Norfolk to receive funding from Government to combat "hidden unemployment"

More than 4,000 people in Norfolk who face barriers to employment including disability and long-term health conditions are to be helped through a new programme of support.  

Connect to Work is a central part of the Government's Get Britain Working strategy, designed to link up health and employment services and deliver the mutually reinforcing outcomes of employment and improved health. 

A triage service will operate as the gateway to the programme, with capacity to receive and direct up to 1,200 resident referrals in each of the main project delivery years. It is anticipated that up to 4,300 Norfolk residents will be supported from October 2025 to March 2030. 

Councillor Fabian Eagle, cabinet member for economic growth, said: "Working Well Norfolk has demonstrated a significant demand for employment support and Connect to Work provides us with a further opportunity to help more people get into jobs or self-employment or continue in the jobs they are in.  

"An inclusive economy where everyone can reach their full potential is central to Norfolk's Local Growth Plan and this project will link up different services to assist disadvantaged and vulnerable residents." 

In Norfolk, 109,100 (20.6%) of individuals aged 16-65 were classed as economically inactive in 2024 - 1.5% higher than post-covid - and 30,100 (27.7%) were classed as having long-term sickness, compared with 23.7% in 2019. This is higher than the East of England figure of 25.9% and the UK average of 27.2%. 

However, of those who were economically inactive in Norfolk, 32.5% (32,500) were reported as wanting a job - higher than the average proportion of economically inactive wanting a job in the East of England (18.6%) and the UK (17.6%). 

Connect to Work will primarily support disabled people, people with long-term health conditions and those with more complex barriers to employment and who wish to work, reducing economic inactivity and driving inclusive economic growth. 

The first major element of the Government's Get Britain Working Strategy, it will take a locally led approach in addressing "hidden unemployment" and supporting a range of cohorts into work, including carers and ex-carers, veterans, and ex-offenders. People who are in employment but at risk of having to give up work will also be supported. 

Norfolk County Council currently oversees the Working Well Norfolk project and due to its success, the Government has extended its funding for 18 months. From its launch in October 2023 to the end of January 2025, the scheme received 1,934 referrals of which 1,250 individuals have enrolled on the programme and 445 had been supported to enter employment or to remain in work.  

Working Well Norfolk will continue to accept referrals to September 2025 and provide support for participants and their employers to September 2026, assisting a further 580 people in the process.