Ways to Wellness launches free employer's toolkit for people with chronic health conditions and pain

Having been part of the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority’s Economic Inactivity Trailblazer, through which Ways to Wellness received Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) funding to offer client-led psychosocial employment support to people who feel unable to work due to pain or their health, this digital toolkit has been informed by direct conversations with both the clients we’ve helped move closer to work, and regional employers that generously shared their experiences with us.

As of early 2026, North East England has the highest rate of economic inactivity due to long-term sickness in the UK, with chronic health conditions and pain serving as a primary driver for being out of work. 

The region faces a persistent challenge in that more than a quarter of the working-age population is economically inactive, a figure that is costing our annual economy a staggering £18.4 billion.

To put that number in perspective, it would take one person with the average full-time UK salary of £35,000 more than 525 years to earn this amount, and based on NHS figures using this salary as a baseline, the sum could be used to recruit more than half a million newly-qualified nurses. 

In response to this challenge, this insight-led toolkit has been created to support the region’s employers and recruiters to better understand the challenges people with chronic conditions and pain face, whether seeking employment or aiming to stay in work, and provides practical guidance that can help individuals impacted by these issues to feel included, confident to contribute, and able to perform at their best.

See the full toolkit at https://www.waystowellness.org.uk/employers-toolkit