Birmingham hair salon gets a head start on mental health

As leading Birmingham salon Joshuaa Shaun Hair prepares to open its doors once again in light of the latest government announcements, founder Joshua Forde is investing in a series of mental health workshops to ensure his team’s wellbeing remains a top priority.

Like all businesses in the personal care industry, the Stirchley-based hairdressers has had to contend with strict Covid regulations, which meant closing its doors during both lockdowns. With over 300 appointments having to be cancelled in November alone, the struggle felt by the independent salon has not just been financial, but has been acutely felt by the team in terms of their own mental health and self-worth.

Joshuaa said: “Coronavirus has been incredibly hard on so many businesses, but we have been particularly badly hit by being at the bottom of the list when it comes to what the government has termed ‘non-essential services’. It has been a year of fire-fighting; suddenly having to close our doors in March and then being allowed to re-open in the summer and implementing – and investing in – a whole host of Covid-secure measures, only to have to shut again when the second lockdown was brought into force last month.

“Of course we are delighted that as of next week we can start to see our clients again; but that doesn’t hide the fact that our team has been deeply affected by so much disruption. They have been left demoralised and worried about future restrictions, while returning to work busier than ever.”

Renowned as the first gender-neutral salon in the city, Joshuaa Shaun Hair will continue its pioneering inclusivity ethos by investing £1,500 into working with wellbeing experts to promote the importance of mental health in the workplace. This investment will afford each member of the team with enhanced access to mental health sessions, as well as increased holiday allowances, to fight burn-out. Recruiting this external help, Joshua is determined to ensure that the staff feel confident returning to work, while underlining how valid their jobs are.

Joshua added: “The recent Government advertising campaign that suggested those in hard-hit industries should retrain to do something else left many of us working in the sector feeling that our job wasn’t considered important. However, we know that for so many of our customers we offer a vital service in making them feel good about themselves; now I want to ensure that my staff feel good about themselves too.”

Visit: www.joshuaashaunhair.co.uk

Pictured: Joshuaa Forde