Issuu

Wellbeing@Russell-Cooke

W reality.”

elcome to the latest edition of the wellbeing newsletter. We held this one back a bit to coincide with World Mental Health Day which was on 10 October. The theme this year is “Mental health care for all : let’s make it a

The World Health Organization is highlighting the impact of the global pandemic on the world’s population which has been devastating for so many but also strikes a note of optimism as many countries have committed to scaling up mental health services and endorsed the WHO’s comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2030. The theme of making mental health care a reality for all provides an opportunity to empower people to look after their own mental health and provide support for others. Here at Russell-Cooke, we hope that you feel able to access help and get support when you need it, from the many sources of support there are. Those may be colleagues, your managers, HR, friends, a member of the wellbeing group or something more specialist including the counselling provision through our employee assistance providers, CiC. It’s important that you feel able to take notice of when things are not going well, be kind to yourself and get the support you need. Whilst for many, things are better than they were this time last year, with the vaccination programme and return to a more normal life, that’s not the case for everyone. We need to remember that some people are struggling and need support. We hope that one of the lasting impacts of the pandemic is the recognition that we need to care for ourselves better and notice those around us who may need a little extra help. Of course we are now one week into our new agile working regime. It has been so good to see all our colleagues in person and, for some of us, to attend some external events too. It feels like a return to some level of ‘normality,’ which is extremely welcome. And finally, we are honoured and very excited to have been nominated for a UK Diversity Legal Award for Mental Health and Wellbeing Team of the Year… the ceremony is on 30 November and we will let you know how we get on! We hope you enjoy reading this newsletter and find the information helpful. We look forward to seeing many of you at some of the October events listed on the next page. In the meantime, take care of yourself and those around you. Sam Little

Wellbeing@Russell-Cooke

MAGAZINE

Our October activities 12 October: Working Parents and Carers group online meeting with Camilla Thornton 13 October: a yoga for mental health online sessions with Shabnam Ali-Khan at 12. Use this link to join. 14 October: HRTea (menopause group) online meeting with Clara Errico 18 October: London Legal Support Trust walk. Please do join the RC team. The walk this year will take place in the early evening and thus be a bit darker, but the route is well lit and should still provide a chance to see the evening beauty of the parks and river and central London as you walk to raise funds to support charities that provide valuable support to the vulnerable in our society Half term: entertainment for the kids: Please also look out for news of a magician event (remote) to be held during half term and we hope you and your families will enjoy that. Halloween: pumpkin challenge – more on this later! October is also Menopause Awareness Month, Breast Cancer Awareness month and Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Please keep an eye out for information and opportunities to discuss those important issues.

MAGAZINE

RC goes to Tokyo – ‘game-ifying’ wellbeing

hether you are an athlete yourself or a certified couch potato, the Olympic Games are inspirational. The Olympic torch lights more flames than just the one – this year it lit our collective desire to get moving again after a very long time in lockdown. The idea was simple. Exercise is good. Having a goal is good. With wellbeing in mind, we wanted to motivate RC people to head outside and exercise. So, we challenged them. Could we, as a firm, cover the distance between London and Tokyo before the closing ceremony on 23 July? We kicked off the mission on 25th June. This came to 8,786 miles to cover in 44 days. By signing up with MyVirtualMission, we could divide the firm into teams which would log the distances covered by their members. Running, cycling, swimming, rowing, walking, everything counted. There was even a conversion chart that allowed people to turn activities like yoga, pilates and boxing into miles.

total miles logged kept growing at an astounding rate. Before long, we had well over 150 people signed up to the challenge! It only took us 23 days to reach our destination… so we decided to head back the way we came. MyVirtualMission allowed us to track our progress along a route that we had drawn before the start of the mission. As teams reached various checkpoints, they received factoids and snippets from their location. Brussels, Berlin, Potsdam, Kiev, it was a real Eurotrip until we reached the vast plains of Russia. In the end, we managed to log a full London-Tokyo return and then some in the allocated 44 days thanks to our 162 participants. An outstanding result. One of the main things that made this event such a success was the element of friendly competition. We didn’t pit teams against each other just as a bit of spice to liven everything up, the idea was to motivate people to pick up good habits again just to stay in touch with their ‘rivals’. And it seemed to work.

Very quickly, the cyclists marked their dominance on the event. PI and clin neg took a convincing lead with the help of its Peloton spinners who kept regularly logging big mileage. In the individual race, Jason Hunter was making himself known as the miles muncher, sometimes closely followed by Paul Greatholder and Andrew Godfrey (sometimes not so closely).

What have we learnt from this? That exercise makes us feel good. That some of us are motivated by competition. That having a purpose inspires us. That working as a team helps us to achieve more. That riding a bike, fixed or normal, puts you at an serious advantage when it comes to mileage. We've got the Winter Olympics next year, and we’ll also be back with a new mission. Just don’t tell the cyclists.

