An NHS scheme that helps people receiving mental health support with their employment is to be rolled out nationally, the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) has announced. An investment of £122 million is being made to expand the service so people with common mental health problems have access to an employment adviser.
Under the scheme, people are helped to stay in work and return to the workplace or find a job, with therapists and employment advisers working together to support people. Currently, it is operating in Cheshire and Wirral, but will be extended nationally across the next three years. Around 700 employment advisers will be hired to support up to 100,000 people a year.
There is strong evidence to suggest that being in work helps people with their mental health, the DWP said, so supporting more people into work 'will help individuals' prosperity and the economy as a whole'.
