Organised and on-track

Brain in Hand has empowered June to stay organised and on track, allowing her to perform better and feel happier at work. She’s improved her relationships with work colleagues and feels better supported in her role. 

“If I didn't have it [BiH], I'd just have loads of bits of paper everywhere that I wouldn't look at. Somebody said to me ‘that's just ADHD’ because everything's all over the place. There's no logic. Brain in Hand means that I know what is going on in the day. I'm starting the day from a more manageable space." 

June is a 54-year-old country park officer who has worked with her local authority for 20 years. Brain in Hand was recommended to June by Pathways, a service that helps people with mental health stay well in work and is funded through the local authority. 

She’s been using Brain in Hand for 3 years as someone who experiences anxiety and is awaiting an ADHD diagnosis. Before COVID, June took an extended sick leave due to her mental health. She’s contracted to work 34 hours per week, but often works more than that. Her role has changed over time from volunteering, to part-time, then full-time and now back to part-time. 

Brain in Hand has been incredibly beneficial for June, her employer, and her colleagues at work. 

Daily support for staying on track

June feels supported from the moment she wakes up. Brain in Hand reminds her to eat and take her medication. During the day, it helps her to manage tasks, including attending meetings and taking regular breaks. 

“It stops the drifting; it gives me signposts during the day and keeps me on track.”

Performing better at work 

Being organised and on track means June performs better in her role. Brain in Hand supports her to stay focused and concentrate in meetings with small prompts and strategies to manage overwhelm. 

For example, she is able to make an excuse to leave rather than walking out as she has done in the past. This may have been misinterpreted as rude or not engaging. By having this support, June is able to experience positive changes that also benefit her colleagues. 

“Meetings are difficult to keep my focus, zoning out, drifting off. It doesn't help when you do meetings online but now I have a prompt on my phone about what to do in meetings - concentration, focus." 

Building supportive relationships at work

June’s relationships with work colleagues and those outside work have also improved. She’s calmer and not as quick to anger as she was in the past. She has more headspace to think rationally, and this has improved all her relationships. 

“Before I would blow up at the wrong people at the wrong time.” 

At work, June shares that her manager is also more aware of her needs because of Brain in Hand. She feels better supported in her role because of this. 

“My manager is more aware of my needs and if I'm losing the plot, she'll tell me to go and look at my Brain in Hand. The awareness has changed, the awareness that I do struggle with paperwork and I need time and that I don't need to be disturbed." 

Feeling happier and taking less time off

Brain in Hand has kept June happier at work with support to stay organised, less overwhelmed, and more self-aware. As a result, she hasn’t taken an extended sick leave, which is a positive change for not only June, but her employer too. 

"I'm not taking 6-9 months off. I generally just need a week or a couple of weeks after a busy summer. I think because I recognise it a bit more, I can take time out before I completely kind of go over and it becomes a big deal."

Life without Brain in Hand 

For June, no longer having Brain in Hand would be “Like your friend leaving you, or losing your comfort blanket. It gives me that stability, and when I can't think, it thinks for me.” 

She uses Brain in Hand outside of work to manage her time socially. By setting alarms, she’s able to stick to her plan of when she needs to get home and organise her time around her evening course. 

June also uses Brain in Hand to store the skills she has learnt from DBT (Dialectical Behaviour Therapy). This will allow her to implement these emotional regulation skills into daily life, even when the support comes to an end. She fought hard to get DBT through the NHS, and the year of support will end soon. 

The economic savings of reducing absenteeism 

Taking an extended sick leave has a financial cost for both June and her employer. The economic cost of a lost productive day is often valued as an average wage. 

Based on the below date, the opportunity cost for a 6-month absence ranges from £10,113 (at National Living Wage) to £16,822 (based on average weekly earnings).

By supporting June to stay in work, Brain in Hand has a return on investment (ROI) from reduced absenteeism alone of 4.9 to 14, assuming an annual BiH renewal cost of £1,140 (under the local authority bulk licence of 60). 

• ONS average weekly earnings were estimated to be £647 for regular earnings, which translates to £16,822 for a 6-month absence (July 2024).
• National Living Wage for those 21 years old and over is £11.44, which, applied to June’s 34-hour week, would translate into £388.96 per week or £10,112.96 for 6 months (April 2024). 
  
• Salaries for Countryside Ranger jobs are advertised within the range of £20-28K per year.