Key Points
- Only 18 per cent of UK organisations regularly and formally assess work-related stress as part of their risk management process, according to new research by WorkNest.
- Over one third (35 per cent) of organisations do not assess workplace stress at all, while 30 per cent assess it inconsistently, and 17 per cent are unaware if their company conducts such assessments.
- The findings highlight a significant gap in addressing psychosocial risks amid increasing Health and Safety Executive (HSE) scrutiny on mental health issues like stress, burnout, and workload pressures.
- Risk assessments are the top concern for 43 per cent of employers facing potential HSE inspections, followed by policies reflecting site practice (30 per cent) and staff training competence (19 per cent).
- Over half of organisations (58 per cent) feel “mostly prepared” for inspections but need improvements, 30 per cent identify gaps, and only 9 per cent claim full readiness.
- Nick Wilson, Director of Health and Safety Services at WorkNest, stated: “Work-related stress is firmly on the regulator’s radar, yet many organisations still haven’t embedded it into their formal risk management processes.”
- Nick Wilson added: “Employers often feel reasonably confident about their overall health and safety compliance, but psychosocial risks such as stress can be overlooked.”
- Nick Wilson further noted: “Risk assessments remain fundamental to workplace health and safety. If organisations are worried about whether theirs are up to date, suitable and sufficient, it’s a clear sign that reviewing them, including assessing workplace stress, should be a priority.”
- Nick Wilson concluded: “Employers don’t have to tackle this alone – getting the right HR and health and safety support can help organisations identify risks, strengthen their processes and ensure they are meeting their legal obligations.”
- HSE statistics for 2024/25 show 964,000 workers suffering from work-related stress, depression, or anxiety, up from 776,000 the previous year.
- HSE issued a Notification of Contravention (NOC) to the University of Birmingham on 11 December 2025 for inadequate stress management arrangements.
- A separate survey by Occupational Health Assessment Ltd found 41 per cent of employers unaware that formal stress risk assessments are legally required for organisations with five or more employees.
- That survey also revealed 25 per cent of employers had never conducted a stress risk assessment, and 29 per cent had not done so in the last three years.
- Magnus Kauders, Managing Director of Occupational Health Assessment Ltd, commented: “Stress has been identified as a key component of employee absence in the 2020s, with the HSE estimating that stress, depression and anxiety are a contributory factor in around half of all working days lost to ill health.”
- Magnus Kauders added: “Our research suggests that employer awareness of stress risk assessment requirements is worryingly low. Many are not tackling this important issue and others are not even aware of the minimum legal compliance levels.”
- Steve Herbert, Brand Ambassador at Occupational Health Assessment Ltd, stated: “More than half of our respondents (52%) were worried about creating a stress risk assessment. Yet in reality this is not a particularly complex exercise, albeit it does require a regular and persistent focus to yield positive results.”
- Steve Herbert further urged: “Occupational Health Assessment Ltd would strongly encourage more employers to take the HSE regulations seriously.”
- HSE statistics indicate stress, depression, and anxiety account for over half of reported work-related ill-health cases, with around 1.9 million workers affected in 2024/25.
Two-thirds of UK organisations fail to formally assess workplace stress risks, new WorkNest research reveals, even as the Health and Safety Executive ramps up scrutiny on mental health in the workplace. This oversight persists despite stress being a leading cause of absenteeism and recent enforcement actions, leaving many firms vulnerable to inspections and legal repercussions. The poll of employers underscores a compliance confidence gap, with risk assessments topping inspection fears.
What does the WorkNest survey reveal about stress assessments?
The landmark survey by WorkNest, specialists in employment law, HR, and health and safety, polled UK businesses on their handling of workplace stress amid growing regulatory pressure. Only 18 per cent of respondents reported regular and formal assessments of work-related stress within their risk management frameworks. This leaves a staggering two-thirds either skipping formal processes or doing so inconsistently.
As detailed in the Facilities Management Journal article by an unnamed correspondent, over one third—precisely 35 per cent—of organisations do not assess workplace stress at all. Another 30 per cent conceded that while assessments occur, they are inconsistent, and 17 per cent admitted ignorance about whether their company even performs them. These figures paint a picture of widespread neglect in embedding psychosocial risks into core health and safety protocols.
Workplace Journal echoed these concerns in their coverage, noting the mere 18 per cent figure for regular formal assessments. The research arrives at a critical juncture, as the HSE prioritises psychosocial hazards like stress, burnout, and excessive workloads—factors driving much of the UK’s workplace absenteeism.
