Wellbeing Month is the second major element of UM Group’s global wellbeing initiative following the huge success of our Great Molasses Challenge which raised over £33,000 for the charity Farm Africa.

The money was raised thanks to colleagues running, walking, playing football, cycling, rowing, swimming and going on dog walks, all with the aim of clocking up as many miles as possible.

Every single contribution, big or small, got the team closer to the target distance of 4820 miles (7712km) which represents the distance of the first ever UM molasses shipment in 1912 from the Dominican Republic to Hull.

A total of £17,222 was raised via the Challenge’s Just Giving pages with a further £16,222 being provided in match-funding by UM’s holding company W&R Barnett making for a grand total of £33,444.

The same committee which organised the Challenge is now spearheading the activity for Wellbeing Month. The team includes Geraldine Carroll, Mark Few, Simon Markham, Nigel Jones and Louisa Brown.

Simon, UM Group’s Head of Molasses (GB), said: “We are hoping our colleagues will engage with Wellbeing Month in the same fantastic way that they did for the Great Molasses Challenge.

“We believe we have put together a packed and varied programme of presentations which will be of interest to colleagues and potentially help improve their general daily wellbeing and health both physically and mentally.

“While it was great to raise as much money as we did for Farm Africa through the Challenge, the wellbeing aspect for our colleagues was just as important and we have had some lovely feedback from people saying how much they gained from the experience.”

Geraldine Carroll, UM Group’s HR, Training and Office Manager, said: “After a short break, we are ready and excited to launch our first ever Wellbeing Month.

“We want to build on the goodwill and positivity from the Challenge and this is the next stage of our global wellbeing initiative which focusses on both the physical and mental aspects.

“We want people to know it is fine to talk and share experiences and also that through UM Group’s Employee Benefits and Employee Assistance Programme, the support is there to help colleagues in lots of different ways.”