champion’s when approached by Contego’s CEO Michael Taylor.

So that Kirsty was fully qualified to help her team with their mental health she completed her CACHE Level 2 Certificate in Understanding Mental Health First Aid and Mental Health Advocacy in the Workplace, which would give her the skill set to help her team to the best of her ability. Kirsty Completed the online learning course at home, which she really enjoyed and found to be really engaging and fascinating. 

Kirsty is very excited to be Contego’s mental health champion and had this to say,

“Approximately 1 in 4 people in the UK will experience mental ill health each year. Having suffered depression myself in the past, I recognise how important it is to get the right support, but also that someone with poor mental health may not realise it themselves. I certainly didn’t. By being able to spot signs and symptoms of mental ill health we are able to provide the right support to those that need it. We are a team and right at the core of our values is to support each other. It’s only right that we treat mental health in the same way as physical health. 

My role is to provide non – judgemental support and reassurance to those that need it and signpost people to professional support where appropriate. One thing I will be doing is helping raise mental health awareness and cut the stigma around mental ill health.”

“Contego are delighted that Kirsty has decided to be our mental health champion and I have no doubt that she will do an amazing job and she has our full support.” Contego CEO, Michael Taylor.