The Sealy plant in Aspatria, which manufactures beds, is among the first wave of businesses in the county to sign up to the Better Health at Work programme (BHAWA).

Set up by the TUC union, the aim is to encourage employers to focus on the health of their staff, in turn giving them a happier, healthier and more productive workforce.

In turn it is hoped they take new habits back home, encouraging their families to adopt healthier lifestyles and ultimately seeing better health spread across the wider community.

The scheme has already had huge success in the north east, and Ken Gyles, health and wellbeing support officer at the TUC, was keen to see it rolled out in Cumbria. After securing funding from Cumbria County Council’s public health budget, that is now underway.

Ken had already been working with Sealy on a project to raise awareness of mental health in the workplace, and had trained staff up as mental health first aiders.


Claire McGregor Claire McGregor, human resources manager, said that alone has proved incredibly beneficial, so they were keen to extend their work to incorporate all areas of health and wellbeing.

“We started out with the mental health first aid, training up 10 senior managers and supervisors. We quickly upped that to 30 and have 30 more lined up to do it,” explained Claire.

This alone has helped raise awareness of stress, depression and other mental health problems right across the factory, changing attitudes, reducing stigma and making people feel more able to talk openly about their mental health with their colleagues.

The Better Health at Work awards is an extension of that. Representatives from all parts of the business are trained as advocates, who promote healthy lifestyles to their colleagues and encourage the company to make healthy changes.

But it’s not just a case of signing up. In order to gain accreditation – via bronze, silver and gold awards – employers have to show what has changed and how it has had an impact.


Chris Tweddle Chris Tweddle, manufacturing manager, said: “We are starting with small steps. Nobody is saying you should be running five miles a day. It’s about making small changes.

“And it’s not just about work. It’s about people’s everyday lives and their families.”

Claire added: “Some people were a bit nervous about becoming health advocates but you don’t have to be a symbol of health. You are just there to be able to listen and point people in the right direction.

"The first thing we have done is launch a health needs assessment – a questionnaire that has gone out to the whole workforce asking what they would like to improve and how we can help,” she explained.

The advocates will then choose three or four initial themes – be it fitness, healthy eating or something wider like cancer or diabetes awareness – to focus on for the first year as they look to secure bronze status.

Ideas to date include a hydration campaign, a pedometer step challenge, discounted gym memberships, a workforce weight loss challenge and action to improve healthy options in the canteen.

Those leading the projects include factory workers Carl Lock and Andrew Goodger, who are among Sealy’s health advocates.

Both are interested in health and exercise, so put themselves forward after hearing about the new initiative.

“It’s really just about talking to people and making them aware of little changes they can make. We are just starting out but one example, there was a guy who liked a fry up every morning. We got talking and he now has them three times a week,” said Carl.

Andrew added that Sealy has a strong team of workers, many of who have been there for years, and it’s good to see the company investing in their general health and wellbeing.

Benefits for the businesses will hopefully include reduced sickness rates, but Claire said that’s not the main goal.

“It’s really just a way to show staff we genuinely do care. That we will do everything we can to support them,” she said.

“It’s the staff leading this. I am here to help facilitate it but it’s their ideas. We’ve got health advocates in all departments, the shop floor, in the offices, in management – it’s bringing everyone together.”


Ken said that as a trade union, the TUC is keen to work with employers who invest in the health of their workforce. With Better Health at Work, there is no financial obligation but employers invest time and a commitment to make positive changes.

“The ethos is that employers and trade union work together to improve health and wellbeing and offer employees better choices so they can look after themselves better, phsyically and mentally,” he explained.

Ken said that having seen it working in the north east for years, they were keen to get it running in Cumbria too. And he said since securing funding, the response locally has been great.

Sealy is among 10 employers signed up, and Ken hopes to see that expanding across the county in the coming months.

“What employers like about it is that there’s a structure to the award so it’s easy to roll out and is properly assessed,” said Ken.

“It’s a free award. It’s really them signing up to a commitment to embed health and wellbeing in the workplace over the next four to five years.

“It shows that the employer looks after and engages with its workforce. We carry out the training of the health advocates and they choose the campaigns to run. Everyone wins.”

A summit for employers was held on Friday at the North Lakes Hotel to promote the scheme and encourage more to sign up.

For more information contact Ken at KGyles@tuc.org.uk .