Earlier and better support for people with health conditions or disabilities in the workplace is key to driving growth and productivity, says a new report published by the co-chair of Keep Britain Working today
In his latest update, Sir Charlie Mayfield sets out the work being done with employers, providers and those with lived experience to deliver Britain’s first Workplace Health System.
Around 300,000 people with a health condition leave work every year.
But much of this is preventable. Someone absent for four to six weeks has a 96 percent chance of returning. After a year, fewer than half do.
Since 2019, the number of working-age people out of work due to ill health has risen by 800,000, with a total cost to the economy of around £212 billion a year.
The new plan aims to build better, more inclusive workplaces and better workplace health provision to prevent ill health conditions from escalating and to support people in work with health conditions or disabilities, to achieve more successful returns after absences from work.
It brings together employers, the NHS, local authorities and other support services to ensure people don’t fall out of work unnecessarily and companies have better data on workplace health and inclusion to drive change.
Eleven regional Vanguards, including nine Mayoral Strategic Authorities, Cornwall Council, Hull City Council and Worcestershire City Council, and more than 200 Vanguard organisations are already building and testing the new system with employers, unions and disabled people across all four nations of the UK.
Examples include:
- Liverpool City Region testing draft return-to-work plans developed with employers.
- Hull City Council, in partnership with provider Latus, creating the Hull Resilience Hub, a buyer’s pool letting local SMEs access occupational health services at the same prices as large corporates.
- South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority will be trialling independent case workers sitting part-time within businesses to support employees with health concerns.
Sir Charlie Mayfield, author of the Keep Britain Working Review and Co-Chair of the Keep Britain Working programme, said: “Britain has spent too long treating economic inactivity as a welfare problem. It is not.
!Instead, it’s one of the largest and most attainable growth opportunities this country has.
“We’ve had a National Health Service for almost 80 years. We’ve never had a Workplace Health System. That is why the same people appear on the welfare bill, on NHS waiting lists and in the productivity figures without anyone being able to join them up.
“It’s also why we are missing the best moments to help people. The new Workplace Health System would change that.
“Ten months of building and testing with employers, mayors, providers, unions and disabled people have made us even clearer about what needs to change and more confident that a new system that helps to drive economic growth is within reach.
“The task now is to build it.”
An employer standard is being developed with the British Standards Institution, alongside affordable support for smaller firms through pooled buying and insurance routes, so good workplace health support is not just available to big companies.
Sir Charlie’s work sits within a £3.5 billion employment support package. WorkWell, backed by £259 million will support up to 250,000 people to stay in or return to work. Connect to Work will reach 300,000 sick or disabled people with tailored support. Over 1,000 full-time Pathways to Work advisers are already in place across Britain.
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said: “Too many people fall out of work because of a health problem that could have been caught earlier, and too many employers have no way of knowing whether they are getting this right.
“This programme is working hand in hand with employers, mayors and local leaders to change that, so that good workplace health support is not just for big companies and it delivers growth across every postcode.”
Alongside this, the programme is also focusing on intelligence. Few employers can currently tell how well they keep staff with health conditions in work, or whether people are still in work six months on. Fewer still have the insights that could fuel their prevention efforts. A new employer data project and work and health prototype are being developed this autumn aims to address these gaps.
Over the next year the programme will continue to work with BSI to develop a standard and test and refine employer commitments with the Vanguard to build the evidence on what works.
Minister of State for Work and Health Ally McGovern, said: “Anyone can find themself with an illness that could stop them working. Getting help quickly rather than waiting for the problem to get worse is the right way to support good health and a strong economy.“
The Westminster government is also committed to further steps to bring about effective and sustainable welfare reform, and this will be guided by the Milburn and Timms reviews, which are due to conclude later this year.
Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, said: “Too many people are being written off from good work when the right support could help them thrive.
“Through our Healthy Working Life programme, we’re bringing together health services, employment support and employers, so people can get the help they need at the right time rather than being bounced between disconnected services.
“Supporting people with health conditions and disabilities to access good work isn’t just the right thing to do – it’s key to unlocking talent and building a healthier, wealthier West Yorkshire.”
Oliver Coppard, Mayor of South Yorkshire, said: “I want South Yorkshire to become the healthiest region in the country, a place where everyone has the chance to work, support their families and pursue their dreams. At the moment, all too many people don’t have that chance because of poor health.
Our trial will help us work alongside employers, employees and health experts to find practical ways of supporting people to stay well, stay in work, or return to work when they’re ready.
By testing new ideas and listening to the voices of both working people and employers, we can help create healthier workplaces where people and businesses can get on, contribute to our communities and our economy, and help us build the South Yorkshire we all want to see.”
Bev Craig, Mayor of Greater Manchester, said: “Greater Manchester has long championed the link between good work, good health and economic prosperity. Through our Live Well approach, Good Employment Charter and Get Greater Manchester Working plan, we’re focused on helping more people stay in work, particularly when they’re facing health or other challenges.
