Workplace Wellbeing Timebomb – 83% of professionals have experienced poor mental health at work
83% of professionals state they’ve experienced mental ill health at work in the past 12 months – with more than a quarter encountering it ‘regularly’.
Robert Walters’ survey of 3,000 professionals across the UK & Ireland recently revealed increasing numbers of professionals experiencing poor mental health at work, despite employers’ best efforts to enhance wellbeing offerings like employee wellbeing programmes e.g. mental health support (71%), Cycle-to-work schemes (65%), Healthcare vouchers (48%) and free or discounted gym memberships (43%).
A survey by Ipsos indicated that mental health has now overtaken cancer and obesity, to become the most common health problem Britons worry about.
In the UK, around £138bn is lost every year due to workplace sickness.
Habiba Khatoon, Director of Robert Walters Midlands: “While it’s encouraging to see that many employers have been ramping up their wellbeing benefits – the figures speak for themselves, efforts are still falling short when it comes to meaningfully supporting professional’s wellbeing.
“With past aspersions of the UK adopting a ‘sicknote culture’ its important employers can not only empathise with, but adequately support their employee’s wellbeing to avoid footing the cost of increased employee absences.”
Demand for wellbeing interventions
29% of all UK professionals consider employee wellbeing programmes the most important wellbeing & lifestyle benefit when they’re considering a job offer. Increasing to two-fifths (43%) of HR professionals and 31% of those working within General Management.
Interestingly – a third of C-Suite professionals state the same, selecting wellbeing programmes over travel & retail discounts, healthcare vouchers and free/discounted gym memberships.
Habiba adds: “Professionals are coming forward to demand that their employers do more to support their wellbeing at work – this isn’t an issue that’s limited to a specific industry or job-level. But the jury is out on whether the steps employers are then taking to heed their demands are having the desired effect.”
Are wellbeing benefits a box-ticking exercise?
Almost three-quarters of companies now offer employee wellbeing programmes. However, less than a fifth of professionals claim to have actually accessed the mental health support provided by their employer in the past 8 months.
When asked why they hadn’t, 58% stated that these types of benefits feel more like a ‘box-ticking exercise’ rather than provide any meaningful support – with a further 29% stating the services they’ve been offered need to be improved.
Habiba comments: “Employee wellbeing programs usually involve things like mental health / mindful apps, physical health checks and supplements – whilst these interventions can be useful, they put a plaster on the real cause of mental ill health – which can be something as simple as increased stress or professionals feeling overworked.”
Employer efforts must be recentred
A worrying 67% of UK professionals don’t think their employer is doing enough to meaningfully promote employee wellbeing – whilst almost two-fifths of senior leaders feel their increased spending on wellbeing benefits is going by largely unnoticed.
Habiba concludes: “There is no overnight solution for improving mental health. But employers must be dedicated to the creating a culture of open discussion and empathy in their workplace. This means adopting strategies such as mindful work practices e.g. respecting workhours and holidays, encouraging regular breaks and offering regular check-ins for employees.
“Those businesses who dedicate themselves to going the extra mile in supporting their staff’s mental health and wellbeing now, will reap the rewards of increased employee loyalty for years to come.”
Farming industry feels the pain
As the dust settles on last week’s Budget, the consequences for the wider economy and farming are beginning to become clear. And that is particularly the case when it comes to stimulating growth, supporting domestic business and strengthening agriculture.
The Inheritance Tax (IHT) changes – reducing agricultural and business property relief (APR and BPR) will be costly to many farms and rural businesses, while the arguments used appear based on misunderstood and partial data, says Jeremy Moody, secretary and adviser to the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers (CAAV). “These changes will affect many more family farms than the Government suggests and will do so when farming needs its resources to meet the new policies, to invest and adapt to advancing climate change.
“At a strategic level, the Government may have missed its optimum moment to drive the economic growth programme we need,” he adds.
