TL; DR: Kate Harris, Regional Director at NABS, took to the B2B Marketing Live Manchester stage to talk about the state of mental wellness across advertising, marketing and media, and how the charity supports the industry through it. NABS is the only charity dedicated to this sector, offering a free and confidential advice line, coaching, therapy and financial grants. Demand has grown sharply: over 5,000 advice line calls and 18,000 visits for support last year alone.

Kate's message was simple:

NABS is there for everyone in the industry, whatever stage they're at, and it only exists because of the industry supporting it back.

1. NABS is the only charity built specifically for this industry

NABS has supported people working in advertising, marketing and media for decades, and it's completely independent, receiving no external funding beyond the industry itself.

That independence means it can support people with no agenda, and its insight comes directly from the people who use it, through a confidential advice line that fields thousands of calls a year.

2. Demand for support is rising fast

Last year NABS took over 5,000 calls to its advice line for the first time ever, workshop attendance grew by 41%, and people came to NABS more than 18,000 times for support.

It's a sign the charity is reaching more people, but also a sign of how much pressure the industry is under, particularly as marketing budgets are often the first to be cut when things get volatile.

3. Support goes well beyond crisis intervention

NABS' offer spans free coaching (from managing a team to handling redundancies), therapy including CBT, and financial grants for practical needs, whether that's a wheelchair or a suit for a job interview. Grants are always a last resort, with the charity working through other solutions first.

Alongside this, NABS runs group sessions on grief, resilience, confidence, inclusion, ADHD and more, plus events and networking that bring the industry together.

4. Supporting NABS is a two-way relationship

Running this level of support costs £2 million a year, and it only happens because people in the industry give back, whether through company donations, charity events like golf days and quizzes, or simply putting money in a jar at a team social. Kate's ask wasn't for a big commitment, just for people to remember NABS is their charity and to support it however they can.