About the Award

Award Criteria

There are 6 levels to the Award – Foundation, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Continuing Excellence and Maintaining Excellence, with appropriate criteria at each stage to build into an Award Portfolio. Organisations are given up to a year per level, but there is flexibility for those who need it.

Evidence indicates that it takes a period of time to effectively establish the infrastructure that will engage employees in adopting behaviours / lifestyle changes.

This is why ALL employers are required to begin at Bronze and progress systematically upwards through the levels (It is not mandatory to complete the Foundation level before signing up to complete Bronze level - see below). Every employer/ organisation who signs-up to participate in the Award scheme is supported by a dedicated Health Improvement Specialist.

Foundation - a discrete “pre-Bronze” level for any organisations who are new to workplace health and wellbeing or have limited capacity and feel they would benefit from a lighter-touch introduction. It is not mandatory to undertake this before signing up to Bronze.

Bronze - The Bronze level lays a firm foundation to build a healthier workplace.

Silver - The Silver level of the Award builds upon the basics of the Bronze level and rewards organisations that take a more holistic view of the workplace.

Gold - This level builds upon the Silver level and requires companies to look outside their own organisation and promote health within the wider community.

Continuing Excellence - This recognises the importance of organisations sustaining the progress they have made during their participation in the Award and encourages them to use their experience to support others.

Maintaining Excellence - Achieved by employers who have been engaged with the Award for long enough to have achieved a pass at all levels via the completion of a criteria document, portfolio and full workplace assessment.

Ambassador Status - Organisations are eligible for Ambassador Status on achievement of Maintaining Excellence and with the recommendation of their designated Workplace Health Improvement Specialist. This is then passed through to the BHAWA Verification Panel for endorsement.

We started the award in 2020 as we were keen to help improve the wellbeing of our employees, particularly post covid. One of our values is putting people first, and we felt like this was a step in the right direction to achieve this.

We now have a team of 10 passionate health advocates to help improve the wellbeing in the office. It’s a great feeling when the office looks forward to the health campaigns and want to be involved. It feels as though the work we’re doing is benefiting our employees.

- Tritility Business Energy Consultants, Sunderland

The award is a declaration of our commitment to building a healthy and happy workplace culture for every employee. Designing a positive and engaging health and wellbeing offer where health inequalities are reduced is so important to us and we know we will achieve this with the support of BHAWA.

The award process provides structure for Better Health at Work. It provides support, guidance and networking opportunities to learn and improve. The opportunity to collaborate and hear about others practice across the region is always inspiring, we always come away buzzing with ideas.

- Sunderland City Council, Sunderland

"The Award allows us to address a wide range of health topics, from mental health and stress to physical activity and nutrition and provides a structure to ensure each topic includes several initiatives each year.

These campaigns and initiatives help raise awareness and promote healthier lifestyle choices among University employees.

BHAWA has provided a solid foundation for our Health and Wellbeing Action Plan and underpins our organisational Health and Wellbeing Strategy. Pursuing the award (Maintaining Excellence) ensures that the Health and Wellbeing of our staff remains a top priority as we share information and resources and deliver meaningful campaigns."

- Teesside University, Middlesbrough, Maintaining Excellence Level achieved 2024

"Better Health at Work Award has truly transformed our workplace culture. It has inspired us to prioritise employee wellbeing; boosting morale, productivity, and engagement. The support and guidance provided is invaluable. We’re proud to champion health and wellbeing thanks to this outstanding initiative.

A highly recommended program for any forward-thinking company.

We value the recognition and support the award offers. The guidance from Grace and Craig is second to none. We've also built valuable contacts through the award, which has brought real benefits to the company and strengthened our focus on employee wellbeing".

- Walker FIltration, Sunderland, Bronze Level achieved 2024

"Our goal was to promote a happy, healthy and engaged inclusive workforce by raising awareness, providing education and signposting employees to services and programmes whether in person or online, to help them maintain or enhance their health and wellbeing in both work and home environments.

The award enabled Nexus to gain recognition as an exceptional organisation in offering health and wellbeing support for staff and be recognised as an ambassador for other organisations in the North East".

- Nexus, Newcastle, Maintaining Excellence Level achieved 2024

We chose to participate in the award programme as it is providing us with a structured and planned schedule of events and initiatives that supports our overarching health and wellbeing strategy and objectives. It is a key strand to use providing a holistic approach to our employees’ health and wellbeing.

The award programme has provided us with key benefits including pointers in data gathering, event planning and networking opportunities. The monthly health advocate meetings are invaluable in providing information on what local support is available to enable us to build up our calendar of events and provide relevant and engaging content to our employees on a variety of health topics.

We are excited to be part of this programme and look forward to progressing through the differing levels to provide real benefit to our workforce. This will ensure we continue to put health at the heart of Hitachi.

- Hitachi Construction Machinery Ltd, Bronze