Of course, the devil is in the detail – so what do the IHT changes really mean? In simple terms, where land, dwellings, machinery, animals and other assets are worth £4m, there will be £600,000 in tax to find. “That is a lot to pay. Even if spread over 10 years that is as much as many farms make in profit over 10 years, precluding important investment.” The Government argues that only a quarter of farms; the wealthiest quarter, are affected. But that misunderstands the tax data:
- First, it is only based on APR claims and takes no account of the farm’s machinery, livestock, working capital or other business assets, including diversified business activities supporting the farm and the rural economy. That figure misses half the picture and so understates the effects of the change.
- Second, it is not an assessment of farms but of individual ownerships of agricultural land. The average value of £486,000 might generally be just 50 acres but nearer 20 in some areas. Some will be small intense farms or family members’ land used by the family farm, but more will be lifestyle units and stray fields let out for grazing round a house – both likely with wealthier non-farming owners. The data does not record farms when, on DEFRA data, the average cereals farm would need four owners to be out of tax on its farming activity.
“If farmland has to be sold, the increased capital gains tax rate will mean more acres must go, reducing the farm’s production capacity and its ability to meet its overheads,” warns Mr Moody.
However, and almost immediately, English farmers face the dramatic acceleration of delinked payment cuts.
The centrepiece of the Budget was a £25bn increase in employers’ National Insurance, increasing the cost of employing staff, especially lower paid and part-time workers. “The whole food chain will now be less able to invest and take on new hires, with anyone earning even £9,100 costing at least £615 more,” he explains. “This will be particularly felt in many of the labour-intensive sectors of farming like dairy, pigs, poultry fruit, vegetables and horticulture.”
Remagin powers construction of affordable retirement community
Leeds-based offsite construction manufacturer Remagin, part of Etex Group, is playing a pivotal role in the development of a new affordable retirement community in Oldham, Greater Manchester.
Using Remagin’s innovative Light Gauge Steel Frame (LGSF) Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) technology, Sydney Grange is being developed by McCarthy Stone and will deliver 51 affordable homes for older people in the region. All the panels for the Sydney Grange development were manufactured at Remagin’s factory in Leeds and assembled on-site, supporting local employment and helping to speed up the construction process and reduce costs. The project is the first of its kind to use Remagin’s MMC solutions in full alongside the Older Persons Shared Ownership (OPSO) scheme, with apartments available for just £95,000 based on 50% ownership*. Shahi Islam, Director of Affordable Housing at Homes England, recently visited the retirement community which will open later this year as well as Remagin’s factory in Leeds. He said “McCarthy Stone’s Failsworth development is an excellent example of high-quality and affordable housing for older people. We are pleased to support it through our older persons shared ownership scheme which forms a key part of Homes England’s efforts to provide suitable housing and build strong communities. “Expanding the use of MMC is also a priority for the programme so it’s great to see the success of the partnership with Remagin. We look forward to supporting this model and seeing it progress.” Remagin’s involvement highlights the importance of local manufacturing in the delivery of large-scale affordable housing projects. By producing LGSF panels locally, the company has been able to support the Yorkshire economy while ensuring high-quality construction at reduced costs. Patrick Balemans, Head of Division at Etex New Ways and Remagin, said: “This project demonstrates how Modern Methods of Construction can be used to meet the increasing demand for affordable, energy efficient and high-quality housing. By manufacturing the panels at our Leeds facility, we’ve not only reduced build times but also contributed to the local economy and created jobs in the regional supply chain. We look forward to continuing our work on similar projects that combine speed, value and cost-efficiency.” Sydney Grange is the first in a series of projects that McCarthy Stone and Remagin plan to deliver across the Midlands and the North, with a focus on addressing the growing need for affordable homes for older people. The use of MMC is expected to reduce construction timelines by up to 50%, while also offering sustainable, energy-efficient homes that lower ongoing costs for residents. John Tonkiss, CEO at McCarthy Stone, said: “We are delighted to showcase the first of what will be many more affordable retirement communities that we’ll build in partnership with Homes England and Remagin. It is a truly groundbreaking model that provides new retirement apartments at affordable prices and in parts of the country where development previously would not have been viable. We look forward to continuing this partnership in the months and years ahead.”Ground investigation starts for homes site development in Grimsby
Developer Keepmoat has started initial survey work at Alexandra Dock In Grimsby, where new homes are to be built.
