Blog

Ingeus is a people business, everything we do is driven by our values. We know our people are our greatest asset, and that means looking after our employees in order to best look after our service users and participants.  

Carrie Peters, Director of Justice Services, explores the importance of employee wellbeing and why taking a trauma informed approach helps to improve outcomes for service users in her latest blog. 

 

Working in Justice services means our teams are often exposed to the trauma of others. This exposure can take a toll, especially on team members with lived experience of trauma themselves. It is likely that through the course of their work, there will be triggers that can remind them of past trauma. 

Ingeus demonstrates a strong commitment to its Justice employees through a range of trauma-informed initiatives that go beyond crisis response to proactively support mental health and resilience. These include a 24/7 Wellbeing Hub, a digital space on the intranet offering round-the-clock access to mental health resources; an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), which provides confidential support and guidance; and our partnership with CiC Wellbeing which gives employees access to one-to-one and group sessions with trained clinicians. 

 

But being trauma-informed goes beyond offering services, it’s about embedding these principles in our culture and shaping how we prioritise the wellbeing of our employees and how we work with service users. Trauma-informed practice helps us recognise that employees and service users may have complex histories and that we must respond in a way that does not cause further harm and that we don’t re-traumatise.  

We’ve invested in training from experts like Dr Lisa Cherry, Director of Trauma Informed Consultancy Services Ltd, who has helped us focus on creating safe spaces and a mindset for transformative change beyond tick-box exercises. We’ve also established trauma-informed champions who ensure these principles are embedded in everyday practice, keep the conversation alive and have reflective practice encouraging teams to regularly ask,
“Where are we on the journey?”. 

Trauma-informed practice is more important now than ever. According to MHFA England, 63% of UK employees are showing signs of burnout, and 79% report moderate-to-high stress levels. Frontline managers, like many of our justice staff, are among the most affected. These figures aren’t just statistics; they’re a call to action. 

In prison and probation services, where many of our participants have experienced significant trauma, a trauma-informed approach can be transformative. It helps us understand behaviour through the lens of experience, not judgment. It allows us to build trust, foster engagement, and ultimately support rehabilitation more effectively.  

All these elements help create a culture of empathy, safety, and continuous learning. When staff feel supported, they’re better equipped to support others and can be the best version of themselves where they can thrive.