World Mental Health Day can open up useful conversations. What happens afterwards is your chance to turn those conversations into something your team can feel in their working day.
Imagine if someone shared an idea, asked for support or told you something needed to change. A few weeks later, they can see you listened and took an appropriate next step.
That is how you start building trust—and confidence to speak up again.
Here are eight practical ways to keep supporting your team after 10 October.
1. Follow up on what you heard
If you invited feedback, let your team know what happens next.
Share a short update covering:
- What you heard.
- What you will take forward.
- Who is responsible.
- When you will review progress.
Be honest about what you can change. Keep individual conversations private and avoid sharing details that could identify someone.
2. Make check-ins part of everyday management
You do not need to wait for another awareness day to ask how someone is doing.
Make room in regular one-to-ones to talk about workload, support and what would make work more manageable.
Try: “How are things feeling at the moment?” or “Is there anything getting in the way that we could work through?”
Give people time to answer, and respect their choice about what they share.
3. Turn a Wellness Action Plan into agreed actions
If your team used a Wellness Action Plan, revisit it together where the individual wants to.
Choose a practical action you can agree on: clearer priorities, a different way of checking in or support with a particular pressure.
Agree when you will review it. A plan becomes useful when it helps guide what you actually do.
If you need a starting point, you can access our free Wellness Action Plan template and guide.
4. Look at the working day itself
Ask what could be making work unnecessarily difficult.
Are priorities clear? Are meetings getting in the way of focused work? Can people take their breaks? Are expectations around availability understood?
Choose one manageable change and involve the people affected. Review whether it helped before deciding what to do next.
5. Check that support is easy to access
Sharing support information once is a start. Check that people can still find it when they need it.
Keep contact details current and explain what each person or service can offer. Include colleagues working remotely, on different shifts or away from a computer.
If you have designated workplace supporters, check that they understand their boundaries and know where to turn for support themselves.
6. Give managers time to build confidence
You might have opened the conversation about mental wellbeing and realised your managers need more support too.
Ask where they feel unsure. Starting a conversation? Listening without rushing to solve everything? Knowing what an appropriate next step looks like?
Give them opportunities to learn and practise using fictional situations. Help them understand the support available within your organisation and the limits of their role.
7. Keep connection inclusive
A coffee morning or walking group may work well for some colleagues. Others may prefer a quiet one-to-one or a different way to connect.
Offer options, keep participation voluntary and consider accessibility, working hours and caring responsibilities.
You can also recognise the everyday contributions people make. Be specific about what you appreciate, without making someone’s personal circumstances part of the praise.
8. Review what changed
Set a date to look back at the actions you agreed.
Ask your team what feels useful, what is easier and what still needs attention. Check whether actions happened, rather than measuring success only by attendance or social engagement.
You do not need everything resolved at once. A clear next step, followed through, gives you something to build on.
Build confidence for the conversations ahead
Your team’s needs will continue beyond October. You may want to help managers or designated supporters develop their skills further.
Our Mental Wellbeing First Aid training helps you build confidence to notice when someone may need support, start a conversation, listen and understand where to turn next.
Our Hero Makers make learning approachable and practical, with clear boundaries around the support you can provide.
Explore mental wellbeing training for your organisation.
Planning your next awareness day? Visit our World Mental Health Day workplace guide for activity ideas and free resources.
You can also book in a free consultation to consult with you and your organisation on strategy, implementing mental health training and all wellbeing-related policies.
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