This week the company is on site next to the Garth Lane bridge area to begin ‘trial pitting’ – ground investigations to determine soil and ground conditions ahead of any building.
This comes ahead of public consultation and the submission of a planning application for around 130 homes on the 6.25-acre site. Keepmoat was awarded the build lease for the council-owned site earlier this year.
Initial support to get the scheme underway has come from the Grimsby Towns Fund, and Homes England.
The site itself sits behind the new Horizon OnSide Youth Zone alongside the River Freshney and next to the remodelled Garth Lane bridge and waterside walkway. It was earmarked for homes in Grimsby’s Town Centre Masterplan – cited as an ideal location given the water nearby and the improvements that have already taken place.
North East Lincolnshire Council Leader Cllr Philip Jackson, said: “North East Lincolnshire must develop as a place where people want to live and work. If that does not happen, we risk stagnating as a borough. We’re committed to making sure that does not happen.
“There’s a long way to go yet, and developments of this scale don’t happen overnight. But we are working to improve the town centre as a whole and this is part of that vision. We want people who work in our borough to also live here as this will maximise the economic benefits to the area.”
Unnamed operator chosen for Doncaster Sheffield Airport
An as-yet-unnamed operator has been appointed to take over Doncaster Sheffield Airport which will lead to eventual reopening of the site — and the three South Yorkshire Chambers are applauding everybody involved in getting the landmark deal over the line.
Negotiations now entering into their very final stages but the decision is seen as a major step forward and a huge win for South Yorkshire, with the possibility of passenger flights resuming in spring 2026.
The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority will soon be considering a business case for the immediate release of £3 million (from an earmarked £138 million gainshare) to support the ongoing negotiations at this critical juncture.
Dan Fell, Chief Exec of Doncaster Chamber, said: “It goes without saying that this is incredibly heartening news, not only for Doncaster but for the wider region too. As we have long maintained, successful economies need successful airports in order to thrive and so the return of DSA naturally has massive implications for South Yorkshire.
“With that in mind, I’d like to take this opportunity to applaud everybody who has played a role, however small, in getting this deal over the line. In particular, our public sector partners at City of Doncaster Council and SYMCA deserve to be commended for taking such a bold and entrepreneurial approach to these negotiations; ultimately enabling us to get where we are today.”
Louisa Harrison-Walker, Chief Exec of Sheffield Chamber, added: “I am sure I can speak on behalf of our business community when I thank the various leaders and behind-the-scenes officers involved here for their tremendous hard work and dogged persistence. They have truly opened up new, exciting opportunities for the region.
“The news that South Yorkshire is, at long last, getting its airport back is certainly a very welcome development for Sheffield firms as well. After all, ours is an internationally significant city, with industry-leading companies and a pair of acclaimed universities that are respected the world over. These organisations are all set to benefit from the global connectivity that this revamped airport will provide; whether it’s in the form of supply chain opportunities; the creation of new jobs; or increased access to the best and brightest talent.”
Carrie Sudbury, Chief Exec of Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber, said: “At the time of its initial closure, DSA had huge untapped potential and we are eager to see how the region will take greater advantage of all these opportunities when the airport returns in its new and improved form.
“Indeed, an economic impact study found that it could represent up to £1.56bn in net benefits over the course of three decades. Not to mention, it will also create thousands of jobs right here in South Yorkshire. As Chambers, we naturally welcome anything that prospers our region, but the potential benefits that could be unlocked here cannot be understated.”
Grains storage at Immingham expands with £10m investment
Grain marketing company Viterra and ABP are to develop a £10m storage warehouse at the Immingham International Terminal.
The investment will add a further 40,000 metric tonnes capacity to Viterra’s existing capacity, giving almost 80,000 metric tonnes of undercover storage. The new facility is designed to support Viterra’s growing demand for efficient and reliable storage solutions, catering for their several different imported commodities.
