Job counselors could be placed in NHS hospitals to help those who are off sick for a long period of time return to work

Employment advisers will be stationed at NHS hospitals under Labor plans to get people on long-term sick leave back to work, as a disability charity said the proposal should not become a “punitive measure”.

It is believed that Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, and Liz Kendall, the Work and Pensions Secretary, want to expand a model used at Maudsley psychiatric hospital in south London, which deploys employment support such as job search, writing resumes and interviewing. course.

James Taylor, director of strategy at disability charity Scope, said Guardian Labour’s plans were “not nearly as tough in terms of rhetoric as (the) previous government” but that the focus on cutting social services “doesn’t fail any services and don’t support people early enough.”

The Office for Budget Responsibility has predicted that spending on disability services will be the same £39.1 billion in Great Britain in 2023-2024 about 3.1% of government expenditure for 2024-2025 £1.226 billion.

Taylor said: “We need a compassionate welfare system that recognizes where people are with their health in relation to work. Currently, employment support is largely punitive and there is a culture of mistrust and fear. Any reforms must address these issues first, and not simply repeat them in different contexts.”

The number of people unemployed due to ill health is growing by 300,000 a year, according to an analysis by the Health Foundation think tank.

Labour’s plan comes as it looks to cut public spending and boost growth, and follows a pilot project by the NHS 40,000 people with psychological problems were able to access employment support.

Norman Lamb, Chairman of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, told the Timeswho first reported the plans, that “every clinical team across the country should think that work is a legitimate and important goal of recovery for people”.

Lamb said the program is “not about forcing people into work or doing something that is not good for them,” but about “recognizing the importance to people of the dignity and self-worth that work brings,” adding reducing “the burden on the NS.”

Prime Minister Keir Starmer recently said that people on long-term sick leave should return to work “where they can”.

Labour’s plans are likely to cause discontent among some disability charities, who will hear echoes of the Conservatives’ language in government. In April, Rishi Sunak attacked a so-called ‘sick note culture’ and said there was a risk of ‘over-medicalisation’ of mental health problems.

Taylor said the government must recognize “that for some people with disabilities, work will never be an option”.