World Mental Health Day was on Saturday, and the facilities management world has plenty to think about. What can the sector do about mental health, in the buildings it manages and among the people who run them?

Earlier this year, FMJ put that question to a panel of experts, and the answers will be familiar to anyone in the industry. Stress prevention should be routine rather than reactive. Leaders need to set the tone. Support has to reach people on the front line, not just those at a desk. And workload, the elephant in the room as one contributor put it, needs honest attention.

The figures behind it are sobering. Mental Health UK’s Burnout Report found that 91 per cent of workers report high or extreme levels of pressure or stress, and one in five has needed time off in the last year. HSE figures put the cost at around 22 million working days lost to work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 2024/25.

We’re a planting company, so we won’t claim greenery is the answer to any of that. But one point from the HSE’s contribution stuck with us. Facilities teams are well placed to help because they can shape workspace design, lighting, ventilation and quiet areas, all things that influence how people feel at work. Planting belongs in that list.

What plants can do

Biophilic design, the practice of bringing natural elements into the built environment, has been linked to lower stress and a greater sense of calm. The effect is modest, and it works alongside other things rather than instead of them. A quiet, green corner won’t make up for an unmanageable workload. It can, though, give someone somewhere to take five minutes, and it makes a space feel like it was designed with people in mind.

A few places where we see it make a difference:

• Quiet and break areas. If you’re creating a room for people to step away from their desks, planting is one of the quickest ways to make it feel like a refuge rather than a leftover space.
• Reception and shared spaces. The first thing people see sets the tone for how seriously a building takes their experience.
• Welfare areas for frontline teams. Support has to reach people who aren’t sitting in the main office. The mess room, the staff entrance and the back-of-house corridor are spaces that rarely get any care, and they’re where a bit of greenery stands out most.
• Open-plan floors. Planters used as soft dividers can break up a large floor and give people a little visual and acoustic relief.

Keep it off the FM’s to-do list

One of the FMJ contributors made a point that deserves more attention. Facilities is often seen as a cost, which leaves teams under-resourced, with extra responsibilities added to the people already there. Another noted that most FMs in a recent survey had received no formal training in the past year.

With that in mind, the last thing anyone needs is a planting scheme that turns into another job. Somebody has to water it, notice when it’s struggling and sort out a replacement. When that somebody is an already stretched FM, the plants are usually the first thing to drop off the list, and a tired display does more harm than no planting at all.

That’s the reason we look after what we install. At Benholm Group we design and install the planting, then take care of it, with regular visits to water, feed, tidy and replace anything that isn’t thriving. For the FM, that means a space that looks good and one fewer task to keep track of.

Start small

You don’t need to overhaul a building. Pick one space where people spend time, whether that’s a break room, a reception or a quiet area you’ve been meaning to sort out, and start there.

If you’d like to talk through what planting would work in your building, get in touch with the Benholm Group team. We’ll take a look at the space and tell you honestly what we’d suggest.

Sources: FMJ, May 2026, FM Clinic; Mental Health UK Burnout Report; HSE statistics 2024/25.