Modelling commissioned by the Work and Pensions Committee from
Health Equity North indicates that investing in return-to-work
schemes could save £6 for every £1 spent.
Following the Committee's Pathways to
Work inquiry on the Green Paper proposals in the
summer, and concerns about the lack of evidence of the impact of
the Government's ‘Get Britain Working' employment support reform
plans, the Committee decided to commission work to see what the
potential impact of new employment support programmes would be in
getting people currently unemployed or economically inactive into
work would be. Specifically, it looked at what the net savings in
DWP spending would be and what the revenue for the Treasury from
more people in work would be.
Currently, over 5 million people are out of work and in receipt
of Universal Credit (UC) including a million 18–24-year-old young
people not in education, employment or training, so called NEETs.
Over 3 million claims are due to ill-health related economic
inactivity. The analysis shows that if 5% of unemployed and
economically inactive people on Universal Credit return to work
in 2026, this could amount to over £20 billion of savings by 2029
for £1.5-£1.9 billion invested over the first two years into more
intensive support to help people into work.
As part of the Government's additional investment into employment
support announced in the summer, an additional £1 billion will be
invested into work and health support programmes including
the Trailblazers, Connect to
Work, Individual Placement and
Support and Work Well.
Reacting to the report, Work and Pensions Committee
Chair, MP said, “Evidence
shows that the levels of ill health and health inequalities have
deteriorated across the UK, but especially in deprived areas,
driven by increases in poverty and socioeconomic inequalities. As
a result, the country now faces significantly higher rates of
economic inactivity due to this ill health compared with similar
economies such as Germany, Sweden, and France.
“This poses a major economic challenge, contributing to stagnant
growth, and widening productivity gaps. We have seen in the past
the value of supportive return-to-work programmes, such as the
New Deal for Disabled People, which successfully helped people
with health conditions and disabilities into work, focusing on
the needs of the person. It's imperative that these Government
schemes are ramped up – if we can get even a small proportion,
5%, of the out-of-work population working again, we will see
extraordinary gains, not only fiscally, but for these
individuals, their families and across communities, workplaces,
and public services alike.”
ENDS
Notes to editors:
- The full report is available on the Work and Pensions
Committee website.
- The report should be cited as Bambra, C, Munford, L, Baxter,
A, et al (2025) ‘Assessing the savings and financial benefits to
the UK government of return to work for people in receipt of
Universal Credit: A modelling study', Health Equity North,
Newcastle
- Authors of the modelling from Health Equity North include
academics from Newcastle University, The University of
Manchester, University of Liverpool, and University of Glasgow.
- The Work and Pensions
Committee's report on Pathways to
Work was published in July.
- Further reports published by the
Committee scrutinising the Government's Get Britain Working plans
include:
o Reforming Jobcentres: Press
Release | Report
o Creating a new jobs and careers
service: Press
Release | Report
