24th June 2025
Anita is our Health and Wellbeing Lead at the TU. In this article, Anita introduces herself and discusses why and how we prioritise wellbeing at the TU.
A little bit about me…
I am a Transformation Consultant with over 20 years of NHS experience, now working within the NHS TU to support improvement, change and transformation programmes across health and care. I began my career as a district nurse, a role I loved but was unable to continue due to my health condition. I began working within a PCT commissioning team supporting Individual Funding Request processes, and more recently worked in CCG commissioning (primarily mental health, learning disability and autism alongside joint commissioning with the local authority and voluntary sector), before joining the TU in 2022.
Throughout my career, I have been involved with health and wellbeing staff networks in various roles, and I am also a trained Mental Health First Aider. I am deeply committed to supporting inclusivity in the workplace, with the resulting positive impacts on mental health, emotional wellbeing, and physical health for staff.
My strong interest in health and wellbeing at work was sparked by my own experience living with a long-term condition and the support I have received from various employers along my journey. Remaining in employment, and being well supported to do so, has made a crucial contribution to my personal wellbeing and to the management of my condition. It has also significantly increased my quality of life, my level of independence and options I have available to me. While there have been many ups and downs along the way – something I know many colleagues will identify with – I want to make a difference so that we all feel able to thrive at work, regardless of our personal circumstances.
Health and Wellbeing at the TU
One of the main reasons I joined the TU in 2022 was because of the inclusive interview process and the TU’s positive reputation for a supportive working culture within the NHS. Upon starting my role, I was happy to feel that the TU truly lives by its values, and that valuing people is not just a tick-box exercise. There was already a huge amount of great work taking place which demonstrated this ethos in action; and I was pleased to be able to establish a TU Health and Wellbeing (HWB) Group to help coordinate some of this, alongside the existing Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Group and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Group.
The goal of the HWB Group is to ensure that our colleagues feel well-informed and supported with their health and wellbeing, with easy access to the right resources to remain as well and resilient as possible.
Some of the ways we do this include:
- Our joint HWB and EDI calendar of events, which highlights annual awareness-raising days through sharing resources, insights and experiences via newsletter pieces, guest speakers and presentations.
- Fostering a strong sense of teamwork through volunteering events, social activities, physical health and mindful activities in our whole team days, as well as joint fundraisers.
- Reviewing current good practice and identifying areas for improvement to shape organisational plans, such as through our Mental Health at Work Commitment.
- Organising a health and wellbeing focussed session each January as part of our corporate training and development plans.
- Developing tools and documentation to assist staff to work well, such as a Personal Support Plan that complements our existing health and wellbeing appraisal document, for team members requiring a little extra support (e.g. colleagues with disabilities, long term conditions, or who are unpaid carers).
The aim is to make sure the TU remains a caring and supportive place to work, where people feel a sense of belonging, and can thrive. The NHS annual Staff Survey 2024/25 showed that 88% of TU colleagues feel the TU is committed to helping them balance their work and home life and 100% believe the people we work with are understanding and kind to one another. We understand that if our people are empowered to be themselves, and work in a psychologically safe space, we will continue to deliver high quality, professional outcomes for the NHS.