This strategy outlines the Council's priorities for employee wellbeing over the 2026 - 2029 period and how the Council will realise them.

The Council's overarching aim is to provide a workplace that enhances employee wellbeing. Whilst this is our aim, we recognise the significant challenges that are placed on the organisation which can impact on employee wellbeing.

Fundamental to helping employees achieve their own wellbeing within the workplace is our ability to create an environment that fosters employee engagement, inclusion and fulfilment. We recognise that inclusive workplaces, where all employees feel valued, respected, and supported, are essential to overall wellbeing. We understand that doing so will help develop a workforce that is fit and motivated and will assist on delivering the Council Plan priorities.

Council Plan and Workforce Strategy

This strategy supports the implementation of the Council Plan 2022 - 2027, specifically the enabler: Valued Sustainable Workforce, as well as the Corporate Risk Register risk of Health, Safety and Wellbeing; and the Key Theme of Health, Safety & Employee Wellbeing contained in the Workforce Strategy 2023 - 2027.

Falkirk Council Wellbeing Group

The Wellbeing Group will be responsible for monitoring the implementation of this Strategy and considering additional items to be included over its lifespan.

Health, Safety & Wellbeing Group

The Health, Safety and Wellbeing is responsible for developing and reporting on the delivery of this strategy and associated action plan.

This Strategy targets 3 key themes of wellbeing that are relevant to our employees. We recognise that all 3 of these themes are inter-related and impact on all our employees to varying degrees over both their time working for us and after they have left the organisation.

We recognise that employees' wellbeing can be impacted by both work and non-work related factors. While we can influence wellbeing in the workplace, we can also support employees with non-work issues that may affect their overall wellbeing.

Physical wellbeing

A range of working environment, lifestyle and behavioural factors that impact our physical health and affect our quality of work and life. We will proactively share information and opportunities relating to the prevention and management of physically related health conditions.

Mental wellbeing

Is the state of well-being where we are the best versions of ourselves, working to our potential and coping with the everyday pressures of work, family, and home life. We recognise the need to create inclusive and healthy work environments where the mental health of our employees is managed in a supportive way. We also recognise that some organisational challenges create barriers to effective working that can, in turn, significantly impact mental wellbeing. By removing obstacles and building a culture of support, we can create an environment where everyone feels valued and empowered to thrive.

Financial Wellbeing

Reflects feeling secure and in control of our personal finances. This reflects our employees' ability to balance their priorities, whether that's paying their monthly bills or preparing for retirement, reflecting that priorities will change over time. We will ensure all employees have access to their employment information, pay and benefits and know where they can go to seek advice on their personal financial matters.

This strategy has identified 2 core priorities where our organisational activity will focus to positively impact the physical, mental and financial wellbeing for all our employees. Our priorities are based on what our employees have told us matters most to them, and what the data from our organisational health, safety and wellbeing performance information is telling us.

Priority 1: Healthier Workplaces

A healthy workplace is one in which our employees and managers collaborate to promote and protect employee health and wellbeing. This priority includes both the physical workspace and psychosocial work environment which our employees operate in. It is an opportunity for the Council to use the workplace to foster behaviours to improve health for all our employees.

We will create healthier workplaces by:

Improving employees' work life balance and ensuring workloads are manageable

The post COVID workplace has seen a huge shift in how employees can engage with their work. Creating new guidance and embedding the right to disconnect within the Council will provide employees and managers with better knowledge and tools to help ensure all our employees have a separate home and work life. This is further supported by the Council's ongoing Good Conversations programme to ensure the employees and managers engage in a regular dialogue regarding their work and wellbeing.

Additionally, appropriate planning to ensure that our organisational objectives are achievable within the means available to the Council is a fundamental aspect of ensuring employees workloads are manageable.

Providing opportunities for employees to use the workplace to improve their personal wellbeing

Enabling our employees to use their workplaces to assist in improving their wellbeing helps them improve their personal lives and also encourages employees to build relationships with their colleagues outwith a work context. This further benefits the Council by helping to make our workspaces somewhere employees want to be to collaborate and help deliver on organisational goals.

We will provide employees with clear pathways to allow them to access a variety of resources where they can better engage with colleagues and improve their wellbeing.

Promote flexible working arrangements

Providing employees with access to flexible working arrangements enables the Council to attract and retain a wider range of employees and provides employees with a better working-life balance that helps meet their needs. We will continue to promote the arrangements that are available to employees and how they can access them.

Priority 2: Early Intervention

Identifying opportunities to proactively improve our employees' wellbeing, their working environment and their health outcomes; all of which can have significant benefits to the Council by reducing or preventing ill-health and improving performance.

To do this we will create opportunities to engage with employees and improve wellbeing earlier by:

Creating an environment that supports better mental wellbeing

Falkirk Council offers a range of benefits and opportunities that enable our employees to improve their personal mental wellbeing. Regularly communicating with our employees regarding the Council's support and benefits programme helps keep employees up to date on offerings which can be beneficial to them. It also ensures that employees are aware of the benefits programme and how this can be of support to them.

Undertaking regular activity to better promote and connect our employees with the benefits and opportunities that help them, allows us to help improve our employees' ownership of their own wellbeing.

Managers also play a critical role in our employees' wellbeing. By assisting our managers in understanding the range of support available, they will gain a greater understanding of the Council's support options for both themselves and their employees.

Improving our employees' confidence in supporting colleagues experiencing poor mental health

The Council will continue to provide a suite of mental health training aimed at improving our employee's ability to support colleagues and creating a workplace that fosters positive growth within our workforce. This training will focus on providing employees with skills and knowledge which helps them to offer effective support to others and ensure their own wellbeing in these situations.

Improving line managers' understanding and knowledge of Stress Risk assessments enables these to be better deployed within Services to manage and reduce factors related to work related stress, as well as improving the quality of our work.

Creating an organisation that is aware of and responds to challenges to employee financial wellbeing

Financial hardship is a reality for many of our service users and our employees. Improving the understanding of the indicators which may identify someone who may need help with financial wellbeing, and how to support them in gaining access to financial assistance, will be developed.

Employees within the Council have access to a range of services which they can use to reduce financial hardship and improve their financial wellbeing. This comprehensive approach recognises that different solutions will work best for different employees. We will continue to provide employees with information about what is available to them and how to access it.

Delivery of the Council's Wellbeing Strategy will be monitored by the Council's Wellbeing Group.

• Physical Health
• Mental Wellbeing
• Financial Wellbeing

April 2026