Manchester, England – New research from Wisdom Wellbeing, conducted by YouGov, shows that Britain’s full-time workforce is functioning under widespread and uneven pressure, with little spare capacity before problems escalate into burnout, absence, or crisis.
The Mental Wealth Index 2026 surveyed GB adults in full-time work between 7 and 9 July 2026 to measure everyday resilience, stress-management, and overall life-satisfaction. The survey asked questions around anxiety, burnout, sleep, money and access to support, identifying the groups and regions carrying the greatest pressure and the points at which existing support fails to reach them.
Key findings
- Workforce pressure is widespread: 38% of workers are on the anxious end of the scale, 43% feel mentally drained often or always, 48% sleep six hours or less per night, and 59% experience some level of financial stress. 22% are seriously stressed about money.
- Support awareness and use are low: only 47.5% know they can access workplace mental-health support, 26.9% do not know whether support is available, and 18.5% have ever used it.
- Women experience consistently greater pressure: 51.6% of women report feeling mentally drained often or always, compared with 36.9% of men; women also report higher anxiety, work-related sleep disruption, financial stress and lower confidence managing stress.
- Younger men represent a hidden-pressure group: 46.5% of men aged 25–34 are uncomfortable discussing mental health with their manager, and this group reports lower life satisfaction despite relatively modest day-to-day anxiety levels.
- Pressure varies by life stage: financial stress and burnout are highest among younger workers, while sleep deprivation increases with age affecting 59.4% of workers aged 55 and over.
- Support is least available where need is greatest: access is reported by approximately 53% of higher-paid workers compared with 37% of lower-paid workers, leaving lower-paid and high-pressure groups comparatively underserved.
The report comes at a critical time for the UK economy with a record number of young people not in employment, education or training (NEETS).
The central finding is that the issue is not simply whether support exists, but whether employees know about it, can access it easily and are reached early enough. While industry estimates suggest that around three-quarters of employees may have access to an employee assistance programme, fewer than half of workers surveyed knew they could access workplace support and fewer than one in five had ever used it.
The research also highlights significant differences by gender, age, pay and region. Women report higher levels of burnout, anxiety, work-related sleep disruption and serious money stress than men. Women aged 45–54 are the most anxious group in the workforce, while women aged 25–34 report the highest level of serious money stress. Younger workers carry the greatest financial pressure and burnout, whereas sleep deprivation rises among older workers. Younger men aged 25–34 are the least comfortable speaking to their manager about mental health, suggesting that distress may remain hidden rather than becoming an explicit request for help.
The regional picture is similarly uneven*. London’s full-time workers report the lowest anxiety and highest access to support in the broad regional analysis, while the North, Wales and Scotland experience greater pressure and lower support provision. The North East is identified as the area with the clearest need, with the highest anxiety and the lowest reported access to workplace support.
Bertrand Stern-Gillet, CEO at Wisdom Wellbeing says,
“For too long, mental health in the workplace has been treated reactively; we wait until an employee is signed off with stress before we offer help. This report proves that mental wealth is built through daily, proactive maintenance. Providing employees with immediate, confidential access to life-management tools, whether that’s financial coaching, mindfulness resources, access to a virtual GP or early-stage counselling, helps manage issues at an earlier stage before someone gets to crisis point. Workplace wellbeing support is no longer just a nice-to-have HR benefit, but an essential tool for maintaining a healthy, focused and resilient workforce.”
Professor Sir Cary Cooper, Chair of the Wisdom Wellbeing Clinical Advisory Board and Professor of Organisational Psychology, says:
“The most important message in this report is not that Britain has a workforce in crisis, but that it has a workforce operating with very little spare capacity. Too many people are managing significant levels of pressure before they ever seek support. The challenge for employers is therefore not simply responding when problems emerge but identifying and addressing the conditions that create them in the first place. Prevention begins long before an employee decides to ask for help.”
Key takeaways for employers from the Mental Wealth Index
- Ensure the support they offer is visible, straightforward and easy to access
- Measure awareness, reach and equity of access to support rather than simply usage numbers
- Train managers to recognise early signs of stress and know how to have supportive conversations
- Tailor the support offered to stage of life, gender, pay and location rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all provision
- Address the underlying conditions that contribute to pressure, including workload, flexibility and the ability to switch off.
