Today, 17th February, is Random Acts of Kindness Day! Big or small, a kind gesture can go a long way, and our Wellbeing Advisor, Ruhel Ahmed gives his thoughts on random acts of kindness. I recently came across an article from last year where strangers shared stories of their random acts of kindness and crowdfunded

One of our colleagues in the Enterprise division based in Grater Manchester – Martyn Walsh – Business Coach organises a 50+ group in Manchester, named The Bucket List.  The aim of the group is to reduce social isolation in the area and encourage greater participation and interaction of its members. In January they arranged an afternoon

So, we’re finally into February, gladly seeing the back of January for many. Temperatures have hinted at increasing, the dark mornings are very slowly starting to reduce, and light mornings by 7am are on the horizon from the middle of the month to make days more bearable for most. Having said this, winter remains and

The Mental Health foundation states that 1 in 10 children and young people are affected by mental health problems. A staggering 70% have not had the appropriate intervention at a sufficient early age. Children’s mental health is just as important as their physical health, as mental ill health can impact their development, functioning, relationships and

The Health and Wellbeing Team used their volunteering day at The Wellsprings in Stockport. The Wellspring provides referrals into housing, free food and drinks, educational courses, health services, computer courses, rough sleeping, hot showers, clean clothing, art classes, other activities such as football, walking groups and gardening courses. All Wellspring staff are qualified learning advisors

Drinking alcohol has become the norm for many of us despite us knowing that it comes with health risks so, what is it that makes us indulge in a behaviour that can be so risky to our health? It can help us to relax after a tough day at work or it can help us

Once you’ve taken the quiz you can download the questions and answers here. Do the quiz first though, it’s all for fun, so no cheating! For more information on how we can help your company with our workplace wellbeing solutions, please complete the form below or alternatively you can email us at: wellbeing@peopleplus.co.uk    

A new year and a new decade, I’m sure many of us have New Year resolutions that we’re finally going to get around to this year? Sound familiar? If so, consider setting goals instead. It’s thought that as few as 8% of us achieve our New Year resolutions. A more robust approach would be to

Residents at HMP Drake Hall expressed their delight with the recent Careers Conference in Custody event which offered speed networking with a range of employers offering Release of Temporary License and jobs to those being released. The event facilitated by PeoplePlus and supported by PeoplePlus provider Skill Cert, HMP Drake Hall staff and the umbrella

In recent years, January has commonly become known as ‘Dry January’- a month dedicated to abstaining from alcohol. This campaign was founded by Emily Robinson of Alcohol Change UK in 2013 after she decided to refrain from alcohol herself for one month whilst she trained for a half marathon, she immediately noticed a positive outcome

Whether you celebrate Christmas as a religious festival, or just welcome the opportunity that the December break offers of bringing you together with family and friends, this can be a very special time of year. It is also a time that many people end up making lifestyle choices that can have lasting impact. There may only be

Mark Crabtree,  successfully achieved the WAMITAB Level 2 diploma in Sustainable Resource Management while at HMP Ranby. On his release the Skillcert employability team were able to work with Mark to secure sustainable employment with one of our employment partners and in September 2019 Mark began his new role as a Recycling Operative with Veolia.

Once you’ve taken the quiz you can download the questions and answers here. Do the quiz first though, it’s all for fun, so no cheating! For more information on how we can help your company with our workplace wellbeing solutions, please complete the form below or alternatively you can email us at: wellbeing@peopleplus.co.uk

A week ago today PeoplePlus Cymru, celebrated the achievement and dedication of learners, employers and partners with its annual Learner of The Year Awards in its 6th year. The event took place at the National Assembly for Wales Pierhead Building, sponsored by Vikki Howells AM Welsh Assembly for Cynon Valley. “This was a chance to

Christmas can be a stressful time for some of us and it’s thought that 1 in 4 of us dreads the work Christmas party. But can a work Christmas party have a positive impact on wellbeing? Research has found there are 5 ways of wellbeing and a Christmas party seems like the perfect opportunity to

It’s dark when you arrive at work and it’s dark when you leave work. The majority of our socialising during December typically involves meeting up with friends, colleagues or family, for a drink. Maybe this is at the local Christmas market or maybe even the local coffee shop to enjoy the special Christmas edition coffee. Our intake

Before working with PeoplePlus, Augustus Martin did not have a company culture that embraced training and development. Eighteen months later they are fully embraced in a developmental culture and cannot get enough of training opportunities. Donna Curran-James, HR Director, tells their story of change and why PeoplePlus was instrumental in the journey. “I was first