As the weeks ticked by, the competition for the podium intensified and our

Richmond Park Wellbeing Walk I am sure everyone knows that walking is a great way to exercise all year round. Members of the firm enjoyed a guided walk around Richmond Park on 6 October. The firm has sponsored the Friends of Richmond Park for many years and this was a wonderful chance to see more of the park and hear more about it. We arranged the walk for the week leading up to World Mental Health Awareness Day and were incredibly lucky with the weather as it was a stunning bright sunny autumnal evening. We walked from 5-6.30 so watched the sun setting over the park. It is rutting season so we kept a safe distance from the deer at all times – the stags have been known to charge. We are hoping to organise another walk in the spring when the park is again particularly beautiful and we will update you nearer the time. We hope to attract more walkers this time – it is a wonderful opportunity to get an additional insight into this beautiful park. Richmond Park was created by Charles I in the 17th century as a deer park. It is a national nature reserve, a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Special Area of Conservation as well as well as the largest London park.

MAGAZINE

Tips for boosting immunity by Caroline MacGregor Avoiding coming into contact with sick people is an obvious way to avoid getting ill but there are some simple steps you can take to both stay well and help you fight off the lurgy quickly if you do get sick. Read more

Why it’s more important than ever to get your flu jab by Susannah Foden We have had a low prevalence of flu over the past months whilst we have been mixing less. It is predicted that as a population we now have less immunity to flu as a result. The Covid-19 pandemic is also still rumbling on and so some experts are concerned about the risks of simultaneous infections.

WELLBEING PROGRAMME

Accessing health services by Sarah Wheway Caroline MacGregor has given us all some useful tips on boosting our immunity to hopefully avoid getting ill. However should we become unwell or have health concerns it is important we get any issues checked out as soon as we can. Read more

MAGAZINE

Wellbeing@Russell-Cooke

MAGAZINE

HRTea group summary As an organisation with a majority female workforce clearly the menopause will be an issue for all sooner or later and many will go through this rite of passage during their working life at the firm. It has for many years been a taboo subject that has just not been talked about and that women have just had to ‘get on with’ and suffer sometimes debilitating symptoms or lack of information or resources.

This is a group Clara has set up to gather together women from across the firm who want to share experiences, information and resources or just to talk about their symptoms and concerns. It has since been held monthly and has been well attended. Caroline MacGregor, who is a qualified nutritionist, has been able to provide a lot of useful information about supplements and nutrition to augment Clara’s resources and support. Much information is also shared on the busy Teams chat.

Thanks to HR manager Clara Errico we have for some time been providing access to menopause resources and bringing this subject into the open. In May this year during [mental health week] the first ever HRTea online meeting was held.

If you’d like to join the group please contact Clara.

MAGAZINE

October pumpkin challenge

e are planning to launch a pumpkin challenge for October and we need your help!

Pumpkin farms: add a few lines on pumpkin farms here… Pumpkin recipes: what do you do with your pumpkins? Please send your recipes (smoothies, pies, soups, seed roasting etc) to wellbeing@russell-cooke.co.uk as soon as possible. We will publish the recipes on the intranet before half term. Pumpkin carving: Over half term, could those of you who get involved with pumpkin carving please send a photo of your creation, again to wellbeing@russell-cooke.co.uk. Once we have your photos we can provide a montage – we know it’s going to be spectacular.

MAGAZINE

Wellbeing Champions Members of the Wellbeing Group who have had Mental HealthAwareness training and will now be known as the WellbeingChampions are: • Sam Little – partner, children & education/K • Caroline Walker – marketing/P • Laura Johnston – learning & development/P • Clare Thompson – associate, real estate/BR • Gareth Roy – associate, charity/P • Harriet Ballard – trainee • Jenny Cooper – associate, private client/P • Merlene Buckley – executive assistant, employment &immigration/P • Richard Shaw – senior associate, family/BR • Sarah Wheway – medical assistant, personal injury &clinical negligence/P • Susie Foden – associate, TED/P • Lisa King – executive assistant, family/P

MAGAZINE

Internal help and advice

nd please remember…if you have any ideas for wellbeing and how we can help and support you, please email wellbeing@russell-cooke.co.uk.

If you feel you need a little extra support, please make contact with someone – whether it is a colleague, wellbeing champion, your supervising partner, CiC, Clara or Anna. See our first wellbeing quarterly update for more information on our Wellbeing Champions and Mental Health First Aiders. External help and advice line CiC are our employee assistance programme providers and host a 24-hour Confidential Adviceline for practical and emotional support which is available Free to you and your family. It is important to stress that this service is confidential and the information you share is not passed back to the firm. The only data the firm receives is how many callers use the service and the general nature of the enquiry but your names or any further details are totally confidential

They also offer their time saving ‘Everyday Matters’ service to help you source services, activities and suppliers. This service is also very useful for you to use to assist your more vulnerable clients. CiC Manager adviceline is a specialist service that provides expert support and advice for anyone with managerial or supervisory responsibilities. CiC confidential care advice line. See our previous wellbeing quartely update.