The INFORM Study
Understanding the mental health and wellbeing landscape at Hoare Lea
Welcome
Welcome to the INFORM study, a collaborative initiative between London South Bank University (LSBU) and Hoare Lea. This project aims to explore how mental health and wellbeing is experienced and managed in the workplace.
What you’ll find here:
-
- General information about the study
- Key updates and project milestones
- Opportunities to take part in the research
- Emerging findings and insights
- Final recommendations and outcomes
This space will be updated regularly, so do check back to see how the research is progressing and how your input is helping to shape change at Hoare Lea.
About the study
Understanding the factors that influence employee mental health and wellbeing is crucial for fostering a supportive work environment. This study investigates how organisational culture, support systems, and daily experiences impact employee mental health.
By gathering insights directly from employees, our goal is to generate practical, meaningful recommendations to help the company better support employee wellbeing, now and in the future.
We’re using a combination of online surveys, interviews, workplace observation, and co-produced interventions to ensure a rich, inclusive understanding of needs and priorities.
Specifically, we want to:
- Understand how employees experience mental health and wellbeing at work
- Identify stressors, support systems, and barriers across roles and teams
- Examine how mental health is perceived and supported at individual and organisational levels
- Generate actionable recommendations grounded in lived experience
- Co-produce practical, sustainable interventions that are aligned with employee needs and business goals
Watch the video below to discover more about the study from Co-Principal Investigator Professor Paula Reavey
Why is this research important?
Mental health is a key area of concern for organisational performance, retention, and culture:
- Mental health-related absences are often underreported
- Mental health challenges often present as psychosomatic symptoms, meaning employees may report physical health concerns that may in fact be rooted in mental health difficulties or psychological stress
- Research shows that poor mental health contributes presenteeism and reduced productivity
What is involved?
We are taking a multi-methods approach, using a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods to build a full picture of the work environment through multiple lenses.
Survey
A survey will give us quantitative data on levels of employee mental health and wellbeing and support at Hoare Lea. It will provide data on the pressures they face and how supported they feel in their roles. It also looks at the awareness and use of existing support and gathers insight into factors that may influence mental health, both positively and negatively.
Interviews
Staff interviews will provide a qualitative exploration of individual stories for contextual depth. This gives us insight into the nuances of the day-to-day working lives of employees, as well as the systemic aspects of their work to provide a deeper understanding of how individual experiences, organisational structures and company culture shape wellbeing
Workplace observations
We will carry out on-site ethnographic observations of the workplace culture and practices in relation to mental health. We will be observing a selection of offices, with a diversity of wellbeing experiences.
Co-production working
The goal of this research is to capture a holistic view of how mental health and wellbeing are experienced at Hoare Lea and ensure that recommendations are shaped by perspectives across the organisation, grounded in the real day-to-day experiences of employees at all levels. We will be inviting employees to participate in a number of sessions/workshops to co-produce targeted intervention strategies.
How to participate?
All employees at Hoare Lea are invited to participate in the study. Their input will directly inform the development of practical, evidence-based recommendations, ensuring that future actions and resources are shaped by lived experiences, rather than relying solely on standard approaches or general ideas about what might help.
Survey
The survey can be accessed here, where you will find additional information about what is involved and asked to provide your consent to take part in the study.
Interviews
Employees will be asked to provide contact information in the survey if they would like to take part in the interviews. This is completely optional.
Meet the research team
Our dedicated team from Lived Experiences of Distress (LEOD) research group at LSBU brings together expertise in mental health, applied psychology and quantitative approaches to health and evaluation.
The team have worked on numerous projects on mental health and wellbeing, including the evaluation of large-scale mental health services and interventions in the NHS, using both quantitative and qualitative approaches to health, and placing real emphasis on the value of lived experience, as well as co-production and collaboration. The team includes:
Prof. Paula Reavey
Professor of Psychology
and Mental Health
Paula leads the LEOD research group. She specialises in the lived experience of individuals who live with distress, and mental health research across NHS and community services.
Dr. Ope Atanda
Lecturer in Psychology
Ope specialises in the evaluation of psychosocial interventions in mental health and the development of interventions that promote help-seeking behaviour in mental health.
Prof. Patrick Callaghan
Professor of Mental Health Science and Academic Lead, LSBU Doctoral College
Patrick specialises in psychosocial interventions for mental health and wellbeing.
Dr. Dolapo Adegboye
Research Fellow
Dolapo’s specialism is in early development, neurodevelopmental outcomes in clinical populations, and social determinants of health.
