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Fleet Care is a dedicated team which delivers welfare and wellbeing programmes to help our crew members thrive both personally and professionally. Learn more about their holistic approach.

Supporting Families, One Tea Talk at a Time

At Fleet Management, caring for our seafarers means taking care of their families as well. One way we do this is through Tea Talks, an initiative rolled out by our Fleet Care team which aims to brings families together in a meaningful and supportive way. Since its launch, Tea Talks has connected 710 participants across 34 sessions globally, helping to bridge the distance between ship and shore. Tea Talks have become a cornerstone to our wellbeing approach, offering a warm space for dialogue, sharing experiences, and celebrating the resilience of our community. Recent Tea Talks held in India and Manila have brought seafarers and their families together for open conversations, shared learning, and moments of joy. Reinforcing the strong bonds that keep our community connected across oceans.

Family support extends year-round through medical cover for seafarers and their loved ones, ensuring continuity of care wherever they are. On board, social activities, rest, exercise and good nutrition create space for crews to unwind and bond, while initiatives such as the Fleet Family Support Group, regular welfare calls, and weekend family engagements strengthen these connections.

For the Fleet Care team, the highlight is the difference they can make every day, best expressed in the words of one seafarer: “Thank you to the Fleet team for your understanding and support during a difficult time, your quick action and care made all the difference to me and my family.” Experiences like these are what inspire our work and highlight why family engagement remains central to our wellbeing strategy, both onshore and onboard.

People first

Just as Tea Talks supports our families onshore, our focus on “people first” ensures that seafarers themselves receive the same care and attention while onboard. Life at sea can be deeply rewarding, yet the long stretches away from home can test a seafarer’s resilience, with moments of homesickness, stress or fatigue being natural, which is why supporting mental wellbeing is a core part of Fleet Care. Before challenges escalate, crew can speak with one of two clinical psychologists who provide confidential counselling on emotional, behavioural and mental health concerns, while our partnership with Sailors’ Society offers a 24/7 Crisis Response Network delivering multilingual support by phone, email or chat.

Preparation is equally important, and through Mental Health First Aid, Psychological First Aid and the Wellness at Sea programme, crew are equipped to recognise early signs of distress in themselves and their shipmates, a proactive approach that is encouraging more seafarers to come forward and seek help when they need it.

Wellbeing is also nurtured through connection, with monthly onboard social activities bringing crews together to relax, share stories and celebrate milestones, and a new 10-minute podcast series on topics such as sleep hygiene, stress management and relationship wellbeing which is now available on Spotify, ensuring practical advice is always within reach no matter where in the world our people sail. Although connectivity and onboard relationships are improving, rest and workload balance remains an industry priority. Through our Fleet Care team, we are committed to building on this progress, continuing to empower our crew to speak up, keeping families part of the conversation, and making care a natural part of daily operations so that we are continually improving wellbeing at sea and ensuring our workforce becomes even safer, more connected and better supported.