The Landmark London to offer mental health support

The Landmark London has announced plans to support the mental health of its workforce by running bespoke mental wellbeing sessions as it prepares to welcome employees back from furlough and open its doors to guests again on 14 May.

All 218 members of staff at the 120-year-old luxury hotel will be offered the course, which will also give them a nationally recognised qualification on completion.

The sessions are designed to increase employees’ knowledge and understanding of mental health, allowing them to recognise the causes and effects of poor mental health and support one another better.

According to Nicola Forshaw, director of human resources at The Landmark London, the sessions – run by the Skills Network – reflect its desire to more fully support those who work in the hospitality sector – people that have suffered an incredibly difficult 12 months.

She said: “We have launched this mental health training programme because the health and wellbeing of our team is our number one priority.”

Forshaw explained that the programme will exist alongside the hotel’s wider in-house training scheme, as part of its “commitment to invest in the development and betterment of our people”.

She added: “This initiative will be incredibly important at helping prepare individuals as they return to the hotel, as well as building their understanding of mental health so they can help themselves and others.”

The wellbeing awareness announcement follows the hotel reaching the Platinum standard with Investors in People in 2019.

The Landmark London was also one of the first hotels to sign up to ‘Our Hospitality Commitment’, a voluntary code of conduct working with People 1st International, to support the hospitality industry in continuing to offer diverse opportunities.

In 2020, The Landmark London came fourth in the Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For.