Business West Chambers of Commerce are proud to be made up of businesses from a wide range of sectors, sizes and structures, all of whom bring something different and exciting to our chamber community.

As part of our Chamber Conversations series and to coincide with World Mental Health Day, we spoke to Claire Bennett, Founder of Hornbeam Workplace Wellbeing. We asked Claire about her and her business, and how Chamber members can best support their employees with their mental health in the workplace. 

Please introduce yourself and tell us about your role at Hornbeam Workplace Wellbeing. What does a typical day look like?

My name is Claire Bennett and I am the owner of Hornbeam Workplace Wellbeing, a training company that specialises in workplace mental health and wellbeing. I have lots of experience in delivering leadership training within organisations, focusing on the impact that leadership has on the health and wellbeing of employees. I’m also a trained mental health first aid instructor, suicide first aid tutor and crisis line volunteer. 

I find that people, especially in the workplace, avoid emotional discussions due to lack of confidence. I have a great passion for improving that confidence and creating safe ways in the workplace to have emotional conversations that could literally save someone’s life.

My typical day starts with sorting out the dog, getting the kids up and ready for school and once the school run is complete I get to my day. If I’m doing training that day, I’ll focus on prepping the session the night before so that I can focus on delivering the best session for my learners. These are generally my favourite working days, as I’m really passionate about training. I’m often asked whether covering the same content gets repetitive, but the answer is no - every group brings something different to the discussion, and I gain a lot of new insights after each delivery. 

My non training days are dedicated to running the business, so focusing on sales & marketing, networking and product development.

Can you tell us more about what your company does, where it is based, and the impact it has on the local business landscape and beyond? 

Hornbeam Workplace Wellbeing is a training and consultancy company that specialises in workplace mental health and wellbeing. I started the business almost 5 years ago with the ambition to make a positive impact in the workplace. 

We do this through consultancy, supporting businesses to comply with best practice guidelines and legal requirements, and guiding them on how best to tailor wellbeing strategies for their business. We believe that the best way to make cultural positive change is through awareness and education, and that is where our training comes in. We offer a number of accredited courses and are particularly proud of our Mental Health for Line Managers course, which provides them with a framework to navigate potentially emotional and difficult conversations safely. We also offer webinars and awareness campaign support to suit business needs on a range of mental, physical and social health topics. 

We are based in Gloucestershire but we cover clients both nationally and internationally. We have worked with some amazing Gloucestershire and South West based clients and continue to do so, but our client base also reaches South Africa, USA, Spain, Slovakia and most recently Malaysia. We believe that every person has the right to feel psychologically safe at work and we aim to be part of the solution for businesses worldwide.

World Mental Health Day is on the 10th October, and this year's theme is ‘It’s time to prioritise mental health in the workplace’. As an organisation that specialises in workplace mental health, we’d love to get your perspective. 

Firstly, why do you think it's crucial for workplaces to address mental health and wellbeing?

There are so many statistics that demonstrate the financial impact of not looking after employees’ mental health and wellbeing. It costs, on average, UK employers £54 billion each year (Deloitte UK Mental Health Report, 2024), which is in part due to employees being out of work due to sickness and absence. However, a recent survey by Deloitte highlighted that the most costly element is presenteeism, which is where employees are attending work while suffering with poor mental health. This affects their productivity, increasing the likelihood of making mistakes that could be costly to the business. By not addressing mental health and wellbeing in the workplace, employees’ mental health issues can be exacerbated, causing high levels of stress, burnout and a downturn in their physical health too.

It also does brand damage. We know that younger generations in particular  who are coming into the workplace see health and wellbeing as a priority, so if you want to retain talent then you need to have a strong wellbeing strategy in place.

More importantly than the company’s bottom line and reputation, a business’s most valuable asset is its people. Research shows that 44% of employees claim that the workplace has either caused or contributed to poor mental health and stress levels (Deloitte UK Mental Health Report, 2024), highlighting it as an issue employers should take seriously. If we expected people to work in a physically dangerous environment, there would rightfully be uproar, strikes and potentially legal action taken. The same wellbeing concerns need to be put in place to ensure a psychologically safe environment for your employees. 

I believe if you want a successful business, you need to prioritise mental health and wellbeing or unfortunately you’re going to be left behind.

Thinking about our Chamber Network, do you have any tips for sole traders or SME businesses who want to prioritise mental health in their organisation? 

Absolutely, I would always say set up the business as you mean to go on. Have a strategy that includes policies and ways of working from the very beginning that factor in the health and wellbeing of your staff. This applies to yourself as well. It can be easy to deprioritise your own mental health and wellbeing when starting a business. But remember, if you don’t take care of yourself how can you expect your business to thrive?

There is support out there, but I know that training can be costly and sometimes out of reach, especially for sole traders or smaller companies. This is why we offer open courses as a cost effective way for SMEs to bring health and wellbeing skills into their business without blowing their budgets.

But you can also do your own research. There are best practice guidelines from NICE which cover SME and micro businesses. From these you can get a steer on what you need to consider and how to access free support that is available. 

How long have you been a member of Business West Chambers of Commerce and what prompted you to join?

I have been a member for just over 12 months now. I have been networking since starting my business, so have tried many different set ups and groups. They all have great benefits and are crucial to any business I would say. However, the reason I decided to join Business West Chambers of Commerce was the extensive reach across the South West, giving me opportunities to meet companies that I may not come across otherwise. I like that there aren’t any KPIs or targets at Business West’s networking events, which I have experienced elsewhere. You get out what you put in.

What has been most valuable to you as a Business West Chamber Member? 

I like the ability to cross over to different areas and attend events, but also advertise my own events. I’ve found this very valuable to raise awareness of my open courses. I have also had some great introductions, and the team at Business West are really great in connecting you to businesses where either they’re a potential partner or client. I do feel that there is a personal touch which I haven’t experienced with other networking organisations.

Finally, what advice would you give to a business thinking of becoming a member of our Business West Chambers of Commerce?

Do it, it is affordable and the benefits and the growth in your network is well worth it. It is relaxed and enjoyable, and you make some really great connections. As well as being given the opportunity to learn and grow yourself with some of the educational events.