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Climbing On The Bandwagon - Wellness Is Big Business

Climbing wall
01 August 2019
 

Wellbeing in small business initiatives are to be recognised with a new award as research from the ULI says that the wave of interest in wellbeing in the UK will translate into significant investment over the next three years.

A new Wellbeing in Small Business Award is amongst the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) Celebrating Small Business Awards 2020 that opened for entries on August 1.

FSB National Chairman Mike Cherry said: "The annual bill for sickness absence sits at £29 billion across the UK while research from FSB’s member medical and health advice service shows that the number of small businesses seeking mental health advice has doubled in the last five years.

"Addressing mental health in the workplace remains a challenge, particularly for smaller workplaces and the self-employed. Research shows that poor mental health in the workplace is widespread, with around half (48%) of people saying they have experienced a mental health problem in their current job."

The award is a new addition to the 12 FSB Celebrating Small Business Awards 2020 categories, which include High-Growth Business, Digital Business, Environmental Business, the Business & Product Innovation Award, Family Business and Young Entrepreneur.

Cherry continued: “There’s never going to be a ‘one size fits all’ approach, and not every idea will work for every business. There are many affordable ideas, from being more open about mental health within the workplace to improving the physical working environment. I’m looking forward to seeing some of the wide ranging wellbeing practices of our smaller businesses have in place through their award entries alongside all the other award entries.”

Twelve area finals will be taking place between January and April 2020 across the UK, with the UK national final taking place on 21 May 2020 at Battersea Evolution, London.

FSB, in partnership with Heads Together, the mental health initiative spearheaded by The Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, launched a toolkit for mental health for small workplaces in May 2019.

 

Picture of health: The growing role of wellbeing in commercial real estate investment decision-making

Research from the Urban Land Institute (ULI) says that the wave of interest in wellbeing in the UK is expected to translate into significant investment over the next three years.

The research forms part of a report, Picture of health: The growing role of wellbeing in commercial real estate investment decision-making, that was released on July 11 by the ULI UK Sustainability Forum to highlight the rise of wellbeing investment in commercial buildings.

Sponsored by E.ON, it is the first time that a comprehensive survey of leading property experts has been carried out to understand how health and wellbeing is influencing investment decisions across the real estate industry.

The report focuses on survey responses and interviews with over 100 investors, developers, fund managers, consultants, valuers and analysts. 86% of respondents expect to increase their investment in wellbeing in the next three years, with 17% anticipating this increase to be ‘significant’.

The momentum for the trend is part of wider changes in the workspace towards flexibility and shared space, as well as companies looking for improved office environments as a way to meet the expectations of the younger generations in the competition for talent.

 

Investment

The survey revealed the expected investment will largely be driven by perceived tenant demand rather than investor demand or government policy, as occupiers fight to attract and retain talent across an ever more mobile – and socially-conscious – workforce.

Victoria Lockhart, co-chair of ULI UK’s Sustainability Forum and director of market development at the International WELL Building Institute, said: “The increased interest in health and wellbeing we are already seeing from major players in the real estate industry cements the fact that wellbeing is becoming central to development and investment strategies.

“As companies seek to attract top talent, wellbeing is increasingly prioritised as fundamental to environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. Companies are looking closely at the workspaces they offer as well as how the workplace can help translate a company’s values and build a culture of health.”

 

22 Bishopsgate

Five case studies from the report include 22 Bishopsgate and the Broadgate Campus, in London, which already have health and wellbeing placed at the heart of the developments.

While 22 Bishopsgate may be making its mark at the tallest tower on the skyline of the City of London, AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets, which invested in and is developing the building on behalf of an international consortium of investors, has dedicated over 13,900sq.m of the 130,000sq.m tower to shared amenities.

“We refer to it as a vertical village,” says James Goldsmith, head of leasing at AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets. “Everyone always talks about a hospitality environment and that’s a given but we are also keen to differentiate with what we are doing.”

 

Food Market

Among the community amenities are a 1,858sq.m food market as well as the Exchange, a 1,215sq.m knowledge area that will include an accelerator space, a broadcast media suite and event space.

The building's 780sq.m gym will include a climbing wall 125 metres above ground level and a wellbeing retreat area of 730sq.m.

 

Broadgate

British Land, which is completing the redevelopment of 100 Liverpool Street in 2020, has ensured a healthier Broadgate campus environment including introducing larger amounts of seating, new retail, bars and restaurants as well as increasing landscaping and greenery.

“Our customers are increasingly recognising that workplace is a vital component of staff engagement and wellbeing strategies," said Matthew Webster, Head Of Wellbeing And Futureproofing at British Land. "Our role is to support this by creating fantastic environments that promote wellbeing and enhance the experience of ‘work’ – from the provision of engaging public realm and amenities through to ensuring buildings create healthy internal environments.”

 

E.ON

The report from ULI UK was sponsored by E.ON and addresses questions about the investment case for incorporating wellbeing into buildings and how to measure its impact. Phil Gilbert, Director of Customer Solutions at E.ON, said: “Energy is a vital industry and every aspect of modern life relies on it: our economy, our wellbeing, our work and our leisure. In terms of cost, air quality in our streets and wider carbon emissions ambitions, we must lay the foundations for this change now. As this report sets out, incorporating wellbeing into new and existing building stock and the use of technology and differing energy sources will be crucial to this."

Pictures: 22 Bishopsgate will have a 1,858sq.m food market a 1,215sq.m knowledge area and a 780sq.m gym will include a climbing wall 125 metres above ground level and a wellbeing retreat area of 730sq.m.

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Article written by Cathryn Ellis | Published 01 August 2019

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