A new sick note rule is being introduced in England as the country sees the welfare bill reach an eye-watering eight million benefit claimants. Sick notes are set to be scrapped in a bid to get Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) claimants back to work.
GP practices and surgeries will axe 'sick notes' under a new government trial. It comes after more than 11 million 'fit notes' were handed out last year. The proposed overhaul aims to cut the number of benefits claimants signed off work with poor health. Instead of receiving sick notes from doctors, the new pilot programme will instead refer struggling workers to surgery-based 'social prescribers'.
These alternatives include exercise regimes and career coaching to keep them in employment, the Times newspaper is reporting. The government will also use its WorkWell coaching scheme, available for DWP claimants, to support those handed fit notes. Under the sweeping reforms, GPs are also set to send patients to the gym, as previously outlined by Birmingham Live.
Expert Opinion on the Fit Note System
Sir Charlie Mayfield, chairman of John Lewis, said the fit-note system was 'not working as intended'. Sir Charlie, after being roped in by the government, advised reform in an official review of out-of-work sickness last year.
WorkWell Scheme
WorkWell is a health and employment support service providing integrated holistic early help for people with health-related barriers to work. The government website states WorkWell is aimed at anyone with a disability or health condition who is in work or who could move into work with the right support.
The sweeping overhaul forms part of Labour's Plan for Change, as the government moves from a system that 'manages sickness to one that promotes health, work and prosperity', he said. It comes after a wider £64 million WorkWell scheme was launched by the government in October last year.
