Easily accessed through the Construction Industry Helpline App, Sleepstation is an NHS approved service aimed at improving support with insomnia and poor sleep health, but sadly it can be a postcode lottery on whether you can easily access the services free of charge.

The charity is offering the clinically proven sleep improvement programme completely free to charge to help address poor sleep in the industry. A good night’s sleep helps us deal with stress, improves resilience and optimises our immune system but the very nature of the work in construction lends itself to poor sleep quality and quantity and the issues affect all levels, from the site operatives through to management level.

Key sleep facts in construction

• Over 80% of construction workers in the UK are not getting enough sleep.
• The construction industry has one of the highest rates of psychosocial health problems, including fatigue and burnout.
• The UK construction industry ranks third for the highest average hours worked per week.
• Only 14% of construction workers in the UK work fewer than 40 hours a week.
• 44% of construction workers in the UK travel around 2-3 hours a day to work and back.

Sleepstation looks at the underlying reasons why people are having problems and has been proven to address even the most severe sleep issues. Dedicated support teams deliver a plan that reflects the issues identified and there can be significant improvement in just four sessions. It has also been shown to be far more effective than pharmaceutical interventions.

Sleepstation offers:

• An understanding of what is normal and what constitutes sleep deprivation
• A personal sleep assessment and expert analysis
• Confidential advice and reports
• Support from an expert team who offer personal advice.

Sarah Bolton, director of charitable services for the charity, said: “We launched Sleepstation in autumn of last year and it has been very successful, but we really want to ensure that everyone in construction knows about and has free and easy access to this fantastic resource. We already know that construction workers work in an environment that can be incredibly stressful and emotionally challenging. Add to that, the complications of irregular shift patterns, long working hours, early starts and demanding workloads and it’s not difficult to see why our construction workforce are at such high risk of sleep fatigue.

“With our app’s latest addition, within a few moments, users can access the highest level of support without lengthy waiting times to get an appointment with their GP or a GP referral, it’s really that simple.”

Sleepstation complements the huge variety of wellbeing support already available through the charity’s free to download self support app which offers self assessment tools, coping strategies and referral pathways to access expert advice and support. It also ensures that users are signposted to support services local to where they live as well as national help centres.