Andrew Dawes, ABP’s Director of the Humber ports said: “We are thrilled to partner with Viterra on this significant project. This new warehouse alongside deep water berths, will not only increase our storage capacity for Viterra, but also reinforce our position as a leading UK port for the import and export of Agri-Bulks.
“Through our commitment to investing in supply chain solutions, we are not only improving our ability to better serve our customers, but also strengthening British trade. This investment is about creating a more resilient, responsive infrastructure that uplifts key sectors across the economy. By prioritising efficiency and agility, we’re building a robust supply chain that will support growth today and drive sustainable progress for the future in our mission to Keep Britain Trading.”
Viterra MD James Maw added: “This investment is a testament to our dedication to providing top-tier services to our clients. The new facility will enable us to better serve our customers and meet the increasing demand for high-quality storage solutions.”
Globally, Viterra is a world-leading agriculture network, active in 39 countries worldwide, marketing more than 100 million metric tonnes of agricultural commodities per year. The company renewed its relationship with ABP in April 2022 with the opening of a new 35,000 mt storage facility located on the Humber International Terminal. This is complemented by additional storage within ABP’s Bulk Park facility located within the Port of Immingham.
ABP has invested significantly in grain handling operations across the group to maintain customer demand. This has included purchasing new cranes, refurbishing existing cranes and investing in landside equipment.
Government business advice chatbot moves to new test stage
Thousands of small businesses are to be offered help and advice through a new government generative AI chatbot which moves to the next stage of testing this week.
The chatbot is designed to make it quicker and easier to find the right page on the governments gov.uk website.
Up to 15,000 people will be able to ask the tool for advice on business rules and support, with the chatbot linked from 30 of GOV.UK’s business pages, such as “set up a business” and “search for a trade mark”. People with access to the trial can ask questions about tax and the support available to them.
A team of in-house data scientists, developers and designers are building the experimental tool using OpenAI’s GPT-4o technology which aims to help people more quickly navigate complex advice to understand what matters to them. In response, they will receive straightforward, personalised answers that collate information that may otherwise be spread across dozens of pages.
The results from the trial will determine the next steps which could include potential larger-scale testing. This could ultimately lead to the chatbot being rolled out across the full government website, made up of 700,000 pages. The GOV.UK website attracts over 11 million users per week and is the best-known digital service in the UK according to YouGov.
The new trial comes as the Science Secretary’s department is shaping the new ‘digital centre’ of government to boost technology adoption across the public sector, taking a more experimental approach with emerging technology where appropriate as it does so.
Science Secretary Peter Kyle said: “Outdated and bulky government processes waste people’s time too often, with the average adult in the UK spending the equivalent of a working week and a half dealing with public sector bureaucracy every year.
“We are going to change this by experimenting with emerging technology to find new ways to save people time and make their lives easier, as we are doing with GOV.UK Chat. With all new technology, it takes time to get it right so we’re taking it through extensive trials with thousands of real users before it is used more widely.
“This is an essential part of our ambition to use AI to improve public services in a safe and reliable way, making sure the UK government leads by example in driving innovation forward.”
Glass Futures Appoints Justin Kelly as New CEO
Justin is a Chartered Engineer with a BEng (Hons) in Computers, Management and Electronics. He began his career at Siemens where he held several roles over nearly three decades culminating in his appointment to the Siemens Executive Management Board in 2017.
Committed to driving innovation, Justin was the founding CEO of the Sustainable Materials and Manufacturing Centre in Greater Manchester to benefit both the economy and environment. In 2023 he became Non-Exec Chair of Sustainable Ventures North, an organisation dedicated to supporting sustainability-focused start-ups across the country.
Richard Katz, the first Glass Futures employee in January 2020, has been appointed President and will continue to work closely with the new Government to help them understand how Glass Futures’ research, development and innovation enables growth, particularly with reference to identifying what works and, more importantly, what doesn’t work for industrial decarbonisation in the fight against climate change.
Glass Futures was a concept developed some 10 years ago by Richard together with Dave Dalton, CEO of The British Glass Manufacturers’ Confederation, the representative body for the UK glass industry, as an independent not-for-profit organisation to enable the glass industry to have access to an industrial scale experimental pilot plant.
