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Welcome to the March edition of Well Now - your monthly newsletter for staff wellbeing and development.
For the month of March, the University Wellbeing & Engagement Group takes the opportunity to highlight and address heart and lung health. As part of our provision to help people improve their heart and lung health, we are highlighting exercise opportunities from the Saints Sports YouTube channel as well as announcing the return of Step Count Challenge for 2021.
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The Saints Sports Team are creating and posting weekly videos on their YouTube channel to guide you through a variety of exercises that you can do at home.
You can find all the information about the Saints Sports YouTube channel via the link below:
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Wellbeing advice for homeworking staff
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With the majority of University staff working from home, the University Wellbeing & Engagement Group, Organisational & Staff Development Services Team and Mental Health Taskforce have all worked together to develop comprehensive guidance to assist staff in adapting to homeworking and helping to maintain staff wellbeing.
The new wellbeing advice for staff webpage includes information and advice on:
- staying safe
- working environment
- physical wellbeing
- mental wellbeing
- staying social
- further external resources
Working remotely during the coronavirus has its own separate webpage with specific information and advice on:
- successful homeworking
- working communications
- environment and equipment
- wellbeing in isolation
The new Home Workplace Equipment Policy has been created to support employees in creating a safe and effective homeworking environment through the reallocation and procurement of office equipment for the home workspace.
These webpages are being regularly updated with new advice, information and resources as they become available. Please check these webpages frequently for any new information.
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This forum provides information regarding the experience of flexible working for academics
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The forum, which took place on Thursday 11 February, aimed to provide information regarding the experience of formal flexible working for people working in academic schools, and the opportunity to ask colleagues who work in academic schools who have flexible working arrangements.
Attendees had the opportunity to hear experience of obtaining formal flexible working arrangements, how flexible working has changed their work/life balance and advice on how to go about getting flexible working.
The panellist included:
- Anna Brown (EDI Lead, Arts & Divinity)
- Gillian Brown (EDI Lead, Science & Medicine)
- Julie Harris (Psychology & Neuroscience)
- Rita Tojeiro (Physics & Astronomy)
Val Insch (HR Business Partner) was present to provide policy and procedure information about flexible working at the University. This forum was aimed to engage all staff of academic schools, both academic and professional staff.
A recording of the forum, without the Q&A session, is available to be viewed via the link below:
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No Smoking Day
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11 March 2021
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Every year, three-quarters of a million people attempt to give up on No Smoking Day. Since the campaign’s launch in 1984, No Smoking Day has helped more than 1.5 million people stub their cigarettes out for good.
Here are some No Smoking Day facts:
- 750,000 the number of people who make a quit attempt on No Smoking Day
- 11,500 number of people registered on the stop smoking online forum
- £7 average cost of a packet of 20 cigarettes
- £2,555 cost of smoking 20 cigarettes a day for one year
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10 steps to stopping smoking
Stopping smoking isn't easy, but there are things you can do to improve your chances of success. Read our ten top tips:
- Pick a quit date - choose a day that will be stress-free, and stick to it
- Make a List - write down all the reasons you want to quit. Keep the list handy and read it when the cravings start
- Build a support network - pair up with someone else who is looking to give up smoking and support each other
- Remove any reminder - before your quit date, get rid of ashtrays, lighters and matches, and any remaining cigarettes
- Use stop smoking services - contact your local NHS Stop Smoking Service for support from trained specialists
- Try nicotine replacement therapy - consider using nictoine replacement therapy, which can more than double your changes of stopping smoking
- Start moving - scientific studies have proven that exercise, as little as a five minute walk or stretch, cuts the urge to smoke and may even help your brain produce anti-craving chemicals
- Avoid trigger situations - anticipate stressful or trigger situations. So, if you smoke after a meal, go for a short walk instead
- Practice saying "no" - don't be tempted by just one cigarette; it often leads to another
- Treat yourself - put away some, or all, of the money you would have spent on cigarettes and buy something special
For more information and support on quiting smoking, go to the British Heart Foundation's webpage for smoking cessation.
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On 3 May 2021, the immensely popular national 8-week challenge where teams across the UK, organised by Paths For All, will be launching once again. The challenge will run from Monday 3 May to Sunday 27 June.
The University Wellbeing & Engagement Group is, for the sixth year running, sponsoring staff teams so your registration fees will be paid for you.
