Reading List

A curated Reading List to support and extend learning from Stress Management and Relaxation Techniques Overview for Care Staff.

This overview compares nine approaches to understanding and managing stress in care home work. The sources below provide official guidance and practical self-help on workplace stress, care-sector staff wellbeing, CBT-informed techniques, mindfulness, breathing and relaxation, physical activity, and support options across the UK nations.

1. Care-Sector Wellbeing and Workplace Guidance

• CQC - Workforce wellbeing and enablement
  An adult social care quality statement explaining why staff wellbeing, feedback, safe working conditions, breaks, and personalised support matter for person-centred care in regulated services in England.
  https://www.cqc.org.uk/guidance-regulation/providers/assessment/single-assessment-framework/caring/workforce-wellbeing-enablement

• Skills for Care - Wellbeing resource finder
  A social care resource finder reviewed in April 2024. Useful for managers and staff looking for sector-specific resources on wellbeing, resilience, mental health, grief, bereavement and wellbeing culture.
  https://www.skillsforcare.org.uk/Support-for-leaders-and-managers/Managing-people/Wellbeing/Workforce-wellbeing-finder/Wellbeing-resource-finder.aspx

• NICE - Mental wellbeing at work (NG212)
  UK guidance on creating conditions that support mental wellbeing at work. Clarifies that managing workplace stress involves organisational and managerial actions as well as individual measures.
  https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng212

• HSE - Stress and mental health at work
  The Health and Safety Executive hub on work-related stress, risk assessment, management standards, employee help and employer responsibilities in Great Britain.
  https://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/

2. CBT, Mindfulness, and Self-Help Resources

• NHS - Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
  A clear NHS explanation of CBT, what it treats and how it is accessed. Useful background for the CBT techniques and Five-Part Model sections of the course.
  https://www.nhs.uk/tests-and-treatments/cognitive-behavioural-therapy-cbt/

• NHS Every Mind Matters - Self-help CBT techniques
  A collection of CBT-informed self-help techniques for managing worry, building resilience and spotting unhelpful thought patterns. Useful for practising techniques covered here.
  https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-wellbeing-tips/self-help-cbt-techniques/

• NHS Every Mind Matters - Thought record
  A structured CBT exercise for noting thoughts, feelings, evidence and alternative perspectives. Suitable for reflection after stressful shifts or difficult interactions.
  https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-wellbeing-tips/self-help-cbt-techniques/thought-record/

• NHS Every Mind Matters - What is mindfulness?
  An NHS introduction to mindfulness and simple ways to practise it. Helps decide whether mindfulness fits your approach to stress management.
  https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-wellbeing-tips/what-is-mindfulness/

• NHS Every Mind Matters - Work-related stress
  A plain-language guide to work-related stress, including common emotional, thought and behaviour changes and simple in-the-moment strategies such as breathing, reframing and talking to someone you trust.
  https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/lifes-challenges/work-related-stress/

3. Relaxation, Breathing, and Physical Activity

• NHS inform - Progressive muscle relaxation
  A Scotland-facing NHS guide to PMR. Useful for releasing physical tension and quick body-based relaxation.
  https://www.nhsinform.scot/healthy-living/mental-wellbeing/breathing-and-relaxation-exercises/progressive-muscle-relaxation/

• NHS inform - Controlled breathing exercise
  A simple NHS guide to controlled breathing. Useful as an in-the-moment calming technique that complements mindfulness, PMR, ACT, or the Five-Part Model.
  https://www.nhsinform.scot/healthy-living/mental-wellbeing/breathing-and-relaxation-exercises/controlled-breathing-exercise/

• UK Chief Medical Officers - Physical activity guidelines
  UK-wide physical activity guidance. Relevant when forming realistic movement habits that support physical health and recovery from stress.
  https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/physical-activity-guidelines-uk-chief-medical-officers-report

• NHS Every Mind Matters - Be active for your mental health
  An NHS guide to the mental-health benefits of movement and activity. Useful for recovery between shifts and for planning realistic activity goals.
  https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-wellbeing-tips/be-active-for-your-mental-health/

4. Social Care Workforce Resources Across the Four Nations

• England - Skills for Care wellbeing resources
  Social-care-focused resources for workforce wellbeing, including support for leaders and managers and tools to develop workplace wellbeing culture.
  https://www.skillsforcare.org.uk/Support-for-leaders-and-managers/Managing-people/Wellbeing/Workforce-wellbeing-finder/Wellbeing-resource-finder.aspx

• Scotland - SSSC Workforce wellbeing
  Scottish Social Services Council resources and signposting for people working in social work, social care and children and young people's services, including the National Wellbeing Hub.
  https://www.sssc.uk.com/supporting-your-learning/workforce-wellbeing/

• Wales - Social Care Wales: Your health and well-being
  Health and wellbeing information, advice and resources for social care, early years and childcare workers in Wales, including the workforce health and wellbeing framework.
  https://socialcare.wales/resources-guidance/health-and-well-being-resources

• Northern Ireland - nidirect Workplace stress
  A Northern Ireland government resource on workplace stress, warning signs, responsibilities, and practical next steps.
  https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/workplace-stress

Use these references to deepen your knowledge of the techniques covered and to find official support routes if stress becomes persistent, harder to manage, or starts to affect safety or functioning.