As stated on the mitigating CSI page, employers have a statutory duty (HASAW Act, 1974) to protect the health, safety and welfare of their employees and other people who might be affected by their business. In addition to reducing risks to wellbeing, there are many things that can be done to increase the likelihood of thriving in the workplace. 
 

Some ideas for employers to promote staff psychological wellbeing in educational settings include:

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• Ensure that there is a trustee/governor and staff member with responsibility for staff wellbeing

• Education practitioners and those involved in making policies, decisions and/or judgements about practice should receive training on work-related stress/psychological wellbeing, so that there is a shared professional discourse.  As well as having a discrete staff wellbeing policy, staff wellbeing should be considered and pervade all relevant policies, risk assessments and procedures.  Risk assessments must assess the psycho-social hazards (including cumulative and historical), as well as physical hazards of teaching.   Where possible, teachers should be involved in this process and in identifying matched support strategies, as increased ownership can increase the chance of successful implementation.  Attention should be given to supporting psychological need satisfaction

• Increase opportunities for teachers to feel CSat, to observe others being treated compassionately, and to be treated compassionately themselves, as this increases care-giving capacity

• Sign up to and follow the ‘Education Staff Wellbeing Charter’  https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1034032/DfE_Education_Workforce_Welbeing_Charter_Nov21.pdf

• Provide a safe culture for disclosure and actively give staff a voice e.g., through surveys. 

• If possible, provide an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) or signpost to people/organisations/activities that can help (wellbeing and generally)

• Take account of context; don't blame and punish teachers for being unable to resolve societal issues that are beyond their control.  Where issues are within an educator's control and they have failed to act appropriately, accountability practices should be transparent, proportionate, and ethically applied

• Instead of the focus being dominated by measurable and largely academic outcomes, greater recognition and esteem should be given to the ‘caring’ work that teachers do

• Instead of competition, there should be collaboration.  Those who benefit under the current system need to stand in solidarity with those who do not (e.g. through movements such as More than and Score and Burn Brighter: Change for Education), and inclusion should provide extra opportunities for psychological need satisfaction, rather than being career threatening/ending

• Limiting the ‘feedback fallacy’ (see 6.3.3), so that time and resources used for surveillance and punitive judgements, could be redirected to support, e.g. through lesson study, coaching and/or supervision, where reflection and preflection are facilitated.

• Communicate job roles and expectations clearly, including any changes, so that staff know what is expected of them.  Where feasible, include staff in decision-making and do everything possible to ensure that their psychological needs are not being violated or thwarted

• Proactively manage and monitor workload, including clarity of expectations on email response times

• Provide appropriate CPD/training opportunities - consider carefully who will benefit from the given training.  Do experienced teachers need to sit through something that they've done before?  Alternatively, do experienced teachers need more input to something new that more recently qualified teachers have had included in the teacher training?

• Consider using coaching and lesson study rather than judgemental lesson observations

• Provide adequate resources for staff to do their jobs – although this is problematic when not enough money 

• ALLOW TIME TO HAVE FUN - WHAT ARE STAFF DOING THAT GO AGAINST THEIR VALUES

• TRUST, FRIENDLY - OPEN DOOR.  friendly, approachable, kind, value and respect.  CHECK BACK TO TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP.

• GIVE AND TAKE.  LOOK AT START OF CHAPTER 7

• Provide reflective and developmental spaces through facilitated conversations, such as coaching and supervision

• Hold return to work interviews and informal check-ins following staff absence

• Treat staff fairly and make reasonable adjustments where necessary to promote inclusion and avoid discrimination

• Provide specific wellbeing and social sessions/activities to promote a sense of belonging; however, these need to be optional as activities such as yoga, mindfulness, shared lunches and evenings out may not be everyone's idea of fun.  These activities may also reduce wellbeing if they are felt to increase demands on time

• ECTs must have a mentor but consider whether it is possible for all staff to have a buddy or peer supporter of some kind

• Support staff with challenging situations, including student and colleague behaviour

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It's not just an employer's responsibility to reduce the risk of work-related stress/harm.  Employees also have a responsibility to take reasonable care of their own and others’ health and safety.

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Some ideas for self-care when exposed to others’ trauma and adversity

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• Acknowledge the ‘emotional toll’ of your work as a natural consequence and not as a weakness.  You can only get CSI if you care!  If personal trauma is unresolved or triggered, it may be necessary to seek specialist support for this from your GP or related service-provider

• Do your own dynamic risk assessments, taking account of the cumulative impact of your work and other relevant contexts

• Don’t leave trauma-related emotions unprocessed, connect with peers and colleagues.  If available, access reflective supervision or wellbeing coaching as a prevention, (see services pages for more detail on these). These provide opportunities to offload and process emotions; get validation of actions taken; and support with difficult or unusual situations. Don’t wait until you need a cure

• Recognise that you can’t solve every problem yourself and that the responsibility for doing so where others’ trauma and adversity is concerned does not lie solely with you (even though it might feel like it)

• Set limits and carefully consider what else can give if you go over these limits – sometimes the best thing to say is 'no'

• Accept that you can’t run on empty and taking time to ‘refuel’ is essential and not a luxury

• Give time to reflection rather than rumination, remember to include positives and celebrate your successes.  Although compassion satisfaction can’t prevent CSI, it is the most effective buffer against it

• As much as possible, intersperse things that cause you distress with things you find naturally rewarding and enjoyable, both at home and at work (work doesn’t just deplete psychological resources but is also a key source of psychological need satisfaction)

• Identify your own coping strategies and apply them

• Above all, be kind to yourself.

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The strategies for mitigating against CSI are also useful for 

 

same factors for mitigating against CSI but also:

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Identify your warning signs (e.g. snappy, crying, shouting, stop exercising, over-eating, headaches) and take time to work out what your most important psychological needs are and look for opportunities to satisfy them Give time to reflection rather than rumination, remember to include positives and celebrate your successes. Make a note of positives – diary writing, poetry 
Identify your own coping strategies and apply them 1% change
CLANGERS - C – Connect, L – Learn, A – be Active, N – Notice, G – Give back, E – Eat Well, R – Rest, S – Sleep  https://davidflavintherapy.co.uk/the-clangers/ 
Do things that make you laugh, ‘soothe’ www.projectsoothe.com , or help you to be ‘in the moment’.  
Breathe!
Think about advice you’d give to a friend – then do it for yourself
If the problems are systemic, challenge the system – get involved with a union, see your MP
Connect with others – don’t keep struggles to yourself. Remember to be careful about who you talk to and what you disclose as there are laws and expectations related to confidentiality and privacy that you must comply with.  If not provided by your setting, you may want to consider accessing professional support such as a coach, supervisor, mentor or counsellor yourself.

Acceptance – work through it
Denial
Avoidance/delaying/distraction
Humour
Vent
‘Have a go’ at someone
Wishful thinking
Mental rehearsal
Personal sacrifice
Self-goal setting
Prioritising/planning/time- management
Remove distractions/negative cues
Surround yourself with positive cues
Interspersing aspects of your role that you don’t enjoy with those that you do enjoy

Ask for help with task completion

Training

Self-initiated study

Self-reflection

Positive self-talk

Putting in perspective

Reframe (glass ½ full or ½ empty?)

Talk things through with a work colleague

Facilitated reflection – e.g. supervision or coaching

Talk things through with someone at home

Talk things through with an external professional (colleague at another school, coach, counsellor, spiritual leader)

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