The mental health of clients at a homecare company in Sutton is a priority for the businesswoman that runs it.

However, the well-being of the carers is just as "crucial," says owner of Caremark, Hannah Drury.

She said: “It’s totally understandable for a care worker to feel bereaved by the loss of a client and we recognise the need to help people through these difficulties.

"Sometimes it’s simply a case of them having someone to talk to but we do all we can through an in-house ‘debriefing’ programme to minimise distress and provide support.

"You can’t expect someone to carry on and be able to provide exceptional care elsewhere without being sensitive to these things."

Hannah - who won the Young Franchisee of the Year and Franchisee of the Year at the HSBC awards this year - described the environment she tries to encourage at Caremark Sutton.

The 25 year-old said: "We have an open-door policy, so our carers feel as though they can pop in for a chat whenever they need something to speak to.

"We have our wonderful office dogs, which the team find very therapeutic, and we plan all of our training sessions during the evening, so that the whole team can meet and socialise.”

“Being a carer is an amazing thing to do. It’s not easy and I have such admiration for each and every member of our team. We have a duty of care to those who choose to make caring for others their vocation in life. After all, without our wonderful care workers, where would we be?”

Today, October 10, is World Mental Health Day with the theme being 'Mental Health in the Workplace'.