New scheme to support registered managers’ mental health

CMM is pleased to announce the launch of a new counselling scheme, CMM Support, to improve the mental health of registered managers in adult social care.

It has been apparent for years that the role of the registered manager in adult social care services is one of great pressure, responsibility and, often, self-sacrifice. The people in these positions not only have to handle the everyday issues related to managing a care home in the current climate, but also the stress of keeping up with regulation, staff shortages and an evolving legal landscape. On top of this, many are still recovering mentally from the horrors of the COVID-19 pandemic and the decisions that had to be taken during that time.

With this in mind, CMM has been working on developing targeted provision to enable registered managers to find confidential, reliable support, and is delighted to now be able to offer this to the people who work so hard to keep services running at their best.

Working in partnership with the National Counselling & Psychotherapy Society (NCPS), CMM’s new low-cost counselling scheme, CMM Support, gives registered managers access to trained professionals who can help with navigating stress, grief, trauma, anxiety and more in a confidential space.

Counsellors are members of NCPS and have all undergone training on the registered manager role to ensure that they have a thorough understanding of the day-to-day pressures and responsibilities of the people they will be helping, enabling them to focus on the issues at hand. Some even have experience of working in adult social care themselves. They have all also agreed to work for a reduced rate for anyone who accesses their support through the scheme.

Registered managers need only input a few details about the issues they are facing and the kind of therapy they’d like, to be matched with therapists who can help them. From there, it’s a case of choosing which professional they would like to work with and booking a time and date that suits them. The whole process can be completed in a few minutes and managers can be speaking with a counsellor in as little as two weeks.

All the details are kept completely confidential, including from CMM and NCPS, so it is only the counsellor who knows that a person is accessing therapy. CMM is hoping that this removes what can be a barrier that prevents many registered managers from accessing counselling through other means.

Lisa Werthmann, Director of Creative Operations at CMM, said, ‘We are so pleased to be able to bring CMM Support to people who we know need help. Registered managers give so much of themselves to their staff, clients and services, and we are hoping that this gives them a way to prioritise themselves, too.

‘We are delighted to be working with NCPS, whose members already see the skills and value that registered managers bring to the sector, and we hope that any registered manager who feels they need support, whatever issues are affecting them, will access this counselling.’

Whilst the counselling is offered at a reduced rate, providers can get in touch to fund free or subsidised therapy to their registered managers whilst maintaining the anonymity the scheme provides. This gives providers peace of mind knowing their managers have access to proper support with their mental health, as well as helping with recruitment and retention. Those interested in providing this to their staff should contact lisa.werthmann@carechoices.co.uk.

The counselling scheme is accessible via the CMM website.