Employers will be encouraged to take a more proactive approach to health in the workplace, by paying for scans and regular health checks for staff, under a new initiative spearheaded by a former Labour health minister.
Hazel Blears is the chairwoman of a new ‘healthier community” programme, based in Cumbria. According to The Times, in this role she is advising Circular 1 Heath, a Barrow-based started that is running these programmes with large employers in the area, with a view to reducing pressures on local NHS services.
The first project is with BAE Systems, where Circular 1 will offer a screening programme that is designed to identify health issues earlier, through blood tests and check ups.
The company had previously worked with other large employers, including Rolls-Royce, EDF Energy and Serco on Covid testing for employees during the pandemic.
Alongside its work with BAE Systems, Circular 1 has formed this community borad, which includes representative from the local council, NHS trust, GPs and the University of Cumbria. It is hoped this will help address health inequalities across the region.
Blears has said she would like to see this community board model replicated in other parts of the UK, with business encouraged to take a more active stance on “promoting good health” rather than just treating ill-health.
Blears says: ““The bonus for the business is if you can reduce absenteeism through sickness, if you can invest in your workforce and make them healthier and happier and fitter, then you’ll get higher productivity.
“Businesses will also be able to attract talent because they’re offering something which in many cases is only ever available to people at the top of the workforce pyramid — a private healthcare system.”
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