Agenda item

The purpose of this report is to inform the Health and Wellbeing Board of the delivery plan for Leicestershire, Leicester City and Rutland (LLR) WorkWell, and how the programme will be placed in General Practice to support the population that may have barriers in returning to work and to thrive in work.

The Deputy Chief People Officer, Integrated Care Board presented the LLR WorkWell Programme. It was noted that:

• The WorkWell Programme was a joint partnership of Work and Pensions (DWP) and Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).
• Work Well services were expected to begin service delivery from autumn 2024.
• WorkWells focus was on early intervention and support, offering participants an expert assessment of their health-related barriers, along with a tailored plan to address this .
• It had also served as a pathway to support existing local services.
• WorkWell had provided advice and support to employers to triage, signpost and send referrals to clinical and non-clinical support including wider community provisions.
• The Government’s agenda was to support the WorkWell scheme as it aligned with its overarching agenda to 'get Britain working again,' which also linked to Integrated Care Systems and strategic objectives.
• As the only G7 country that had not returned to pre-COVID employment levels, this initiative underscored the importance of social value, equality, and the dignity and right to work for all individuals.
• The focus and goal of WorkWell was to support people with a disability and those with long term health conditions to start, stay and succeed in work.
• LLR was one of just 15 areas in England which was to benefit from the WorkWell pilot and receive 2 years of funding from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC).
• The service was to link people to local support services, offering tailored help to stay in or return to work. The focus was to be on people in work who were struggling due to a health condition or disability, those who were on long-term sick leave and at risk of losing their job, or those who were recently unemployed who had faced a barrier to return to work due to a health condition or disability.
• As part of the WorkWell journey, participants, who did not need to be claiming any Government benefits were to work closely with a Work and Health Coach to understand their current health and social barriers to work and draw up a plan to help overcome them.
• Across the LLR ICB area there was to be a specific focus on the areas with the highest levels of economic inactivity and long-term conditions, particularly musculoskeletal disorders and mental health.
• People were to self-refer to WorkWell, or they could be referred through their employer, primary care providers such as GPs, or local services including Jobcentre Plus.
• The programmes focus was to connect current service provisions through referrals following triage to strengthen services currently available.
• The DWPs focus was an integrated approach to make a significant impact. Learning from participants journeys and building a user experience into pathways.
• Key principals:

o   Improving health equity

o   Preventing illness

o   Keeping people well

o   Right care at the right time

o   Health and wellbeing hubs

o   Elective care

o   Learning disabilities and autism

o   Mental health

o   Children and young people

o   Women’s health and maternity

o   Our people

• Additional funding had been made available to make the Joy App user friendly.
• Yearly 20000 individuals had requested fit notes in LLR, they all would be eligible for this service and the aim was to refer at least 4000 of the potential prime candidates into the programme.
• There were national KPIs and the ICB were building in a qualitative user experience for outcomes and measures.
• Governance was in place and the Integrated Care Partnership had been signed off.
• 22 of 26 PCNs were onboarded in the last few months and engagement work would take place to encourage the remaining PCNS to onboard.
• The programme had added 30 additional job posts into the LLR, through staggered recruitment campaigns.
• The programme launch was to be delayed for the new year, instead of the original date in October. It was delayed due to data sharing agreements between the DWP and PCN.

As part of discussions, it was noted that:

• The point of the pilot is to test and be conscious of the gaps that are holding people back from returning to work. Impacts on reductions in sick days and the impact on SMEs tentative discussions had taken place and would be ongoing. Work was taking place with the DWP to see how engagement with SMEs could improve going forward. The work coaches would help make a holistic plan for what matters to the individual, how they could be supported in getting back into work and a sustainable impact to keep them in work.
• 26 work coaches were based in Leicester City. An estimated 4000 people were using the scheme with concerns of whether the provisions in place had been suitable.
• The VCS had concerns that there were safeguarding issues with the Joy App.
• Regular evaluations on the programme were to be ongoing and part of that was to be the impact on equity. Monthly evaluations were to  be reported to the steering group which involved LLR colleagues. More work was being done to onboard the remaining PCNs to ensure the evaluations are transparent across the programme.

AGREED:

·       The board noted the report.

·       That ICB colleagues update the board at the next meeting on concerns raised on safe guarding issues with the Joy App and to liase with colleagues before the next meeting.