Trigger Warning: this page includes mention of suicide.

The Men’s Health Forum organises Men’s Health Week each year. The week aims to raise awareness of men’s health and to encourage all men to seek help to address any health concerns that they may be experiencing. We believe that there is no health without mental health, and we wholeheartedly advocate for everyone seeking help when they need it. We do this by raising awareness of mental health, encouraging everyone to start the conversation about mental health and thereby help to address the stigma that surrounds it. We advocate for change through responding to government inquiries and by working in collaboration with our Supporters to create positive mental health in and through work.

This year, Men’s Health Week UK is running from Monday 10 to Sunday 16 June, and we are encouraging our Supporters to start the conversation within their own organisations and across their networks.

Why is Men's Health Week important?

The shocking statistics regarding the mental health of workers in our key sectors tell us why Men’s Health Week is so important:

• One man in five dies before the age of 65. [1]
• Four in five suicides are by men, with suicide the biggest cause of death for men under 35. [2]
• In 2021, there were 6,319 suicides registered in the UK, of which 507 were in construction alone. [3]
• A third of construction workers live and work with severe levels of anxiety. [4]
• Drivers of work lift trucks had a suicide rate 85% higher than the national average, van drivers were noted to have a rate 25% higher, and drivers of large goods vehicles 20% higher than the national average. [5]
• Virtually all UK farmers (95%) under the age of 40 rank poor mental health as one of the biggest hidden problems facing the industry today. [6]

Free Webinar

As part of our Men’s Health Week activities, we will be running a webinar ‘How to create positive mental health in and through work’ 2-3pm on Wednesday 12 June 2024. During the webinar we will present our recommendations to government on how to improve mental health, and look at practical ways that organisations can start the conversation about mental health, address the stigma that surrounds it, and create positive mental health in and through work.

Find out more and book your place

Resources

At Mates in Mind, we work with organisations to improve the mental health of their workforce by providing the skills, clarity, and confidence to employers on how to raise awareness, improve understanding and address the stigma that surrounds mental health.

This is why we have created a suite of resources to support organisations not only during Men's Health Week, but also to build a supportive workplace culture which creates positive mental health in, and through work.

Please click on the link below to download a free poster. You can personalise it by adding the relevant details of your Mental Health First Aiders, HR team, Employee Assistance Programme and so on, in the white box. Please then share it across your organisation.

Please also visit our Resources page where you can download additional free resources.

Visit our Resources

Please sign up to our newsletter at the bottom of this page to be informed of when we publish our blog on ‘How to optimise your mental wellbeing through nutrition’. In the meantime, the first blog in the series can be found:

Six tips to optimise your mental wellbeing

If the information on this page has resonated with you, and if you or someone you know needs help or support, you can speak to one of the many free, confidential support services below:

Support Services

Mates in Mind Supporters

We have additional materials exclusively available for our Supporters:

To download these materials please log in to the Supporter portal, and access your resources:

Log in

If you are not a Supporter but would like to find out more about our Programme please read on.

How we can support you

Mates in Mind can support your organisation to build a mental health plan and to create a culture of prevention.

Our dedicated team of Support Managers work with organisations of any size to develop a tailored action plan, evaluating your organisation's priorities and gaps, and providing the tools and support you need.

This plan includes ongoing support with communication and delivery of your plan, as well as training opportunities, promotional materials, and a suite of tools (including awareness date resources) to enable you to drive long-lasting and meaningful change.

Find out more about how we can help your organisation build a culture of prevention when you become a Supporter by:

• Visiting our Become a Supporter page.
• Calling: 020 3510 5018.
• Using this contact form.

If you would like to know when we publish new resources, please complete the newsletter sign up at the bottom of this page.

References:

[1] https://www.menshealthforum.org.uk/mhw

[2] MPs to examine men’s mental and physical health in new inquiry - Committees - UK Parliament

[3] Suicide statistics - House of Commons Library (parliament.uk)

[4] supporting-the-mental-health-of-self-employed-construction-workers (2).pdf

[5] Suicide by occupation, England

[6] Virtually all young UK farmers worried about poor mental health (personneltoday.com)