The facility has been designed and built by the industry to allow practical experimentation with alternative low carbon sustainable energy sources to replace high carbon natural gas to decarbonise glass manufacture toward a sustainable future.
Funding in the order of £75 million has been provided by National, Regional and Local Government together with the industry to build Glass Futures’ 165,000 sq.ft Global Centre of Excellence in St Helens on Merseyside, the home of Pilkington’s revolutionary Float Glass development.
Aston Fuller, General Manager at Glass Futures said “Having been the second employee at Glass Futures, I’m extremely proud to see the exponential growth of the organisation in such a short period of time. These important changes will support our growth and impact with our ever-growing diverse membership across the global glass supply chain sharing our collaborative ethos, to our own team who’ve developed and grown our vision”
“I look forward to continuing to support our members on this journey through an ever changing world of sustainability and resource efficiency technologies alongside Justin and Richard in the coming years”
This next phase of Glass Futures continues with new appointments to the Board of Directors, including Mike Houghton, Chief Commercial Officer of Process Industries Software at Siemens as Chair and José Miguel Ivorra, Vice President of Global Business Development at Guardian Industries in place of Dr Richard Hulme whose long-term secondment is drawing to a close.
They are welcomed by current Board members including newly established Deputy Chair, Adrian Curry, Executive Director and Chief Decarbonisation Officer at EET Fuels, Dr Ludovic Valette, Vice President of Technology and Engineering at O-I Glass, Inc. USA, Dave Dalton, CEO of The British Glass Manufacturers’ Confederation, Professor Anthony Hollander, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research at the University of Liverpool, and Sean Murphy, Managing Director of Encirc.
Mike Houghton said “On behalf of the Board we would like to thank Richard Katz for his valuable contributions over the last 10+ years as Chief Executive, turning a vision into reality. Also great thanks to Guardian Glass’ Dr Richard Hulme who was instrumental in ensuring Glass Futures’ technical strategy reflected our member’s needs.”
New study reveals the features that make a company most attractive for hackers
The go-to targets for cybercriminals have been revealed, and a private small company from the United Kingdom operating in the retail field would definitely be one of them, according to the latest study by NordPass.
In partnership with NordStellar, NordPass evaluated nearly 2,000 data breach incidents worldwide from the past two years, extracting insights on which companies are most likely to experience a cybersecurity breach. Experts ranked companies based on their likelihood for a breach depending on their industry, size, company type, and country of registration.
“While small retail companies are highly attractive, other profiles are no less appealing for hackers. This analysis helped us illustrate which businesses face higher risks and explain what measures can be taken to avoid them,” says Karolis Arbaciauskas, head of business development at NordPass.
Retail and technology sectors are in the line of fire
Among the data security incidents investigated by experts, most occurred in the retail industry (95 incidents). The second most breached sector is technology, with 56 incidents recorded in the past two years.
The top 10 most attractive industries also include more specific technology-related sectors, such as internet and web services, IT services and consulting, software development, and computer hardware development.
According to Arbaciauskas, these results are rather surprising, given that many think that the technology or IT sectors are less vulnerable and are better equipped against threats online. However, the reality is that hackers see technology firms as an appealing target — even if the company is equipped with high-end IT solutions, human mistakes can still occur. Therefore, companies should choose tools that eliminate possible risks, invest in employee training, and carefully evaluate their cyber preparedness.
The United Kingdom is the third most affected market
The study reveals that companies operating in the United States get the most attention from hackers, with almost a quarter of businesses (489) investigated for this research registered there. The United Kingdom (73) also got into the top of the list and ranked third after India (114). Among the countries in the European Union, Spain and France are more appealing to hackers than others.
“It’s natural that bigger countries are in the spotlight, given that hackers see a lot of opportunities there. However, no country is resilient to cyber threats and this is important to stress. It is up to businesses themselves to ensure their own and their clients’ security online, no matter their address,” says Arbaciauskas.