Why is HSE increasing focus on workplace stress?
The Health and Safety Executive has long emphasised stress management, offering tools like the HSE Management Standards Indicator Tool—a 35-item survey probing working conditions linked to the six key stressors. Recent data amplifies the urgency: HSE’s 2024/25 statistics, published in November 2025, record 964,000 workers enduring work-related stress, depression, or anxiety—new or ongoing cases—marking a sharp rise from 776,000 the prior year.
As reported by Clyde & Co in their insights piece, this uptick aligns with HSE’s 10-year strategic objectives from 2022, reiterated in the 2023-2024 business plan, to bolster mental health at work. A stark enforcement example came on 11 December 2025, when HSE served a Notification of Contravention to the University of Birmingham. The regulator cited “clear and significant inconsistencies” in the university’s stress management arrangements, including poor consultation, inadequate risk understanding, and ineffective controls.
The NOC demands a comprehensive review of management arrangements, stress policy, risk assessments, and monitoring systems, with an action plan due by 28 January 2026. Failure to comply could prompt further intervention. Britsafe.org highlighted Mates in Mind’s warning that HSE is “stepping up” focus post this breach, urging businesses to audit their practices. Meanwhile, HSE’s annual stats show stress-related ill-health comprising 52 per cent of 1.9 million cases in 2024/25.
What legal obligations do employers face for stress risk assessments?
Stress risk assessments are not mere best practice but a legal imperative under UK health and safety law, as affirmed by Health Screen UK. Employers must evaluate psychological risks alongside physical ones, per HSE guidance, to meet “reasonably practicable” protection standards. Organisations with five or more employees require formal assessments, yet awareness lags.
Occupational Health Assessment Ltd’s May 2025 survey exposed this: 41 per cent of employers were oblivious to the legal mandate. A quarter (25 per cent) had never conducted one, and 29 per cent skipped reviews in the past three years, flouting HSE’s regular review stipulations. Healthcareandprotection.com corroborated these stats, stressing the risks of ignorance.
Non-compliance invites enforcement like Improvement Notices, as HSE has issued previously for systemic failures. Kingfisher PS noted stress accounting for nearly half of 2023-2024 ill-health reports. Clarke Willmott’s analysis of HSE stats reinforced the 940,000 stress cases in 2024/25.
What concerns employers most about HSE inspections?
Risk assessments dominate employers’ inspection anxieties, per WorkNest’s poll. Fully 43 per cent fretted most over whether theirs are up-to-date, suitable, and sufficient if an HSE inspector arrived unannounced. Policies matching site realities worried 30 per cent, while 19 per cent focused on proving staff training and competence.
Despite these fears, confidence prevails: 58 per cent deemed themselves “mostly prepared” but ripe for tweaks, 30 per cent spotted gaps, and just 9 per cent felt fully ready. Facilities Management Journal attributed this to overconfidence in physical safety overshadowing mental health.
What do experts say about addressing the gap?
Nick Wilson of WorkNest hammered home the regulator’s vigilance: “Work-related stress is firmly on the regulator’s radar, yet many organisations still haven’t embedded it into their formal risk management processes. Employers often feel reasonably confident about their overall health and safety compliance, but psychosocial risks such as stress can be overlooked. Risk assessments remain fundamental to workplace health and safety. If organisations are worried about whether theirs are up to date, suitable and sufficient, it’s a clear sign that reviewing them, including assessing workplace stress, should be a priority. Employers don’t have to tackle this alone – getting the right HR and health and safety support can help organisations identify risks, strengthen their processes and ensure they are meeting their legal obligations.”
Magnus Kauders of Occupational Health Assessment Ltd warned: “Stress has been identified as a key component of employee absence in the 2020s, with the HSE estimating that stress, depression and anxiety are a contributory factor in around half of all working days lost to ill health. Our research suggests that employer awareness of stress risk assessment requirements is worryingly low. Many are not tackling this important issue and others are not even aware of the minimum legal compliance levels.”
Steve Herbert added: “More than half of our respondents (52%) were worried about creating a stress risk assessment. Yet in reality this is not a particularly complex exercise, albeit it does require a regular and persistent focus to yield positive results. Occupational Health Assessment Ltd would strongly encourage more employers to take the HSE regulations seriously.”
For organisations navigating these challenges, professional training in Health and Safety can equip HR and management teams with the tools to conduct robust stress risk assessments and align with HSE standards, mitigating inspection risks effectively.