ACP-UK is delighted to announce that the Mercers’ Company has awarded a two-year grant of £10,000 to our COVID-19 NHS staff support scheme.

The staff support scheme was initiated back in May 2020, in the midst of the first COVID-19 surge across the UK, offering a confidential self-referral service for senior medical staff, clinical team leaders and senior management, to provide one-to-one specialised psychological support to for those impacted by their frontline work with COVID-19.

The pandemic has presented frontline health and social care staff with an unparalleled level of psychological distress and anxiety, due to the demanding and relentless nature of the challenges they face. It was evident to ACP-UK that offering psychological support to these colleagues was crucial, and a means of providing support to the most senior staff who may prefer to seek help away from their immediate workplace.

We are proud that through this scheme ACP-UK is able to deploy our members who are well positioned to offer psychological support at this level. We believe the success of this scheme highlights the valuable contribution that clinical psychologists can offer to organisations and to public health.

We would like to take this opportunity to express how grateful we are to the Mercers’ Company for their generosity. Although the continuing need for this service is testament to the trying times that we currently face, this donation is not only a great encouragement for this initiative and those involved, but also a vote confidence in our ability to deliver it.

If you would like more information on our staff support scheme or wish to sign up, please contact Dr Penelope Cream, ACP-UK Staff Support Lead, on [email protected]

Find out more about ACP-UK support schemes for NHS staff here