August 2020 saw the launch of our “Wellbeing with Rank”, a series of virtual sessions organised by The Rank Foundation team for the benefit of RankNet members as a way of support during the ongoing pandemic and in response to the death of a member of our network. From an initial survey sent out to the network which allowed us to select a variety of sessions in areas where our members felt they could take time out of the day to focus on their mental wellbeing and improve their skill sets. An article written by ThirdSector stated that “90% of small charities lack access to adequate mental health resources”. Furthermore, the study showed a staggering 70% of respondents stating that the current pandemic has had an impact on their mental wellbeing. Sessions on ‘Mindfulness’ and ‘Self-Care’ are only some of the topics covered by RankNet in the hope of successfully offering support to its members.
After 3 months of holding these Wellbeing events, we wanted to gain some feedback on the sessions and how they have been received by members. The results found that on a scale of 1 to 10, 86% of the respondents rated between 7-10 on how beneficial these have been to them. It was also found that the events had either met expectations or exceeded expectations for the participants involved. Data aside, being able to gain written feedback gave people the opportunity to offer a more descriptive and personal view with their comments. With many people working from home a participant stated that the sessions were an “opportunity to take a break away from the workday and use it as a time to reflect”. One of the aims we have hoped for is to offer our members something to look forward to when the restrictions of being at home mean they are unable to do other activities.
Although the Wellbeing with Rank sessions are virtual, they offer the opportunity for attendees to share their own opinions and experiences that they have had during the pandemic. A recurring comment in the feedback was how respondents “enjoyed the chance to connect with other RankNet members as they might not have had the chance to do so before.”
The Wellbeing with Rank events are open for all members to participate. If you have not had the availability to attend any of our sessions but would like to do so, all are recorded and uploaded onto RankNet here. The aim is to have a library of resources available to RankNet members to access at any time. We would like to thank everyone who has attended the events and helped make them into the successes they have been. Keep an eye out on the events calendar to see all our upcoming events. More are yet to come!
If you are interested on possibly running a Wellbeing with Rank session, please contact: kirsty.stephenson@rankfoundation.com