Industry leading marine support
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In recognition of today’s World Mental Health Day, and its theme, Workplace Mental Health, we’re proud to highlight the work of our mental health first aiders. Our trained team are dedicated to offering crucial support to our off- and onshore teams with any wellbeing concerns, supporting workers while also reducing the stigma surrounding mental health.
At North Star, people are our priority. This starts from making sure our colleagues are healthy and looked after, both mentally and physically. This includes encouraging healthy eating at our vessel canteens, incorporating high-quality gym equipment across our service operations vessel (SOV) fleet, and mental health focused activities like the “Fit Like?” campaign, which we launched alongside introducing mental health first aiders in 2019.
This specially trained team take their roles very seriously, providing initial support to individuals experiencing mental health challenges, such as anxiety, depression, or stress.
Trained to recognise signs of distress, they offer a listening ear, reassurance, and guidance, helping to de-escalate crises and reduce stigma around mental health. While not medical experts, they can refer individuals to professional help if needed and promote a supportive, open environment. At North Star, they play a key role in fostering wellbeing by encouraging conversations about mental health, addressing concerns early, and helping create a culture of understanding and empathy.
Group HR and crewing manager Colin Rushton, and one of our mental health first aiders, says: “Prioritising mental health is important for everyone, but it is particularly crucial for offshore workers, who often face long periods away from friends and family as well as challenging offshore conditions. We want everyone to feel valued, connected, and empowered to thrive, both personally and professionally. That’s why we started recruiting our first mental health first-aid team five years ago, building on our existing mental health focused activities.
“Since then, we’ve had a really positive response from across the business, leading us to invest further in training and widen the support. We now have around 45 offshore mental health first aiders and half a dozen onshore.”
Marine manager, and mental health first aider, Martin Duthie said, “When I began at NorthStar in 2022, I was really impressed with the work that the mental health first aiders did across the company. Inspired by this, I quickly joined the programme so I could support my team even further than from a strictly professional standpoint. In this way, the first aiders have embodied North Star’s values of “caring” and “safety,” which we hold close to our hearts on all levels of the business, and I look forward to being further involved in North Star’s mental health-focused activities.”
This mental health day, we encourage anyone with mental health concerns, or simply in need of a friendly chat, to reach out through internal channels in your workplace or to external supporters.
Some organisations which can provide support can be found below:
· https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/
· https://mentalhealth-uk.org/
· https://www.breathingspace.scot/
Pam Wilson
BIG Partnership
01224 211045
pam.wilson@bigpartnership.co.uk
