The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has confirmed that up to 5000 line managers in small businesses across England will be able to access occupational health training funded by the Government in the early months of the new year.
What is an Occupational Health assessment?
Currently, only 21% of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) provide training for line managers on ways to improve employees’ health and wellbeing, compared to 76% of large employers.
The free training is part of the Government’s drive to tackle workplace sickness and will be made available to SME businesses, helping them to better support staff and identify health-related issues early.
The move comes after the Keep Britain Working Review found that 800,000 more working-age adults are out of work due to sickness compared to 2019.
Replacing an employee lost to ill-health costs over £11,000, the DWP points out, while every sickness absence day costs businesses around £120 in lost profit.
Minister for Employment, Dame Diana Johnson said, “This free training changes that. It gives line managers the confidence to have the right conversations and make the adjustments that could help keep people in work. When small businesses support their staff to stay at work healthy, everyone wins — employees, businesses, and our economy.”
Between January and March 2026, the DWP will fund up to £800,000 worth of Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) Managing Occupational Health and Wellbeing training for line managers in SMEs.
Can I make my employee get an occupational health assessment?
