Workplace Mental Health Statistics UK: 2026 Facts, Data & Key Insights

Work-related stress, depression and anxiety remain major sources of ill health in Great Britain. HSE’s November 2025 release estimates 964,000 affected workers in 2024/25. This guide brings together the latest available HSE figures and clearly dated employer and adult surveys, checked on 15 October 2026. Their populations and definitions differ, so stress, burnout indicators and diagnosed mental illness should not be treated as interchangeable.

Key Facts

  • HSE estimated 964,000 workers in Great Britain with new or long-standing work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 2024/25, compared with 776,000 in 2023/24
  • The 2024/25 rate was 2,770 cases per 100,000 workers in Great Britain
  • Work-related stress, depression and anxiety accounted for 52% of work-related ill-health cases in Great Britain in 2024/25
  • These conditions accounted for 62% of working days lost to work-related ill health in Great Britain in 2024/25
  • 22.1 million working days were lost to work-related stress, depression and anxiety in 2024/25 — 22.9 days per affected worker
  • HSE estimated 40.1 million days lost to all work-related ill health and workplace injury in 2024/25
  • Responding organisations in CIPD’s 2025 employer survey reported average sickness absence of 9.4 days per employee per year
  • 41% of employers in CIPD’s 2025 survey named mental ill health among their top three causes of long-term absence, rather than 41% of absence cases
  • AXA’s 2024 research estimated £57.4 billion in reduced productivity within a wider £102 billion UK economic cost model for poor workplace mental health in 2023
  • Deloitte’s 2024 analysis estimated £51 billion a year in costs to UK employers and an average £4.70 return per £1 invested across the mental-health interventions studied
  • 63% of respondents in Deloitte’s 2024 research reported at least one burnout characteristic, compared with 51% in its 2021 research
  • 91% of UK adults surveyed for the Burnout Report 2026 experienced high or extreme stress at some point in the previous year, including those who experienced it rarely
  • 20% of workers surveyed for the Burnout Report 2026 had taken time off because of poor mental health caused by pressure or stress in the previous year
  • 35% of workers in that survey felt uncomfortable discussing high or extreme stress with their manager
  • 27% of workers in that survey said mental health was genuinely prioritised and supported at work

The Scale of Work-Related Mental Ill Health in the UK

HSE’s annual statistics, published in November 2025, estimate that 964,000 workers in Great Britain experienced work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 2024/25, including new and long-standing cases. The rate was 2,770 per 100,000 workers, statistically significantly higher than the previous year. HSE also reports that each of the latest three years was above the 2018/19 pre-pandemic level.

The estimated rate was 2,770 cases per 100,000 workers. HSE reports a statistically significant rise compared with the previous year. These are self-reported Labour Force Survey estimates, with sampling uncertainty; changes in awareness and reporting may also affect the longer-term series.

Mental health conditions now account for 52% of all work-related ill health cases in Great Britain and 62% of all working days lost to work-related ill health. No other category comes close. The second largest contributor — musculoskeletal disorders — accounted for 7.1 million days lost in 2024/25, compared with 22.1 million for stress, depression and anxiety.

Which Sectors Are Most Affected?

HSE’s three-year average for 2022/23–2024/25 was 3,470 cases per 100,000 workers in public administration, defence and compulsory social security, 2,830 in human health and social work, and 2,620 in education. Each was above the all-industry average of 2,040 for that same three-year period. These rates are separate from the single-year national rate of 2,770.

Construction also needs attention, but its suicide statistics use different occupational groups, age ranges and time periods. They cannot be used to rank construction directly against HSE’s current industry rates of self-reported stress, depression and anxiety.

HSE identifies workload, lack of managerial support, violence and bullying, and organisational change among reported causes of work-related stress. Its published breakdown of causes draws on older survey and occupational-health evidence, rather than a new 2024/25 survey of causes.

Burnout: An Endemic Problem

Deloitte’s 2024 survey found that 63% of respondents reported at least one burnout characteristic, compared with 51% in its 2021 research. Reporting exhaustion, mental distance or reduced effectiveness is not the same as receiving a clinical diagnosis.

Mental Health UK’s Burnout Report 2026 used a weighted YouGov survey of 4,502 UK adults conducted on 3–5 November 2025. Its 91% figure includes anyone who experienced high or extreme pressure or stress at least rarely during the previous year; it is not a measure of continuous stress or the prevalence of burnout.

Among the 2,591 workers in that survey, 20% had taken time off because of poor mental health caused by pressure or stress in the previous year. The figure was 39% among workers aged 18–24. The full context is in our burnout statistics guide.

The Cost to Employers and the Economy

Deloitte’s 2024 analysis estimated that poor mental health cost UK employers £51 billion annually. AXA’s separate 2024 model estimated a £102 billion UK economic cost for 2023, including £57.4 billion from reduced productivity. HSE estimated £22.9 billion for workplace injury and new work-related ill-health cases in 2023/24, covering all relevant conditions. These models measure different costs and must not be added together.

Deloitte reported an average return of £4.70 for each £1 invested across the workplace mental-health interventions it assessed. This is an average across different programmes and studies, not a guaranteed return for an employer or evidence of the return from any particular training course.

The Silence Problem

The Burnout Report 2026 found that 35% of workers felt uncomfortable discussing high or extreme stress with their manager, compared with 32% in the previous report: a rise of 3 percentage points. Among workers aged 18–24, 54% felt comfortable, compared with 56% in the previous report. Survey years and respondent groups matter when interpreting these comparisons.

Only 27% of workers in the Burnout Report 2026 survey said mental health was genuinely prioritised and supported at work. This measures employees’ perceptions of workplace support; it does not measure the proportion of employers with a formal policy or establish the effect of a particular intervention.

The Role of Mental Health First Aid

With mental health now the primary driver of workplace ill health in the UK, equipping managers and employees with the skills to recognise and respond to mental health problems early has never been more important. Our Mental Health First Aid courses are designed to meet that need.

Sources

Written by: This guide was produced by the team at Mental Health First Aid Course. We publish data resources like this one to help employers, HR professionals, and safety managers understand the true scale of workplace mental health challenges and act on the evidence.