Start Now – Stress Awareness Week 2-6 November 2026
Whilst Stress Awareness Week is an important reminder about workplace stress, organisations should be working every day to build cultures of prevention. Working with Mates in Mind, we have some answers to ‘how?’
You can also read Fabrication & Glazing Eye’s most recent Stress Awareness Article here
What causes stress?
Stress is the way we react to a perceived danger. It has two forms: one that builds up over time from regular stressors, like a heavy workload or noisy working conditions. The other is more dramatic and is caused by a sudden or unexpected event, such as a car accident or a bereavement.
So how do you know when stress is too much stress?
It is important to acknowledge that excessive stress, over periods of time, without the ability to recover, leads to fatigue, feeling overwhelmed, unable to cope and burnt out, which results in ill health. However, the line between ‘stress’ and ‘excessive stress’ depends on the individual, as everyone reacts differently to it. What matters is not how much stress you can endure but that you have the skills to identify when you or those around you, are experiencing excessive levels of stress and how to reduce it.
What is Stress Awareness Week?
Every year the International Stress Management Association [ISMAUK] runs a campaign to increase public awareness of stress, its impact, and the importance of mental health and wellbeing. In 2026, the theme is ‘Shaping the Future of Stress and Wellbeing: Rehumanising the Workplace’.
Mates in Mind and Fabrication & Glazing Eye are encouraging our readers to normalise talking about mental health and particularly about stress. Take time to identify the root cause(s) and address them not only within your own organisation but also across your supply chains and networks, Not just during this awareness week but throughout the year. This will help to address the stigma and give people the confidence and reassurance that it is okay to start a conversation about stress and mental health generally.
Stress Awareness Week sees National Stress Awareness Day on 4 November 2026.
Resources
Mates in Mind works with organisations to improve the mental health of their workforce by providing the skills, clarity and confidence to employers to take action on mental ill-health through raising awareness, improving understanding, designing out working practices that can cause mental ill-health, implementing effective interventions and ending the stigma that surrounds it.
The charity has created a suite of resources to support organisations and to create a comprehensive and ongoing programme of support.
Click Here to access those Resources
Is awareness important?
We know that stress at work can have a devastating impact on someone and that it can have life changing repercussions for them as well as their family, friends and colleagues.
There were 964,000 cases of work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 1924-25. Stress, depression or anxiety accounted for 52% of all work-related ill-health cases and 62% of all working days lost due to work-related ill-health.
The main work factors cited as causing work-related stress, depression or anxiety include the demands of the job, lack of control, lack of information and support, work relationships and roles and responsibilities.
Employers have a legal duty of care to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of their employees, including mental health/stress.
Mental wellbeing also benefits the business, for example, increased productivity, a reduction in sickness and staff turnover. It demonstrates that the organisation is a good, safe and supportive place to work. Research has found that, on average, businesses achieve a £4.70 return for every £1 spent on wellbeing support.
Mental wellbeing in the workplace is also good for the employee, for example, improving confidence, purpose, achievement, positive relationships, and inclusion.
Rehumanise workplaces
We all know that by working collaboratively, we can be the change what is needed to improve mental wellbeing in the workplace. Together we can rehumanise workplaces by ensuring that all teams are supported through a proactive prevention strategy which raises awareness, improves understanding, empowers everyone to identify working practices that can cause stress and gives managers the authority to mitigate them.
Mates in Mind can help with your workplace strategy as a paid for service.
Picture: The Stress Awareness Week poster.
Breaking the silence and stigma surrounding stress and mental ill-health is a crucial step towards building positive mental health in and through work.
