Ex-England footballer and Causeway Technologies mental health ambassador Trevor Steven and representatives from Lendlease have met with Maria Caulfield MP at a construction site in London to discuss the ongoing mental health crisis in construction.
Last year, Causeway Technologies launched a significant lobbying campaign to encourage companies to pledge greater support for mental health. Part of the campaign advocates for mental health provision to be included in Health & Safety and Social Value procurement conditions in construction contracts.
Maria Caulfield MP, Minister for Mental Health and Women’s Health Strategy, heard how a recent industry survey of 1,439 construction site workers found that 56% are currently experiencing or have experienced mental health problems including anxiety and depression. 12% of respondents said they had experienced or were experiencing suicidal thoughts.
Maria Caulfield said, “Businesses must create a work environment that supports and protects their workers, both physically and mentally.
“It’s great to see Lendlease and Causeway taking positive steps to destigmatise mental health conversations in the construction industry and I hope this signals lasting change for the wider industry to champion mental health support for their employees.”
Trevor Steven commented “We’ve had some very frank conversations over the last 18 months about the reality of working in the construction industry and how it can impact mental health and it is clear we need to do more than just hanging a few signs up around sites.
“We want real commitment from business to act and hope we can count on the support of the government to back our campaign and help us move the dial on this most important issue.”
Also in attendance at the meeting was Matthew Hartill, a scaffolder who shared his story of struggle with poor mental health and suicidal thoughts, which eventually led to him becoming a mental health ambassador for fellow construction workers.
The meeting took place at Google's KGX1 King's Cross development, where Lendlease is implementing industry-leading mental health initiatives to support its workforce.
Anna Evans, public sector framework director for Lendlease Construction, said: “We’re determined to improve the conversation around mental health and it was really encouraging to see Trevor and Maria Caulfield on site discussing an issue that, as a society, we’re still getting comfortable with talking about.
“In construction, our people are our greatest asset and to safeguard their mental health we need to be proactive. That’s why we’ve trained 500 members of staff as mental health first aiders over the last decade, and we’ll continue to invest time and energy on providing the best possible mental health support for our workforce.”
Causeway is encouraging companies to sign their mental health pledge here.
The Mental Health Pledge
I commit to creating a better workplace environment in Construction that includes mental health support for my workforce. I further pledge to back the campaign for mental health provision to be part of the Health & Safety and Social Value procurement conditions for future construction contracts.
For more information on Causeways mental health campaign and to sign the pledge, click here.
