The impact of employment advisors in NHS Talking Therapies on benefits receipt, England.
Posted on Tuesday 11 August 2026
EA support is a voluntary service available through NHS Talking Therapies (NHSTT) alongside psychological therapy; the service offers tailored advice on finding employment for people who are out of work, and on managing the effects of stress, anxiety or depression for people in employment.
The impact of EA support was estimated across five different benefit categories. Individuals receiving EA support alongside psychological therapy were matched with similar individuals receiving psychological therapy only. The individuals who received psychological therapy only were in a geographical area where EA support within NHSTT was unavailable, rather than being individuals who chose not to partake in employment support up. However, unmeasured differences between the groups, such as work-related difficulties among those in employment, may mean some effects are not due to EA support alone.
The work is part of the Support2Work programme, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
PLEASE NOTE: Further work, conducted by other members of the Support2Work team, will include in-depth qualitative interviews with EA staff, service leads, therapists and service users. The work will also include an examination of the wider impacts of EA support; for example, the impacts on people’s health and societal welfare.
Commenting on the findings, Dr Emma Sharland from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said:
"This study looked at what happened to people's circumstances and benefits after receiving employment support alongside NHS psychological therapy.
The results highlight that employment advisor support does not have the same impact for everyone. We found that employment support alongside psychological therapy was linked to people out of work being less likely to receive benefits after treatment, perhaps due to entering employment.
However, people who were already working when they received employment support alongside psychological therapy were more likely to receive benefits afterwards. This may reflect more challenging work-related circumstances facing this group when seeking support.
This is an important reminder that people’s lives and experiences are often more complicated than we think. The next phase of research from the Support2Work project will help us better understand the complex challenges people face.”
Key findings:
Those not working at the start of treatment
- People receiving EA support alongside psychological therapy were less likely to be receiving benefits after three years, compared with receiving psychological therapy only.
- Among people who reported a long-term sickness or disability (not necessarily related to mental health) at the start of NHSTT treatment, those receiving EA support alongside psychological therapy were less likely to be receiving Universal Credit or employment support benefits after three years, compared with receiving psychological therapy only.
- Those who received EA support in addition to psychological therapy were more likely to be in receipt of disability benefits three years later, compared with receiving psychological therapy only. (NOTE: some disability benefits are not means-tested so it cannot be assumed that being in receipt of disability benefits means an individual is not working).
Those employed and working at the start of treatment
- People in this group who received EA support alongside psychological therapy were more likely to be receiving any benefit three years later compared with the expected change from receiving psychological therapy only.