Calls for mental health support from our community shot up by over 40% in the last six months of 2020. To support improved mental health in the engineering community, we’re delighted to announce the launch of Foothold Wellbeing Hub in collaboration with Gattaca plc.  

In response to the growing need for mental health support, we have today launched an online Wellbeing Hub, giving the engineering community access to clinically approved resources and techniques to support their mental wellbeing.

Our CEO Jane Petit said: “Since the start of the pandemic, calls for our support have tripled. This is a trend reflected by the rest of the sector. But addressing and improving mental wellbeing in particular is important because our state of mind impacts our ability to handle pressure in other areas of life. We’re proud to be able to support the engineering community in this way.”

Working together

The Foothold Wellbeing Hub features clinically approved e-learning sessions on topics like anxiety, depression, work stress, substance abuse and others. In addition, it offers support on pandemic-related challenges like redundancy and isolation. The project is being funded through a collaboration with Gattaca plc, an engineering and technology recruitment specialist and outsourced solutions provider.

Gattaca’s Group Director, Matthew Wragg, commented: “It’s clear that the past year has been an extremely challenging time for so many people, financially, physically, socially and mentally, which is why it’s so important to ensure that those struggling have access to the appropriate help they need. At Gattaca, we’re on a mission to do what we can to make things better; we want to help as many companies, candidates, colleagues and communities as we can. Our collaboration with Foothold and subsequent fundraising challenge to pay for this online Wellbeing Hub is helping us do just that.”

Expert wellbeing support online

Our community members have been seeking help for anxiety, depression, and other mental health difficulties. And of course, many have also been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Michael, a 49-year-old engineer, was already struggling with his mental health. Then the first lockdown made things worse.

“I couldn’t access the right type of support and I couldn’t function or cope with everyday tasks. As things spiralled, I moved in with my brother – he knew I needed to take the pressure off and focus on getting better. If that hadn’t happened, I’d have ended up being homeless.”  You can read more of Michael’s story here.

Our aim is that in 12 months, the Foothold Wellbeing Hub will provide 1000 wellbeing sessions for community members like Michael and many others. The expert support on the hub will link with the support we already offer and help people make positive changes in their lives. The Wellbeing Hub is free to use for all engineers and their families worldwide. To find out more and start using the hub, click here.