Mental Health Awareness Week - The Burnt Chef Project

Amy Baylis
May 18, 2023
2 min read

In honour of Mental Health Awareness Week, we are keen to talk about a platform that has been at the heart of helping promote good mental health directly within the hospitality industry. It was launched by Kris Hall after he witnessed a friend suffer from bad mental health - in May 2019 'The Burnt Chef Project' was setup with the sole intention of eradicating the stigma surrounding talking about mental health. TBCP are a non-profit social enterprise that’s reached a whopping 112 countries so far!

Words from founder, Kris -

"I've been working closely within the hospitality industry for around 9 years and have seen first-hand the struggles of mental health issues within the trade with both clients and friends.

Long antisocial hours, tough environmental conditions and pressures to perform are just some of the issues that hospitality professionals are fighting against on a daily basis.

We recently conducted a survey of 1273 hospitality professionals which showed that 8 out of 10 (84%) of respondents had experienced mental health issues within their career and 46% would not feel comfortable talking about their health concerns with their colleagues.

Hospitality staff should be able to discuss the state of their mental health and gain support from their peers and employers. It's important that although mental health can't be seen it is regularly discussed and policies reviewed. This should be the new definition of 'badge of honour".

They have a brilliant support mechanism called The Burnt Chef Support Service, and their Volunteers provide a text service 24/7, it's completely free. Just text BURNTCHEF to 85258 and one of their team will contact you.

There is also a helpline 0800 915 4610 where all calls and emails are answered by counsellors and clinically trained psychotherapists.

If you would like to get involved, donate or help then there are a few options: