Ageing well doesn’t begin in old age: it is shaped by the schools, workplaces and communities we move through along the way. Faith Thompson, Project Manager and Researcher at Trimbos Institute, explains how these everyday environments influence our mental health over a lifetime, and why the real secret to ageing well lies not in a bottle on a bathroom shelf, but in the decisions we make about these environments.Â
I grew up with a very glamorous grandmother. She always smelled of perfume, had her hair done every Saturday, and kept an array of luxurious-looking lotions that she applied every morning and night. Even at ten, I could tell these gloopy concoctions were a defence against the inevitable. I understood ageing was the enemy, and the goal was to look young for as long as possible. Healthy ageing, if one had to age at all, seemed to happen only on the outside, with all effort aimed at avoiding crow’s feet and smile lines.Â
I'm older now and more interested in what's going on inside my head than what it looks like on the outside. Lotions and potions may have their place in visible ageing prevention, but growing evidence suggests that if we want to age well - by which I mean living a life of meaning, with strong connections and a positive wellbeing - we should spend less time in front of the mirror and focus more on the spaces in which we live our lives: our schools, workplaces and communities. Â
School: where it begins
We spend some of our most formative years in school, learning to navigate relationships, cope with challenges, and understand ourselves and others, shaping our future mental health. Supportive school environments that foster inclusion, safety, positive relationships, and meaningful participation help children build the emotional and social skills that underpin wellbeing for life. On the other hand, bullying, exclusion, discrimination, excessive pressure, and lack of support — challenges compounded by growing up in the digital age — can leave lasting scars that extend far beyond the school gates.Â
For children and young people who feel marginalised or isolated, both school and the digital world can also provide connection, acceptance, and community. A young person in a rural community, struggling to find others nearby who share their interests, might find community in a school club. Likewise, a young person questioning their gender identity may find understanding online among others with similar experiences.
For schools to promote mental health and prevent future difficulties, we must go beyond providing mental health education in the classroom. It requires the adoption of a ‘Health Promoting School’ approach and other ‘whole school approaches’ to health: creating school cultures where students feel valued and connected, supporting teachers' wellbeing, engaging families, addressing inequities, and ensuring policies and practices promote inclusion and belonging. It may sound like wishful thinking, but such schools and communities exist, and programs and initiatives that foster them are spreading.
The European Network of Health-Promoting Schools (ENHPS), officially launched in February 2026, supports countries across the WHO European Region in creating school environments that promote the health, well-being and learning of children and adolescents. In the Netherlands, the Welbevinden op School (Well-being at School) programme is a structural, school-wide initiative — managed by EuroHealthNet’s members Trimbos Institute and Pharos (Dutch Centre of Expertise on Health Disparities) — that aims to support mental health and social-emotional well-being in Dutch primary, secondary, and specialised education. In these initiatives, the responsibility for wellbeing shifts from the individual student to the wider school and support system. Â
Schools cannot and should not tackle mental health challenges alone: it takes collaboration between schools, parents and caregivers, municipalities, mental health professionals, and other community stakeholders. This helps equip young people with the skills, confidence, and resilience needed to enjoy the present and age well in the future.Â
Work: where we spend our waking hours
Many of us spend most of our waking hours at work. Whether that's an office, classroom, building site, factory, farm, or shop floor, our working environment profoundly impacts our wellbeing. Everyone has a difficult day or an unpleasant manager now and then, but when stress, job insecurity, poor management, discrimination, excessive workloads, bullying or a lack of support become chronic, the effects accumulate on our wellbeing. Over time, a psychologically unsafe workplace with psychosocial risks can shape not only our current mental health but also our wellbeing as we age. Â
Not all dissatisfaction comes from poor working conditions. A job can offer excellent pay, support, and opportunities, yet not align with a person's interests or aspirations. The issue is not the workplace itself, but the fit between the work and the individual. This is an important part of prevention: promoting mental health is not simply about fixing environments when something goes wrong, but about creating conditions where people can feel connection and belonging. With nearly 36 hours a week spent at work in the EU, our workplace and how it makes us feel can either protect our mental health or undermine it. Research consistently shows that jobs providing purpose, autonomy, security, social connection and fair treatment can support our mental wellbeing. If we’re serious about healthy (mental) ageing, we must treat workplaces as settings for prevention by designing jobs and workplaces that promote wellbeing and minimise psychosocial risks. Â
This can start small: a manager who admits mistakes and creates a safe space for employees, or breathing exercises before a stressful meeting. At organisational level, it can mean tailored return-to-work policies for colleagues coming back from mental health-related absence, making the transition easier and more likely to succeed for employees and employers alike. On a broader level, we also need the law to protect mental health and workplace wellbeing, ensuring every employee has the right to a safe, healthy, and supportive working environment. Â
Wellbeing is everyone’s business
Unfortunately, there is no anti-wrinkle cream for our living environments. What we can do is build spaces on the principle of prevention and enhanced wellbeing, a responsibility that extends across every sector. By recognising that mental health is not created solely within health services, but shaped by the environments in which we live, learn, and work, we can ensure these settings are designed, developed, and governed accordingly. Â
Focusing on collective outcomes such as mental wellbeing can create a range of ‘win-win’ opportunities. Young people with good mental health are more likely to be better positioned for education and employment, and a mentally healthy population is better placed to participate in society and enjoy a higher quality of life. By broadening our understanding of where wellbeing is created and protected, we can better create the conditions for people to age well, smile lines and all.Â
Mentally healthy ageing begins long before old age, and the real secret, despite my nan’s efforts, is not on a bathroom shelf, but in the decisions we make about the environments that shape us throughout our lives.
Keep on reading
The Welbevinden op School (Well-being at School) programme helps and inspires education professionals, municipalities, and Public Health Services to work on well-being school-wide.Â
The European Network of Health-Promoting Schools (ENHPS) brings together Ministries of Health and Education, public health experts and partner organisations to strengthen and expand the health-promoting schools (HPS) approach across the WHO European Region.
Trimbos provides research, policy, and practice-based advice for professionals on mental health and addiction issues across the life course, and across the promotion, prevention, treatment, and recovery spectrum. It also focuses on improving the mental health and wellbeing of specific groups at high-risk of developing a mental health or substance use issue - as well as specialising in strategies that strengthen protective factors and minimise risk factors for mental ill-health.
Faith Thompson
Faith has experience supporting mental health reform, mental health promotion and prevention, the implementation of mental health in all policies and stakeholder collaboration in international settings. She regularly contributes to project coordination, stakeholder engagement, advocacy activities, and policy processes supporting international mental health priorities. As a Theory of Change specialist, she has worked with organisations in more than 18 countries to develop impact pathways, define outcomes, and strengthen monitoring frameworks for mental health initiatives. She has also worked closely with healthcare professionals, patient organisations, media, and other partners, supporting collaboration, implementation planning, and sustainable mental health promotion and reform efforts.