Christmas parties can make or break your healthy eating, with many of us opting to let loose but this can snowball from one night of over-indulgence, to an entire month. Kim Derbyshire, Wellbeing Consultant at PeoplePlus, tells us how we can head into December with a damage limitation plan. It’s the beginning of December – have you

HMP The Mount PeoplePlus worked in partnership with Reliable Contractors to offer a fantastic pre-employment training course to the residents of HMP The Mount in Hertfordshire. The programme, delivered by London based construction company Reliable Contractors, lasted for 2 days and aimed to prepare residents for work outside of prison. This involved looking at the

In an article, recently published in Mad World News, our Head of Wellbeing, Rob Wollen, talks about bridging the gap between motivation and wellness. One of my “soap-box subjects” is that – outside of a clinical setting – we need to stop assuming that mental health conditions are always caused by events; to stop asking “why”

Stephen came to PeoplePlus through his key worker at Pathways, a leading homeless healthcare charity. He had been on a recovery programme with them for the last 7 years. Stephen had been a carer for his father for 11 years, who had cancer. When his dad passed away he found it difficult to cope with life and so

The world of nutrition can be confusing. With advice on what is good for us and what isn’t changing on a regular basis, it’s sometimes hard to keep up. Kim Derbyshire from our Health and Wellbeing team dispells five common myths around nutrtion.   1.You should detox regularly! Especially after Christmas/New Year Detox diets often come

Here at PeoplePlus, we give each member of staff a volunteer day each year on top of their holidays to give something back to the community. Our partnerships team decided to use their day to help set up Santa’s Grotto at Groundwork, The Grange Community Centre in Blackpool. The Partnerships & Development Team spent the

It is human nature to want to feel appreciated; we thrive when we feel valued for who we are and not just what we do. If this is lacking or if we do not receive the recognition that we feel we deserve, our tendency can be to adapt our behaviours to seek praise or to

Drinking has become the norm despite being associated with health risks, so what is it that makes us indulge in a behaviour that can be a risk to health? Well, some may say it can help you relax, feel calmer, help you deal with social situations, give you a sense of confidence (Dutch courage), help

Last week we attended the Scottish Apprenticeship Awards of which we are a sponsor and it was fantastic to spend the evening with so many hardworking apprentices, providers and employers and to celebrate the work we do. The awards were held at the Caird Hall in Dundee by the national skills agency – Skills Development

Wednesday 6th November is Stress Awareness Day, so we wanted to share with you our thoughts around Stress from Ruhel Ahmed our Heath & Wellbeing Advisor. Stress. One of the most commonly used words, one of the most commonly expressed feelings and one of the most commonly ‘understood’ experiences. When we are asked how to tackle

PeoplePlus have been running the Fair Start Scotland programme for over a year now in Glasgow and the Highlands & Islands and we’ve seen some fantastic results. It was announced in a Government Statistics Publication that in the past year 21,943 people were referred onto the programme and over 60% joined after referral with 3,004

International Youth Day (12th August 2019) recognises and celebrates the efforts of youth in enhancing global society, and promotes ways to encourage youth to make positive contributions to their communities. Yet, despite being the future’s backbone, young people nowadays are facing increasing challenges to do so. Meet Yasmin who tells her story of the challenges

Last weekend 106 year old War Veteran Leslie Stelfox had his house broken into where World War Two medals belonging to himself and World War One medals belonging to his late father, were stolen. Close family friend and employee of PeoplePlus; Louise Walkington has said ‘We’re devastated by the nature of this crime and want

Fair Start Scotland is about finding the right jobs for the right people at the right time. This is achieved by adopting a more personalised approach to our service delivery as no two participants journey is the same. Participation is voluntary, and the support continues for up to 12 months after the participant has progressed

PeoplePlus Apprenticeships Ambassador, David Way, shares his thoughts I recently had an excellent meeting with employers to discuss the likely future for Apprenticeships as a new Government forms and fresh ministers take over. One of the most interesting and perceptive comments was that Apprenticeships really need their own Blue Planet moment. The employers believed we need

Jeremy Corbyn’s recent announcement about extending Labour’s Real Living Wage of £10 per hour to all under-18s re-opens a long-standing debate about what is best for younger apprentices. Would they really benefit from this eye-catching policy proposal if Labour formed the next Government? Or would it put at risk Apprenticeship opportunities for the under-18s? When

The Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP) is a national membership organisation that represents the interests of over 900 organisations. Their members deliver the majority of Britain’s apprenticeships, traineeships and programmes for the unemployed. PeoplePlus is proud to become AELP’s newest patron. As a patron PeoplePlus is now able to engage with AELP at