Here is how the Step Count Challenge works:
Assemble your team
- You form a team of 5 members, one captain and four other team members
- The team captain must be a member of University staff, while the team members can be University staff, students or members of the public
Register your team
- To sign-up to join the Step Count Challenge, the team captain must complete the Step Count Challenge Team Sponsorship Form with all the information about them and their team
- The Wellbeing & Engagement Group will then submit the team information directly to Step Count Challenge
- The team captain will then receive an email directly from Paths For All with a link to sign up their team on the Step Count Challenge website
Count your steps and enjoy yourself
- Sign up to the Step Count Challenge Pre-Challenge Meet to learn more about the challenge and ask questions
- Paths For All is working with Fitbit and Stava to allow participants to upload their steps directly to their Step Count Challenge accounts via your Fitbit or the Stava app on your smartphone
- Participants will still be able to manually input their steps on their Step Count Challenge account
- Take photos on your walks and submit your photos for the Step Count Challenge Photo Competition
- Participation in any group walking must comply with Government Guidance for Social Distancing and Scottish Protection Level for your region
Celebrate your achievements
- Sign up to the Step Count Challenge Post-Challenge Meet where we will celebrate everyone's achievements and award teams for the Step Count Challenge Photo Competition.
For more information about Step Count Challenge, see our dedicated webpage via the links below.
The closing date for Step Count Challenge team sponsorship applications is 16 April 2021, 5:00PM.
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Transition St Andrews is excited to announce that there is a new Sustainable Travel webpage and a new provide for the University's Cycle to Work Scheme.
Greener Commute which provides a more flexible service for staff and the new bike loan value for staff has increased to £2,500. There is some flexibility on the duration of loan and staff can repay the bike now (12–24 months).
For more information about the Cycle to Work Scheme, please go to the Sustainable Travel webpage via the link below.
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Free Online Courses from FutureLearn |
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FutureLearn is an online education provider that offers online courses from many UK and international universities, institutes and other organisations. Many of the courses are free but courses are only available for a limited time. FutureLearn courses consist of prerecorded video lectures and readings that you can work through on a weekly schedule or when it's convenient for you. They also have student discussions on every page of the course. Some have online practice quizzes, homework or assignments. Official tests or exams are only available for students who pay for certification.
Some of the wellbeing courses you can take are:
To access the courses, you need to make a FutureLearn account on their website and then select a course to sign up. For the full range of available courses, and application process visit their webpage via the link below:
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Free Online Courses from Skills Network
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The Skills Network are offering University employees places on distance learning qualifications which are fully funded by the government’s Adult Education budget.
These courses are available at no cost to the employee or University. These courses are taken on a voluntary basis, and you can study in your own time. Support is provided by a subject specialist tutor and a learning support advisor who will assist you with your learning and assessment questions.
Some of the wellbeing courses you can take are:
For the full range of available courses, and application process visit the dedicated webpage via the link below:
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Andy's Man Club is moving online to run their weekly groups.
If you are interested in attending, please email:
info@andysmanclub.co.uk
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Black Minds Matter UK is an organisation that is helping to make mental health support accessible to all black people in the UK.
They aim to enable black individuals and families access specialist, professional mental health services and have created a fund to help cover the costs.
Go to the Black Minds Matter UK website to learn more about the services they provide via the link below:
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Wellbeing with Waterstones |
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The Wellbeing with Waterstones Book Giveaway is now offering digital copies of its monthly selected title.
Successful applicants for the book will receive an email with the details of how to access your eBook.
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Why do I get a headache after a run?
Do runners really need to do strength and conditioning?
Will running damage my knees?
How can I stop my skin chafing on long runs?
How quickly will I lose my fitness if I have to stop running?
What's the best diet for a runner?
Dr Juliet McGrattan has worked as a family doctor, health journalist and Master Coach for the 261 Fearless global running network. All this experience and passion combines to create this helpful, accessible handbook. Run Well answers these and many other common health questions that runners ask. Packed with practical, realistic and sound advice on topics from head to toe, for all of the running community.
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This book features 100 wonderful walks right across Britain suitable for families with children from 0 upwards, including carrier- and buggy-friendly routes and themes such as mini mountains, walks with paddles, beaches, woodland, wildlife, circumnavigations of lakes, and walks from child-friendly cafes.
Starting with a useful and informative introduction with advice on making walks with kids successful and enjoyable (best clothing and equipment, food and drink, the countryside code, and a light-hearted troubleshooting guide for commonly-encountered problems).
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The Book of Yoga Self-Practice is the ultimate guide for every aspiring yogi or dedicated student who wants to find the magic of an independent yoga self-practice - one that's simple, practical, captivating and attainable.
This step-by-step guide will show you how to overcome the challenges of starting, continuing and progressing in a yoga self-practice. It combines heartfelt writing with beautiful, clear design to provide 20 usable and unbelievably helpful tools that you can implement in your yoga practice today. Learn to practice anywhere at anytime, not just do poses. Fast, slow, short, long - your flow starts here. Start reaping the incredible rewards for your body and mind.
