Supporting Women’s Health at Work:
Why It Matters
In today’s busy and competitive business world, taking care of employee health is more important than ever. However, women’s workplace health often gets overlooked, which has serious consequences for both employees and businesses. The UK loses a staggering 150 million working days every year because of poor women’s health and a lack of proper support, according to the ONS. This issue is especially tough for smaller employers, like SMEs and third-sector organisations, which lack the resources that larger companies and public bodies have to handle these challenges.
Women make up nearly half of the workforce, playing vital roles in every sector, and SMEs are the backbone of the UK economy, with over 5.5 million small businesses employing fewer than 50 people. Ignoring women’s health not only affects their physical, mental, and economic wellbeing but also costs the UK economy £20.2 billion annually in lost productivity.
A Platform to Support Women’s Workplace Wellness
The Women’s Health Strategy (2022) provides a roadmap for change, encouraging businesses to invest in solutions that improve women’s workplace wellness. One such solution is the Women’s Workplace Wellness Platform. This initiative is designed to support SMEs and third-sector employers by increasing knowledge and encouraging better practices around women’s health.
By focusing on improving women’s workplace experiences, reducing absences, and preventing them from leaving the workforce, this platform aims to boost productivity, support economic growth, and reduce pressure on healthcare services. Investing in women’s health is not just the right thing to do—it’s a smart business strategy for a healthier, more productive future.
The platform has two main elements:
1. Advocacy Development Programme
A fully-funded online workplace training programme designed to embed women’s workplace wellness into SME culture and operations through accredited training via the Open Awards Badge of Excellence.
The Advocacy Development Programme is designed for employees in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and third sector organisations to champion women’s health at work. There are two current routes to access the course programme:
Live training via Zoom with live interactive sessions OR
Self-paced training (pre-recorded) available to be worked through at the time and pace that suits the learner.
2. Bundles of resources
These include Small Business Conversation Podcast Series; Legal and Compliance Toolkits; and access to a curated and focussed knowledge bank. The bundles are freely available and regularly updated, and are categorised as the following:
- Women at Work
- Menopause at Work
- Menstrual Health at Work
- Maternal Health at Work
- Flexible Working
Sign up to access the bundles via the Women’s Workplace Wellness Platform.
Want to know more? Watch our video below:
For more information, get in touch with the team at hello@thewo.org.uk or follow us on LinkedIn by clicking here.
Please Note: This workplace training and wellness course has been designed to help small businesses to support women’s health in their workplace. It is not intended to be a source of medical information. We are not medically trained and therefore cannot answer individual medical enquiries either during the programme, over the telephone, by post or via email. If you or any of your colleagues have a health worry, your first port of call should be your GP (doctor) or you could contact NHS 111.
Supported by the VCSE Health and Wellbeing Fund, part of a partnership programme between Department of Health & Social Care, NHS England, and UK Health Security Agency.