New Office for National Statistics analysis finds people not in work who received employment adviser support alongside NHS Talking Therapies earned an average of £105 more per month after three years, but those already employed when treatment began saw earnings fall.
People out of work when they started NHS Talking Therapies earned £105 more per month on average after three years if they also received employment adviser support, compared with those who received psychological therapy only, the figures show. Their probability of being in paid employment was 4.7 percentage points higher. For one specific group — people who described themselves as homemakers at the start of treatment — the gap was even wider: average monthly earnings were £219 higher and the probability of paid employment was 12.8 percentage points higher after three years.
The picture looks very different for people already in work when treatment began. Those employed at the start of treatment who received employment adviser support alongside therapy had average monthly earnings £104 lower and a 3.7 percentage point lower probability of paid employment than those who received psychological therapy only. Among people employed but off sick at the start of treatment, monthly earnings were £224 lower and the probability of paid employment was 5.0 percentage points lower after three years.
The ONS published the analysis on 26 May 2026, comparing labour market outcomes for working-age people in England across the two groups. The findings do not include a Kent-specific breakdown.
So what does this mean for people in Kent? Those accessing NHS Talking Therapies locally — commissioned through NHS Kent and Medway — who are currently out of work may see a measurable financial benefit from taking up employment adviser support if it’s offered. But the data suggests those already in employment, or signed off sick, may not see the same advantage — and could, on these figures, fare worse over time than if they’d received therapy alone.
The ONS frames the analysis around benefits receipt and labour market outcomes rather than clinical recovery, giving the findings a clear economic angle. Employment adviser support is offered through NHS Talking Therapies for people out of work and for those whose stress, anxiety or depression is affecting their job. Whether local NHS commissioners in Kent adjust referral guidance in response to these findings is not yet known.
Source: @ONS