“We welcome the focus on prevention and look forward to working with partners to put effective solutions into practice.”
Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, said: “Creating a Workplace Health System approach will bring organisations together to work better to provide the right support, at the right time, to help keep more people in work.
“We know that the longer people are off work, the harder it can be to return. This is why early personalised support is so important, particularly for long-term sickness and poor mental health. In partnership with local councils, Integrated Care Boards, the government, and community organisations, in the West we’ll build a more joined‑up, preventative system that helps people sooner.
“The West of England is already the country’s fastest-growing regional economy. Through our new Skills Strategy, our ambition is to also have the highest employment rate in the UK.
“We’re working with employers to enable them to find and retain the talent and workforce they need to thrive, while making it easier for residents of all ages to access training, advice and pathways into work.”
Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands, said: “Too many people across the West Midlands want to work and get on in life, but are being held back by barriers that they should be getting help to overcome.
“Good work is about more than a pay packet. It brings security, independence, and pride, and when people are locked out of work, we’re also missing out on their skills and talent.
“West Midlands Works is about changing that. By working alongside the Keep Britain Working programme and employers, we can give people the right support to get into work, stay in work and build a better future for themselves and their families.”
Steve Rotheram, Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said: “People shouldn’t be written off because they develop a health condition – and businesses shouldn’t have to lose good, experienced workers because the right support wasn’t there soon enough.
“In the Liverpool City Region, we’re proud to be playing our part in helping to test practical ways of changing that; stepping in earlier, working directly with employers and making it easier for people to stay in work or return when they’re ready. That matters just as much for a small business employing ten people as it does for a company employing thousands.
“If we can get this right, the prize is huge: more people able to keep the security and independence that comes with work, businesses holding on to the skills they need, and a stronger, more productive economy as a result. It’s the kind of common sense reform that can make a real difference to people’s lives.”
Alistair Cochrane, Chief Executive of Royal Mail, said: “Royal Mail is proud to support Keep Britain Working to help more people stay in and return to work.
“We are already applying learnings from the programme to strengthen support for our employees’ wellbeing, particularly those at risk of musculoskeletal and mental health conditions, which are the leading causes of sick absence in our business.
“We are introducing practical measures such as upskilling managers on mental health, removing barriers for employees seeking help with their health, and making it as easy as possible to return after long-term sick leave.”
Anne Hayes, Director of Standards Development, BSI, said: “We support the KBW review’s conclusion that supporting more people into work represents an economic opportunity for the UK.
“Our research has found that employers play a critical role in this, with nearly half of staff who are not confident raising health concerns with their employer having left a role or taken extended leave as a result.
“The standard we are developing with KBW will be a vital tool to help employers work effectively to build workplace cultures rooted in trust so that individuals and organisations alike can flourish.”
John Foster, Chief Policy and Campaigns Officer, CBI: “The progress of the Keep Britain Working Review shows what can be achieved when government and business work together to turn ambition into practical action.
“Making affordability a key test is particularly important at a time when cost pressures are constraining firms’ ability to hire and invest.
“Bringing down the wider cost of doing business will help give employers the confidence and headroom to create jobs, invest in their people and play their full part in delivering this shared ambition.”
Jack Latus, CEO of Latus Group, said: “Every person who leaves work because of ill health is a loss to their employer, their local economy and the public finances.
“Too often, someone develops a health condition and slowly drifts away from their job with isolation and long silent periods on a fit note making things worse.
“Prevention has to happen where people spend their working lives.
“Good workplace health support means acting early, staying in touch, and working together on a return before a health problem becomes a lost job.
“In Hull, the Resilience Hub is giving local SMEs that support and Latus are delighted to be part of the Keep Britain Working movement, working to explore how earlier insights from employees can better support them, and at the right time.”
Kate Thompson, executive director of people and organisational development at Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We want to be a leading employer for staff health and wellbeing and are delighted to be part of the Keep Britain Working movement.
“Our staff health needs assessment, which brings together demographic information and survey questions, provides real insights into our varied workforce.
“It has already helped focus our preventative and proactive work where it’s most needed, including projects on musculoskeletal conditions and financial wellbeing. The next stage is to make the data readily available to the right people, so they can identify health and wellbeing priorities for their teams.
“Staff health and wellbeing is part of our overall focus on staff satisfaction, as we know that happy, healthy staff provide better patient care. It also helps us to reduce sickness absence, improve productivity and drive value for public money.”
Keep Britain Working is an independent review turned delivery programme tackling health-related economic inactivity and promoting healthy, inclusive workplaces.
It is co-chaired by Sir Charlie Mayfield, alongside the three Secretaries of State.
Read more at Keep Britain Working – GOV.UK.
Read the report A National Growth Opportunity – GOV.UK.
