October 28, 2026

Are businesses missing the point of charity partnerships?

Increasingly, companies look to demonstrate meaningful social impact through their CSR, ESG and employee engagement programmes. And, partnering with a charity delivers a “win, win” for all parties, as it gives employees and customers a cause to align to, and the cause exposure and income from fundraising. But the most effective partnerships should be judged by the difference they make, rather than the category a charity occupies. At Leukaemia Care, we support people affected by blood cancer at every stage of life, including children and their families. (more…)

October 27, 2026

One in five workers think they are poorly served by offices

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace design

A major new study of workplace experience has found that offices are failing to meet the needs of employees with disabilities and health conditions, younger workers enjoy a better experience than older colleagues, almost a quarter of workplace investments make things worse, and noise remains a persistent problem, while AI threatens to reshape how employees work and learn from one another. The findings come from Leesman’s new Big Questions report, which draws on a database of more than 1.6 million employee responses across 10,775 workplaces in 124 countries to examine whether offices are meeting the needs of the people who use them. (more…)

October 12, 2026

How to apply the lessons of World Mental Health Day every day in the office

by Annick Bessawa • Comment, Wellbeing

World Mental Health Day is always an opportunity for organisations to show they genuinely care about their people, but supporting employee wellbeing requires year-round commitment. This year’s theme highlighted the importance of listening to people with lived experiences of mental health conditions, helping to build understanding and reduce stigma in the workplace. By creating an environment where employees feel safe to speak openly and know where to find support, businesses can make a real difference to their wellbeing. St John Ambulance trainer Annick Bessawa shares six practical ways employers can acknowledge what we learn on World Mental Health Day and create a more supportive workplace throughout the year. (more…)

September 24, 2026

The right workplace culture can enhance trust, creativity and performance, report claims

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace, Workplace design

Workplace culture can have a significant impact on employees’ capacity to adapt to change and innovate, according to new polling from O.C. Tanner, which argues that organisations should pay greater attention to compassion, employee development and trust. The firm’s 2027 Global Culture Report, based on data gathered from more than 25,000 workers in 23 countries, claims that organisational culture can act as an “amplifier”, either exacerbating uncertainty and burnout or strengthening employees’ sense of trust, connection and purpose. (more…)

September 24, 2026

How people move may offer clues to their mental health

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

The way people move may provide clues about their mental health and associated patterns of behaviour and symptoms, according to new research that could ultimately have implications for how psychological wellbeing is understood and assessed. Researchers from Northwestern University in Illinois and other institutions examined the relationship between a range of movement characteristics and psychological symptoms, including anxiety, depression, mania, dissociation, substance use and psychosis. (more…)

September 18, 2026

Before trying to work out whether AI can be conscious, we need to work out what consciousness is

by Mark Eltringham • AI, Comment, Wellbeing

For those keeping up with the conversations about AI, beyond the hour-by-hour flip flopping about whether it will create hell or heaven on Earth, all driven by the hype merchants behind it and their critics, the most vigorous seems to be about whether AI is conscious or not. Now this is worth addressing, of course, but the entire conversation has a problem it usually fails to acknowledge. And it’s this. We don’t know what consciousness is. (more…)

August 26, 2026

Hybrid working and the hidden cost of being “always on” at work

by Dr Dirk van Dierendonck • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing

Hybrid working has delivered welcome flexibility, but it has also changed our relationship with work. The traditional boundary created by leaving the office at the end of the day is often less defined when work is accessible from our kitchen table, spare room or mobile phone. Yet this challenge is not limited to those working remotely. Even employees who spend most of their time in the office now carry work with them through smartphones and constant digital connectivity. (more…)

August 16, 2026

Is resilience a personality trait or a flaw in workplace design?

by Carl Lyon • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Resilience must be one of the most misunderstood issues affecting businesses right now. It’s used whenever people are struggling, and almost always aimed at the individual – be tougher, manage your stress, build a bit more grit. During countless conversations with leaders and teams over the last few years it has been seen that those words do real damage to people who are trying hard to do their best. When tiredness is no longer fixed by a weekend, when feedback lands as a threat, and when change is met with a sigh, it gets recorded under ‘poor personal resilience’, effectively telling people the problem is with them. I don’t think it is. I think we’re looking in the wrong place. (more…)

August 3, 2026

Giving employees a say over office art may boost wellbeing and job satisfaction, review suggests

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Giving employees more control over the artwork displayed in their workplace could improve wellbeing, job satisfaction and engagement, according to a new systematic review from researchers at the University of Roehampton. The review, published in Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, found evidence that visual office art can have a positive effect on employees’ psychological wellbeing and workplace experience, with the greatest benefits seen when workers are able to choose or position artwork themselves. (more…)

July 14, 2026

Westminster event backed by Coldplay frontman Chris Martin tackles disability employment barriers

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

An event at the Palace of Westminster this week will bring together politicians, business leaders and figures from the entertainment industry to discuss ways of improving employment opportunities for disabled and neurodivergent people. The reception, organised by inclusive entertainment company 0UTLYER, takes place on 15 July and coincides with the launch of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Disability Employment. Titled Breaking Barriers, Backing Talent, the event aims to encourage collaboration between policymakers, employers and industry leaders on improving access to careers, particularly within the creative industries. (more…)

July 14, 2026

New mothers return to work early as financial pressures shorten maternity leave, report finds

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

Financial pressures are prompting many new mothers to return to work before the end of their statutory maternity leave, according to new polling from campaign group Pregnant Then Screwed. The organisation’s State of the Nation 2026 survey, conducted in partnership with Women in Data, suggests the impact is greatest on single parents, lower income families and parents of disabled children. (more…)

July 7, 2026

What frictionless work is removing from the working day

by Elyas Coutts • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing, Workplace design

If you look around most offices at midday on a Tuesday, you will likely see a variation of the same scene: employees sitting at their desks with headphones in and responding to Slack messages while eating lunch. The physical environment of the workplace may still be thoughtfully designed, with ergonomic furniture, curated lighting and acoustic panels; however, the atmosphere often still feels flat. Creating a highly optimised, frictionless workplace means removing physical hurdles and operational delays, but it can also strip away the small moments of variation, spontaneity and connection that give working life its texture. Often, the result of frictionless work is an environment that feels psychologically monotonous and socially thin. (more…)