Housing stress – why we need to be the change

Written by Ellie Marlow, CIH Futures board member

Depending on who you ask, housing can be a tough place to work - or it’s full of tough people. Our sector is full of people driven by a strong sense of purpose to do the right thing for the people and places we’re here to support. But with high workloads and the personal drive to ‘do the right thing’, our own stress and burnout can sometimes take a back seat.

Housing professionals are strong because we have to be, and while our toughness is a strength, it shouldn’t be a constant requirement.

April is Stress Awareness Month, a reminder that we should make space to recognise the pressure we’re under and learn what we can do to build tools in stress management and resilience. It’s also an opportunity to recognise the value of the work we do and reflect that it’s only possible if the people who do it are resilient and healthy.

As a CIH Futures Board Member, I love working in housing and I’m working towards its mission to bring more young people into worthwhile jobs in the sector. And while the work is meaningful, it’s demanding. So, if we want our sector to thrive, we must take stress seriously and continue building a working culture that supports people to do their best work – sustainably.

Burnout – a sector issue or a personal failure?

Last year, CIH Futures spoke to nearly 1,000 young people about their careers in housing. Many of them had a lot to say about the stress that is part and parcel of a job in the sector. Their responses offer an important insight into both the challenges and opportunities for change within the sector:

• Two in five housing professionals under 35 felt burnt out last year
• More than a third reported feeling extremely tired, stressed, or overwhelmed at work “very often” or “often”
• Only 13 per cent said they’d avoided burnout entirely.

The definition of burnout is widely understood as physical or emotional exhaustion from chronic workplace stress. Unfortunately, it’s a recognised and increasingly common experience across many sectors.

Burnout isn’t a lack of resilience; it’s what happens to anyone under long periods of high pressure and emotional load. Recognising this is an important step in addressing it. Beyond the stats, young people in housing said:

• “The purpose of my role has met my expectations but how demanding it can be and the burnout at times have been an unexpected part”
• “Stress and burnout (are) leading to high turnover”
• “There are certain people who are still logged on at like 10:00 at night, 11:00 at night… That for me is quite off-putting because I already work longer hours than I’m paid to… When it’s the people who are in head of and director positions, it just seems absolutely insane and I don’t know how they manage having a life” 

The comments from respondents paint an honest – and sadly familiar – picture of the lived experience behind the numbers of many in the sector. They also highlight why open conversations about stress and support at work are so important.

What is the sector doing about it?

Becoming Rooted in Resilience

Last year, CIH president Julie Haydon launched the Rooted in Resilience campaign. Aimed at all housing professionals, the campaign is not just about getting through hard days, but being able to ground ourselves, grow in confidence and thrive – not just survive – in our roles.

It recognises that resilience isn’t a luxury in housing today, but a necessity – something that supports both individual wellbeing and the future of the sector. Because real strength in housing isn’t about pushing through at all costs – it’s about knowing how to adapt, recover and grow.

Just in time for Stress Awareness Month, Julie has launched a Rooted in Resilience toolkit, providing individual and organisational tools to help embed mental wellbeing into personal development, team culture and leadership across the housing sector.

As Julie’s campaign highlights, resilience should be nurtured, not presumed. It’s about colleagues feeling valued, trusted and able to work in a way that is sustainable – not superhuman.

These new resources include:

• A team culture and resilience checklist
• A wellbeing and mental resilience mini-guide
• A reflection workbook
• Practical mindfulness methods and activities.

The resources are designed for immediate use by individuals and managers, supporting everything from day-to-day reflection, to building safe and supportive team cultures where staff can perform to the best of their ability.

#BeTheChange this Stress Awareness Month

Working in housing, especially as a young professional, a lot of factors can feel out of our control. It feels apt that the theme this Stress Awareness Month is #BeTheChange. Taking small, intentional steps can make a difference. The campaign encourages reflective daily questions such as:

• What is one thing I can influence today?
• What support do I need right now?
• What would a positive next step look like?

Connection and community

However you’re feeling, you’re not alone.

One of the strongest buffers against stress is connection – and the housing sector is full of people who want to support each other.

CIH’s upcoming Future Leaders of Housing webinar is a space for young professionals to explore how to influence, connect, and grow. Hearing from others who’ve been there, the webinar will explore how young professionals can:

• Feel empowered in their role
• Find allies
• Recognise their worth
• Develop their influence.

These aren’t just strategies to develop your career; they’re resilience strategies. Ways you can stay tough, to tackle tricky situations the sector can throw at us.

Being the change - Rethinking resilience as our priority

We want a career that’s fulfilling, sustainable, purposeful – and balanced. And to that we need to personally, professionally and organisationally resilient. We need everyone to put their own oxygen mask on first. 

As we mark Stress Awareness Month, I hope we can shift the narrative away from endurance. Instead, I hope we can continue to learn from challenge and grow from the tests we face to become an even stronger, more resilient workforce.