Almost a year on since five Project Centre staff were trained by Talking Menopause, we catch up with our Menopause Champions.
Last year, Mental Health First Aider (MHFA), and Proposal Manager Paula Rainey came across Talking Menopause. The organisation promotes positive menopause discussions in the workplace. “A friend of mine was struggling with it and it made me think about the different ways it effects women’s lives. The menopause is always that thing that we know happens, but we as a society don’t openly talk about it. Even less so in the office.”
A 2021 survey found that 90% of menopausal women felt their symptoms affected their performance at work. Another study found that only 22% of employees had spoken about menopause in their workplace. Director of Marketing and Resourcing commented, “It feels like a hidden issue that even women aren’t fully educated on. In a male dominated industry, it can be seen as a taboo subject. In order to change this, we had to make the menopause more transparent.”
Our MHFA team contacted Talking Menopause and organised a workshop for all staff and our clients. They also arranged further training for volunteers. This group became the Menopause Champions, a support for staff who can offer tailored support to those in need. “The workshop from Talking Menopause, was a real eye opener. There was so much on how it effected women both mentally and physically and what it can do to their mental health – especially if they feel they can’t talk about it. I’d never want anyone at Project Centre to feel that way so I was really proud when we had people step forward to become Champions.” – Keith Hanshaw, Managing Director.
A year on, our five champions have:
- Offered support to people on an hoc basis
- Attend our monthly mental health coffee mornings Brew Can Do It, to be on hand if anyone needs a chat
- Send out information and signposting to other help
If you would like to find out more about our Women’s Learning and Development Network, read our looking back article here.
