Support for organisations and teams
Get support to foster a mentally healthy music team, event or workspace
If you engage, manage or contract people in music, then you can play a critical role in helping music becoming a mentally healthier place where everybody can thrive.
Music can be one of the most exciting industries to work in, but it can also be really tough at times, resulting in poor mental health amongst people in music. However, there are practical steps you can take to reduce risks to support good mental wellbeing- whether you and your team work in the studio, in a live music venue, the office, on the road or remotely.
What needs to change?
A lot of the factors that would contribute to stress in any type of work are especially present in music and often treated as ‘part of the job’. But when stressors are experienced in volume and over time, as they often are when working in music, it can lead to poor mental wellbeing. This has a knock-on effect not only to the individuals affected but also to productivity, performance and talent retention across the music industry.
Example stressors include: long anti-social hours, money worries, competition, time away from home and support networks while touring, relationship conflicts, and ongoing high levels of bullying and harassment in the industry.
Benefits of taking action
A more sustainable music industry: Poor mental wellbeing can progress to ill mental health, which generates issues including presenteeism and absence which impacts productivity, as well as negatively affecting performance. The best results are delivered by a healthy team, working well together in a safe and supportive environment.
Attract and retain diverse talent: In the Musicians’ Census, musicians reporting poor mental wellbeing were twice as likely than those reporting good mental wellbeing to say they would be unlikely to be working in music in five years. Added to this, some groups are more vulnerable to poor mental wellbeing because of greater exposure to stressors, this includes those from the Global Majority and LGBTQ+ communities, and those working in certain roles or genres of music. Supporting good mental wellbeing can support staff retention, and diversity commitments.
Helping music thrive together
Making music a place where we all thrive requires contributions from many different people, bodies and organisations across music. If you work in a role where you engage people in music work, you have a part to play.
Our evidence based approach uses a two-stage process to help your team take practical steps to identify, reduce and remove risks and boost mental wellbeing in your music project or work environment.
Risk Mapping: having discussions with people involved in your music work to map the risks relevant to their roles in music
Mental Health Safety Steps: collaborating across your team to agree actions to reduce or remove risks and create a music work space where everyone can thrive
If you are interested in exploring how the approach could apply with your team or workplace, please contact us: advice@musicmindsmatter.org.uk
We are currently piloting the model with partners across music and welcome opportunities to develop learning with other new partners.
Event Support
Check Your Levels clinics are run at music business events across the UK.
If people drop by, they can complete a simple, confidential checklist which helps them to identify focus areas for improving their mental wellbeing. It also helps to flag up areas where they may need to seek extra support.
If people want more information and advice, they can attend an on-site appointment of up to 45 minutes with a GP experienced in mental health and performing arts medicine.
Many people in music work long, irregular hours. It can hard to find the time to contact a GP or other support service in working hours. By bringing a clinic to the events where people in music already are, it removes some of practical barriers to getting help, making it less time consuming and less inconvenient. For those who miss out on appointment slots at events, there is always an option to register by phone and have a remote assessment after the event.
Thanks to the support of our funders and supporters, Music Minds Matter is able to provide clinics at a small number of music events for free, to help us fulfil our goal of reaching as many people in music as we can.
In addition to this, other music events can contract with Music Minds Matter by contacting: advice@musicmindsmatter.org.uk