UK-listed Companies Stepping up on Mental Health, CCLA Benchmark Finds
Today saw the launch of the fourth annual CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark - UK 100, a multiple award-winning initiative led by CCLA Investment Management for which the Chronos team carry out the independent company assessments and data analysis each year.
The benchmark assesses how 100 of the largest UK-listed employers manage and report on workplace mental health.
The findings this year showed that UK companies have significantly enhanced performance on workplace mental health in recent years, although some substantial gaps and room for improvement remain.
Some key findings highlighted at the launch include:
UK companies have significantly improved their performance on mental health issues since CCLA launched its mental health benchmark in 2022, with 21 companies moving up at least one performance tier this year alone.
This year, the average company score in the benchmark rose to 46%, up from 41% last year, and just 35% in 2022. Fifty-three companies increased their score since 2024, against 36 whose score fell.
Almost all (99%) the 100 UK-listed companies in the benchmark recognise employee mental health as a significant business concern. While two-thirds (65%) of companies assign board-level or senior management responsibility for mental health, up from 52% last year.
Room for improvement
However, just under half of assessed firms (44/100 companies) appear in the benchmark’s bottom two tiers. Some substantial gaps remain in companies’ governance of workplace mental health, and fewer than half of CEOs demonstrate leadership on the issue.
Under-equipped line managers: 49% of the companies assessed do not appear to offer mental health training to line managers, who play a crucial frontline role. Only 40% assign day-to-day operational responsibility for mental health to identified individuals.
Limited effectiveness monitoring: Many companies are failing to effectively monitor and report on the effectiveness of the mental health initiatives they are undertaking. For example, while 92% of companies run awareness-raising initiatives, only 40% report on employee uptake, and just 21% publish KPIs aimed at measuring impact on mental health. This lack of measurement limits companies’ ability to understand what’s working.
Too many CEOs are still silent: While almost half (45%) of CEOs have made a personal commitment to employee mental well-being, the majority have not. Such commitments can set the tone throughout the organisation and underpin employee mental health initiatives.
Amy BROWNE, Director of Stewardship, CCLA and co-author of the benchmark report, said:
“We have seen real improvement among the UK’s largest listed companies since we began benchmarking their performance on mental health in 2022. Twenty-one companies have moved up at least one tier this year, showing increasing recognition by employers of the importance of good workplace mental health to a thriving business. From our discussions with companies, many cite better productivity, lower staff absence, the ability to attract talent and better employee retention as the key drivers for managing workplace mental health.
The benchmark is supported by an investor coalition managing $10.2 trillion (£7.7 trillion) in assets, with poor mental health estimated to cause annual economic losses of around £110 billion in England alone.[1]
CCLA, with support from Chronos Sustainability and an expert advisory panel, originally developed the CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark in 2020 to evaluate the performance of large UK and global companies on employee mental health. It is constructed using publicly available information to evaluate companies against 27 criteria that cover: management commitment and policy; governance and management; leadership and innovation; and performance reporting and impact. It gives each company a percentage score and places them in five tiers.
The sister benchmark to the UK 100, the Global 100+, will be released on 10 October 2025
More on this year’s results is available here.
[1] Centre for Mental Health (2024), The economic and social costs of mental ill health, page 5
---
For more information on the work of our Health and Social issues visit here, or contact hannah@chronossustainability.com
.
