Mindfulness Apps
Mindfulness apps have had mixed reviews in recent years, particularly in workplace settings. I hear this regularly in conversations with organisations who are curious about mindfulness, but cautious because of past experiences.
When people describe what hasn’t worked, a few themes tend to come up. Over-promising. Over-pricing. Lack of employee engagement and a lack of personalisation to the realities of different workplaces and the people within them.
This is particularly common when mindfulness is positioned as a quick fix or a standalone solution, rather than something that needs care, context, and support to be meaningful.
I understand the scepticism. It’s one of the reasons I spent almost a year working closely with a team to develop the Oxford Mindfulness app.
Our vision
Our app is built and offered from an informed place, recognising the challenges, we still believe workplaces can benefit when the offering is carefully implemented and supported by mindfulness trained individuals.
The Oxford Mindfulness app is research-informed and grounded in evidence-based curricula developed at Oxford (although it does include other evidence based practices too – all marked for clarity). It’s designed to be flexible rather than prescriptive, offering a structured course alongside shorter practices that people can engage with in ways that fit their lives and roles. Whilst there is evidence of workplace benefits, it is not designed to optimise performance or eliminate stress, (and it is certainly not a replacement for organisational responsibility for wellbeing) but to improve employee ability to manage their mental health.
Importantly, Oxford Mindfulness is a charity. Our aim is not to maximise profit, but to maximise impact. That shapes how we think about access, pricing, and partnerships. Our pricing model is deliberately different from many commercial alternatives, and is typically more financially accessible as a result.
Our aim is not to maximise profit, but to maximise impact. That shapes how we think about access, pricing, and partnerships.
Apps in the workplace
Alongside individual access and usage for the public, the app includes a workplace offering, designed for organisations who want to support mindfulness and mental health for their employees in an accessible way. This includes content and features developed for employees, with organisations able to contribute, tailor and manage the content available to their teams within the app.
In our work with organisations, the app often sits alongside human support. We work directly with workplaces to explore how mindfulness might fit their context, and can offer guidance, conversations, and access to trained mindfulness teachers who understand both the practice and the realities of organisational life. This combination matters. It helps ensure mindfulness is offered as part of a wider environment of support, rather than something individuals are expected to manage alone.
Workplaces are not clients of our work, they are partners in shaping how mindfulness is offered in practice
Trial offer
Mindfulness, and mindfulness apps, won’t be right for everyone or every situation. That’s important to say clearly. But I do think workplaces deserve the opportunity to explore what’s possible based on their own experience, rather than being put off by the experiences of others.
For that reason, we are offering organisations the opportunity to trial the workplace section of the Oxford Mindfulness app for their employees, without charge, as a way of exploring whether it might be a good fit.
No hype. No obligation. Just an opportunity to explore thoughtfully.
More info
To discuss a trial offer of the app in your workplace please contact me directly
The details of any trial, including the number of licences and the time period, would be discussed together to ensure it is appropriate and manageable for both sides.
Availability will depend on uptake, so this offer may be time limited.
