Project aims to support people with health conditions or disabilities to overcome barriers to employment

The ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ-led research is being supported through the National Institute for Health and Care ResearchÂÌñ»»ÆÞ™s Work and Health Research Initiative
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Project aims to support people with health conditions or disabilities to overcome barriers to employment

The ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ-led research is being supported through the National Institute for Health and Care ResearchÂÌñ»»ÆÞ™s Work and Health Research Initiative
Worklessness is a huge issue in the UK, with 3.7million people aged 16 to 64 who have a health condition that means they are neither in work nor actively seeking it.
In ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ alone, 25% of the working-age population is economically inactive and there is a strong association between poor mental health and young people not being in education, employment and training (NEET).
A new research project, led by the ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ“ working with partners across ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ, Cornwall, Kent and London ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ“ is exploring how best to support people who experience these and other complex barriers to employment so they can get into, and stay in, work.
The project is bringing together employers, researchers and people with lived experience who have been involved in supported employment schemes, to understand what works well, and why, and what might be improved.
It will then assess whether and how a more individualised approach can be developed to help people facing combinations of complex needs in different contexts, and the impact of taking peopleÂÌñ»»ÆÞ™s personal needs and interests into account.
The project is being supported through a £2million investment by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) in its Work and Health Research Initiative.

There is a lot of evidence that worklessness impacts negatively on peopleÂÌñ»»ÆÞ™s physical and mental health and any support they receive should be tailored to their individual support needs, aspirations and context. Working with our project partners, and connecting with others on relevant initiatives across the country we hope to share learning and insight to help improve outcomes for people who experience complex barriers to employment.

Rebecca Carter DillonDr Rebecca Carter Dillon
Senior Research Fellow

The project will build on learnings from the ÂÌñ»»ÆÞÂÌñ»»ÆÞ™s Changing Futures (CF) programme, which provided trauma-informed individualised supported employment opportunities for people with experience of multiple disadvantage.
It unites a number of partner areas with NIHR-funded Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC) programmes. The aim of HDRCs is to boost research capacity and capability within local government and ensure relevant evidence is used to support decision-making processes.
The Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC) partner areas and supported employment initiatives involved in this project are focussing on different groups of people:
  • ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ“ for young people who are not in employment, education or training (NEET);
  • ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ“ for young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND);
  • ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ“ for people in recovery from drug or alcohol misuse;
  • ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ“ , and other projects, for people with complex needs/ experiencing multiple disadvantage.
The ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ research team is training service users from each of the supported employment initiatives as peer researchers, and they will then do the data collection with their peers to evaluate the impact of these initiatives in each of these areas.
The aim is to understand what works well and why, and what the challenges are for service users. They will also take part in the data analysis and then share the learning across the different areas and more widely, for everyoneÂÌñ»»ÆÞ™s benefit.  Service users are also involved in the Advisory Group, ensuring that lived experience is embedded across the project.
Once the initial study is complete, the researchers will apply for funding from the NIHR Work and Health research award, to look at the issues in more detail.

Investing in research that supports employees to stay healthy, happy and remain in work is crucial for the future of our economy. It has the potential to deliver substantial economic and social benefits for individuals, employers and wider society. The NIHRÂÌñ»»ÆÞ™s Work and Health Research Initiative builds on existing investment in research in this area, helping to support the UKÂÌñ»»ÆÞ™s economic growth and boost health and wellbeing across the UK.

Professor Danny McAuley
Scientific Director for NIHR Programmes
Smeaton's Tower on ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ Hoe, ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ UK

The NIHR Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC) ÂÌñ»»ÆÞ

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