UK mental health week: our top brand activations

Mental Health Awareness Week took place last week in the UK; an initiative led by the Mental Health Foundation for the last 21 years. This year’s theme was loneliness; which impacts one in four of us some or all of the time, and has been especially prevalent for many during the pandemic.?

Yet, as the week began, Headspace released the results of a global survey which showed that, at a time when employees need them the most, some companies are cutting back on mental health offerings. 71% of workers said their company increased the focus on mental health in the wake of COVID-19, but just 25% say they have kept up that focus in the last year. So, I was interested to see how companies in particular would take action during the week, hoping perhaps, that UK companies would buck this trend.

Unfortunately, the number of innovative, dynamic actions and campaigns taken by companies seemed fewer than usual. As mental health remains a growing priority for both staff and customers, I sincerely hope this will change in the years ahead.?

Having said that, here are some of the best actions we saw from companies in the UK over the last week:

Asics used the opportunity to announce an industry leading initiative; the sports brand will now fund mental health support for all its sponsored athletes. Having recently published a Mental Health in Elite Sport report, as well as leading research into the psychological benefits of physical activity, Asics are truly leading the charge in terms of mental health and sports research.

Their latest report, which they supported through Mind, drew on the insights of organizations and athletes from across the sport sector, and highlighted the progress being made to tackle mental health in elite sport. Whilst also revealing key areas that require more work; the drive to tackle stigma and the need for more funding to treat mental health problems.

Asics aims to normalize conversations around mental health by encouraging athletes to be open and honest about how they are feeling; all new athlete contracts in the European region will encourage Asics athletes to be ambassadors of movement for positive mental health.

Gymshark was another sports brand highlighting the importance of mental health last week; sharing common cries for help via their instagram as well as partnering with both the JED Foundation, and Calm Zone.?

Lad bible UK also used their IG channel to nod towards Mental Health Awareness Week, promoting a video of World Champion boxer, Tyson Fury discussing his own experience of depression. The digital publisher also signposted to kooth.com, a digital mental health and wellbeing company working to provide a welcoming space for digital mental health care, available to all.

Link Up TV, a music promotional platform - whose YouTube channel is the second largest UK rap-based channel - also shared powerful interviews with rap artists last week, sharing their mental health stories in a series of videos created with fellow rap content platform, Hardest Bars.

Channel 4 stuck to the theme set by the Mental Health Foundation (we always love seeing this display of unity, as we are stronger together!); unveiling it’s Lonely Giant channel ident to draw attention to the theme of loneliness in support of Mental Health Awareness Week. These 20 & 40 second videos featured the unmistakable Channel 4 giant talking about his experiences of loneliness, reminding viewers that anyone can feel lonely, even those that seemingly have it all.

Cosmopolitan celebrated mental health awareness week with articles on loneliness, and protecting your mental health whilst dating; the latter included a poll from cosmo readers. Said survey found that 61% of respondents have had an experience on a date that has negatively affected how they feel about themselves.

Whilst it is great to see an increasingly diverse range of brands and companies begin to talk about mental health, it does lead me to question, when will we see the tangible support for people living with mental illness that is now critical? My mixed feelings towards this ‘action’ was articulated brilliantly by Poorna Bell -?

‘while it’s better than nothing I do feel it enables companies to put on events about MH when they do nothing the other 51 weeks of the year, and also becomes a trendy moment on social media. But most of all, the thing that gets me is that it is this continued sanitised version of mental health that is portrayed, not actual illness.’

Also having read Hannah Jane Parkinson’s reflections on her own mental illness and ‘The Conversation’ as she calls it, which ‘is dominated by positivity and the memeification of a battle won’ I want to call out that we all - the public, companies, employers, health professionals and politicians - all need to make our words and actions count for more.

Whilst the brands mentioned here have gone above and beyond the rest, this is only the beginning; the bare minimum, if you will. When will the true action begin???