Renfrewshire Council awarded Menopause Friendly Accreditation 

Renfrewshire Council has been awarded Menopause Friendly Accreditation, recognising its work to support employees experiencing menopause and create a more inclusive workplace culture. 

The council, which serves communities across west-central Scotland and employs around 8,500 staff, has a workforce where 75 per cent of employees are women and the average age is 46. Leaders say this makes menopause support a significant workplace wellbeing priority. 

Staff are based across multiple locations, including 64 schools, care facilities, council offices and community sites. The council said this required a broad approach to engagement, training and resources to ensure support reached employees across its diverse workforce. 

As part of its menopause strategy, Renfrewshire Council introduced paid menopause leave and launched “Let’s Pause” monthly peer-support sessions for staff. It also created a programme of accessible virtual learning events through its RenTalks Learning for Life initiative. 

The sessions feature expert speakers discussing topics including lifestyle medicine, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for managing symptoms. Recordings are made available on the council’s e-learning platform to ensure staff across different sites can access the information. 

The Menopause Friendly Accreditation, established in 2021 by Henpicked: Menopause in the Workplace, recognises organisations that demonstrate high standards of menopause support. Employers are assessed by an independent panel across several areas including workplace culture, policies and practices, training, engagement and the working environment. 

Fiona Sinclair, organisational development advisor and menopause champion at Renfrewshire Council, said the accreditation reflected the organisation’s commitment to supporting employee wellbeing. 

“Receiving Menopause Friendly Accreditation is a great endorsement of our approach to looking after our employees’ wellbeing and helping everyone to be happy, healthy and productive at work,” she said. 

“As our Menopause Champion, I’ve seen first-hand the difference it makes when people feel genuinely supported and listened to. Menopause can be an incredibly challenging time and knowing that our colleagues don’t have to face it alone is something I’m proud of.” 

Sinclair added that support from senior leaders, managers, trade unions and elected members had been key to embedding menopause support across the organisation. 

“Our senior leadership, managers, trade unions and elected members have backed this work wholeheartedly, not just in words but in real, practical action which has created a culture where compassion, understanding and inclusion truly matter,” she said. 

Deborah Garlick, founder and chief executive of Henpicked, said the council’s approach demonstrated how organisations can embed menopause support across large and diverse workforces. 

“Renfrewshire Council achieving Menopause Friendly Accreditation is a brilliant example of what meaningful, organisation-wide commitment looks like,” she said. 

“This is about listening carefully to colleagues across very different roles and locations, acting on what they say and embedding support in ways that are practical, inclusive and accessible. The Council has created a culture where menopause can be spoken about openly, stigma is challenged and people feel genuinely supported to thrive at work and that is exactly what this accreditation is designed to recognise.”