SMBs aren’t too small for hackers
In terms of company size, hackers seem to prefer small and medium businesses (SMBs). In the past two years, the absolute majority of investigated breached companies had up to 200 employees. Arbaciauskas explains that the problem could simply lie in SMBs underestimating their value to hackers.
“There are targeted attacks, yes, but hackers often go for much broader scope activities, such as credential stuffing, dictionary or rainbow attacks that do not choose their victims. Because of employees’ reused and poor passwords, or downloaded malware, company credentials appear in the leaked credentials’ databases, which gives a chance for hackers to break in. For smaller companies, a data breach is a risk for business closure — financial costs and reputational damage carry significant aftermath effects,” says Arbaciauskas.
Having investigated the company types that fall under the hackers’ radar the most, NordPass concluded that private businesses are targeted most often. As much as 85% of the analyzed data breaches were against such companies.
What should you do if your business profile falls under this study?
According to Arbaciauskas, any organization, no matter its size or type, should be cautious of its cybersecurity. Employing critical tools such as password managers that allow for secure management of company credentials and accesses, or virtual private network (VPN) solutions is a first step towards better resilience against the threats online.
In addition, cybersecurity auditing is helpful to spot weaknesses in a company’s IT infrastructure and prepare resilience strategies. It is also critical to invest in the overall cybersecurity awareness raising among the organization to avoid human mistakes that often lead to serious data breaches.
Reverse coal on display at climate SAFE event
An engineered natural solution to extract carbon from the atmosphere was on display last month at a farming estate near Doncaster, which crosses the borders of Nottinghamshire, North Lincolnshire and South Yorkshire.
Visitors to The Lapwing Estate were shown the novel ‘Reverse Coal’ project, which has been brought to life by an innovative farmer, a team of academics and engineers, including a team from the Lincoln Institute of Agri-Technology (LIAT) and the School of Engineering and Physical Science at the University of Lincoln, UK.
The day started with presentations from Lapwing Energy, Collison Associates, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and the University of Lincoln who are involved across a vast array of projects exploring the shared vision of rethinking farmed peatlands. This was followed by a tour of the site including workshops looking at biomass feedstocks, biochar, industrial decarbonisation as well as an opportunity to sequester carbon back into the geological reserve for long term storage.
Reverse Coal was mentioned as a positive case study in the Government’s Environmental Improvement Plan 2023, the Net Zero Innovation Portfolio Progress Report 2021-22, and Powering Up Britain – The Net Zero Growth Plan. It has been widely highlighted as an example of how peatlands can be more responsibly managed and pave the way for climate-resilient agriculture.
Peatlands are some of the most fertile soils for food production, but agricultural drainage causes large greenhouse gas emissions. Reverse Coal has been developed as a whole systems approach, that tackles landscape emissions whilst shifting towards controlled environment agriculture for greater food security. This tackles the common criticism of most biomass projects which is the displacement of food production for bioenergy.
The renewable energy comes from biomass grown on rewetted peatland thereby ending emissions associated with drainage for agriculture. This biomass is then chipped and fed through a thermochemical treatment called pyrolysis to generate energy and biochar. Biochar is a solid, stable form of carbon which will then be stored in a innovative storage facility demonstrating that CO2 can be permanently captured for geological time.
Prof Simon Pearson, Founding Director of Lincoln Institute for Agri-Food Technology said:
“The Reverse Coal project showcase was a fantastic opportunity for the University of Lincoln to share its expertise with industry partners, and support innovative approaches to sustainable food production systems.
“One of LIAT’s goals is to create a sustainable future for agri-food production through innovation and research, and the the Reverse Coal project is a great example of this.
“Reducing the impact of agri-food on the climate through projects such as Reverse Coal is at the heart of what we do, and it is very encouraging to see the project being so well received by the wider food industry.”
James Brown, CEO of The Lapwing Estate said: “This was a great opportunity to showcase Reverse Coal to industry and partners as well as say a big thank you to those who have supported us and backed this project from the beginning.
This is just the beginning for The Lapwing Estate as we look to deliver a more sustainable food production system that also delivers for our planet!”
