"We must look after ourselves to protect others" IOSH President urges support for mental health

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Health and safety professionals must look after themselves so they can protect others, IOSH’s new President Kelly Nicoll says.

Nicoll became the 58th IOSH President at the Institution’s AGM in November, following former President Stuart Hughes. An experienced Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) professional of 15 years, she has worked in rail, facilities management, the NHS, construction, events and broadcasting. Nicoll is currently Head of Environment, Health and Safety at Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust.

Nicoll announced that during her tenure, she wants to “explore how we look after ourselves when we spend so much time looking after others.”

She revealed her past struggles with mental health, along with her intention to prioritise it as part of IOSH’s mission:

“I have experienced both burnout and very poor mental health during my career but found that I felt I was unable to reach out to people because I was always the one that others reached out to.

“Building excellence within our profession, one of IOSH’s missions, cannot be done without ensuring that we have the resilience, and the support and network around us when we need it. We cannot create a safe and healthy world of work without the input of others. So, how do we support each other? And how do we ensure that we get the help and support that we need when we need it?”

Coaching skills, management styles and improving responses to fatal and significant incidents are also on Nicoll’s agenda. Nicoll herself has personal experience of fatal workplace accidents:

“One resulted in a colleague breaking his back in four places. I remember walking into the hospital, hearing him screaming in pain from the other side of the ward, and seeing him in his hospital bed, surrounded by his family, and them looking to me for answers as to why this had happened to their child.

“The other was a fatal fall from height, and the trauma of picking up the pieces of a business after the tragic loss of a colleague is something I still carry with me.”

Having handed the Presidency over to Kelly Nicoll, Stuart Hughes is now Immediate Past President. Richard Bate became IOSH President-Elect, taking office in late 2025.

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