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Maximising Personal Effectiveness
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Personal effectiveness deals with success, goals, and strategies to deal positively and confidently with others to continue building effective working relationships.
Maximising Personal Effectiveness is a fun course, useful for everyone including those taking on new roles & responsibilities or other changes.
The course will enable participants to:
- Devise tools to enhance your personal effectiveness
- Examine Interactions working confidently and flexibly with others
- Boost confidence and resilience
- Focus on achievement moving forward with confidence
- Maintain personal effectiveness across all situations.
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Interested in coming along?
Friday
12 March
9:30 - 12:30
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Creating Positive Outcomes
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Join Dr Simon Haslam from FMR Research for a practical insight into succeeding with difficult conversations
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This workshop draws on practical concepts from the areas of conflict management, mediation and influencing. We will focus on the following areas:
- The characteristics of conflict in the workplace, its contributions and challenges
- Understanding personality differences and how to handle them in difficult conversations
- The grief cycle and its impact on difficult conversations (Kubler-Ross)
- Peoples natural styles when faced with conflict (using the Thomas Kilmann five strategy framework)
- How to apply push pull influencing in the pursuit of effective dialogue
- Good practice techniques when dealing with difficult conversations
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Interested in coming along?
Thursday
18 March
10:30 - 15:30
(Break, 12:00 - 14:00)
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Join David Longstaff for a practical and informative workshop to help you take control of your busy life.
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Staying on top and in control of our work in this fast-paced world is becoming increasingly difficult. This can leave us feeling overwhelmed and have a knock on effect to our personal life.
This course has been developed to help effectively manage a hectic and complex workload and support us as we focus on the important, plan our work effectively and attack it with confidence.
Agenda
- Session 1 - Perspectives
- Session 2 - Workflow
- Session 3 - Systems
This unique course, which is not traditional time management, is highly acclaimed by busy professionals and proving extremely popular in this climate of 'doing more with less'.
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Interested in coming along?
Session 1 - Tuesday 23 March (10:00 - 12:00)
Session 2 - Wednesday 24 March (10:00 - 12:00)
Session 3 - Thursday 25 March (10:00 - 12:00)
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Loving Later Life: Flexible Yoga
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Join Penny Turnbull,
Organisational Psychology Trainer, for an introductory workshop in the science, art and practice of Mindfulness and its benefits
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Join Penny Turnbull for this Flexible Yoga class as part of Loving Later Life month.
Designed to develop and maintain flexibility, this 30-minute yoga class will involve yoga poses that are compatible with being seated for accessibilty.
Should you wish to use a chair, mat, pillow, or blanket, you are welcome to. Flexible and comfortable clothing is recommended. If you have any challenges that may affect your ability to participate, please contact Penny Turnbull at pt28@st-andrews.ac.uk.
Please note that there are four dates available to book separately on 7, 14, 21 and 28 August.
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Interested in coming along?
Wednesday
13:15 - 13:45
7, 14, 21 & 28 April
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Autumn Voices:
Creativity and volunteering in later life
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Join Robin Lloyd-Jones, esteemed Scottish author, biographer and social anthropologist, for a conversation about creativity and volunteering in later life.
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Robin will be discussing his own experience of creativity and volunteering in later life, as well as some of the experiences of other Scottish authors he interviewed for his 2018 book, 'Autumn Voices: Scottish writers over 70 talk about their creativity in later life'.
The event will include a talk and a Q&A via Microsoft Teams.
More information can be found about Robin Llloyd-Jones and his various creative works on his website:https://www.robinlloydjones.com/
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Interested in coming along?
Monday
19 April
17:15 - 18:15
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Join Louise Martin,
Organisational Psychology Trainer, for an introductory workshop in the science, art and practice of Mindfulness and its benefits
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Mindfulness practice teaches us to stay in the present moment: paying attention, on purpose, to the present without stress provoking negative judgments. By becoming more mindful we can see more clearly the patterns of the mind and as a result find we have more choice and skill in how we respond to the challenges of our lives.
Mindfulness is less about gaining something new than becoming more in touch with what is already here. Many people find becoming mindful helps to reduce stress and emotional upset, deal with life’s challenges more effectively and enhance feelings of joy and contentedness.
This introductory mindfulness session will cover:
- An overview of what mindfulness is
- The scientific evidence for how it works
- Trying some experiential practices and short guided meditations
- Questions and discussion
Note: Individuals with a history of trauma or those who are currently experiencing mental health problems should check with their GP or therapist about their suitability to attend such a session prior to signing up to the course.
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Interested in coming along?
Tuesday
20 April
13:00 - 16:00
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This month's ingredients:
*Jerusalem Artichoke, Mussels*
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