The DWP announces 15 areas where people will receive healthcare to get benefits

New measures to reduce economic inactivity and get more people back into work are to be introduced in 15 areas of England. The ambitious and far-reaching proposals cover many major cities and towns, including Birmingham, Coventry, Leicester, Manchester and Bristol.

The Department for Work and Pensions has announced that £64 million of WorkWell pilot schemes are being introduced. These will see people being given access to physiotherapy, counseling and other services so they can find or stay in work without quitting and reaching sickness benefits.

Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride hailed the scheme as “a ground-breaking new service which will integrate health and work advice at local level for the first time as part of our plan to stem the tide of economic inactivity, to grow the economy and change. live well.” He stressed that the scheme is open to everyone, not just those on government benefits, and involves personalized support from a work and health coach to tackle barriers to employment.

Set to start in October in parts of the country, including most of the West Midlands, the WorkWell initiative could be rolled out nationally if it proves successful.

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The DWP says the WorkWell pilots will take place in the following areas:

• Birmingham and Solihull
• The Black Country
• Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire
• Cambridgeshire and Peterborough
• Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
• Coventry and Warwickshire
• Frimley
• Herefordshire and Worcestershire
• Greater Manchester
• Lancashire and South Cumbria
• Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland
• North Central London
• North West London
• South Yorkshire
• Surrey Heartlands

The DWP said in its new announcement of the initiative: “Some WorkWell pilots are in areas of the country with some of the highest fit notes issued, such as Greater Manchester and the Black Country, where a combined total of over one million tickets appropriate were issued. issued last year.

“We are also rolling out ‘fit note pioneers’ in some of the WorkWell pilot areas to ensure people applying for a fit note have a conversation about work and health and are referred to local employment support services so that they can stay at work.

“Pioneers will trial better ways of triaging, flagging and supporting people who want a fit note and will be used to test a transformed process to help prevent people with long-term conditions falling out of work, including referral to support through your local WorkWell service.”

The DWP says each of the 15 WorkWell pilots will decide exactly what support is available as best suits the needs of their local area.

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