Higher education in the UK today is faced with mounting challenges to student health and well-being. Richard Le Sueur, Director, Commercial, International WELL Building Institute, sets out an approach to tackling the problem which is finding favour internationally and within the UK Healthier campuses, more productive students - a new holistic approach IN a 2022 survey by British mental health charity Student Minds, 57% of respondents self-reported a mental health issue and 27% said they had a diagnosed mental health condition. This statistic is consistent with the 2023 data released by National Health Services England that more than 1 in 5 young people aged 17 to 25 years had a probable mental disorder. According to the same NHS survey, young people with a probable mental disorder are more likely not to participate in a range of activities including exercising, spending time in green space or participating in groups or clubs. Coupled with issues such as poor sleep and eating problems as well as other social and financial pressures, the list of student health and well-being challenges across the higher education sector tend to be pretty long. These factors can contribute to a decline in mental and physical health if not addressed proactively. It is fair to say that tackling student health challenges in the UK requires a comprehensive roadmap due to the wide scope of issues, a comprehensive roadmap that emphasizes early intervention, holistic support services and creating a culture of well-being within educational institutions to promote positive health outcomes among students. University of Huddersfield recently made history for achieving the first WELL Certification across British higher education for its Jo Cox More in Common Centre, a student service facility serving all students on a daily basis. With this achievement, Huddersfield sheds a bright light on what other universities in the UK can emulate in terms of deploying such a comprehensive approach to student and employee well-being. The WELL Certification achievement under the WELL Building Standard (WELL) by the International WELL Building Institute, the global authority for transforming health and well-being through its people-first approach to buildings, organisations and communities, recognises excellence in building design, operations and organisational policies in place to prioritise people’s physical and mental health as well as productivity. As illustrated in the case of University of Huddersfield, WELL offers a comprehensive framework that can significantly contribute to addressing student well-being issues in the UK educational settings. This evidencebased, performance-verified rating system includes strategies for buildings and spaces designed to enhance the health and well-being of occupants such as advanced indoor air and drinking water quality, lighting that promotes productivity during the day and better sleep at night and more. What’s important to know is that universities can start off their WELL journey by updating operational protocols to achieve the policy-based WELL Health-Safety Rating while rounding up capital expenditure to expand to more comprehensive WELL certifications over time. Here are a few examples that can help illustrate how a WELL Certified building supports our health. Designs and educational programmes promoting healthy eating, support programmes on substance abuse, comprehensive health benefits, ergonomic furniture and prompts to boost physical activities and engaging, community-building facilities with meaningful programming, all are within the parameter of the comprehensive 10 WELL Concept areas: Air, Water, Nourishment, Light, Sound, Movement, Thermal Comfort, Materials, Mind and Community. By incorporating principles from WELL, universities and 28 highereducationestates well buildings
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