How can employers create a low-cost wellbeing strategy?

Wellhub’s Return on wellbeing report, published in June 2025, revealed 65% of employers are including wellbeing costs in their existing healthcare budgets. To ensure all areas of employee wellbeing are supported without breaking the bank, therefore, employers could explore how to offer a strategy that addresses staff needs and does not come at a high cost.

Wellbeing challenges and their impact

In today’s climate, employees may face multiple issues, such as stress, financial worries and health concerns. Due to longer NHS waiting times, people are not always able to access health services in a timely manner, resulting in them being sicker for longer.

In turn, there is a greater uptick in the use of private or employer-funded healthcare provision use, according to Beth Husted, associate director, health and benefits (GB) at Willis Towers Watson. “With such an increase in demand, employers have seen a rise in the cost of this healthcare provision due to increased utilisation and high-value claims for conditions such as cancer,” she says. ”There also remains continued mental health and burnout challenges, with additional expectations to provide neurodiversity and financial wellbeing support.”

Other issues include social isolation and a lack of meaningful interactions, says Jeanette Cook, principal wellbeing consultant at Aon. “These have led to reduced productivity, absenteeism and high turnover,” she says. ”Employers have responded by implementing preventative measures to support as early as they can.”

Low-cost health initiatives

Due to increasing challenges and responsibilities, employers would be wise to ensure they have a comprehensive wellbeing strategyin place. They can draw data from employee surveys to understand what their specific wellbeing challenges are and explore low-cost options.

Effective wellbeing support does not require a large budget overhaul, says Luke Bullen, vice president and head of UK and Ireland at Wellhub. “Activities such as walking groups, outdoor workouts, fitness apps or corporate challenges are cost-effective options,” he explains. ”For the price of office refreshments, employers can provide access to wellbeing platforms that cover fitness, mental health support, and nutrition guidance. The key isn’t offering free perks for the sake of it, it’s about creating scalable programmes that improve people’s quality of life.”

Employers could organise events and initiatives such as healthy food competitions for employees to explore healthier eating options, or initiatives such as Parkrun, Charity Miles, or even creating walking routes around workplaces. They could also collaborate with charities or organisations that encourage participation in exercise, races, and competitions.

Providing access to therapy and coaching is also a great, fairly low-cost resource for employees, says Charlotte Neal, head of community connections at Reward Gateway.

“A virtual GP service is effective, because the quicker people can access services, the quicker they can get healthier and back to work, increasing employee engagement and productivity,” she adds. “When employers address employees’ needs, they get better business outcomes.”

Promoting intervention services to identify and address issues early on can reduce higher costs and potential absences. The UK has three national cancer screening programmes, for cervical, breast or bowel screening, and health checks for people aged 40-74 years offered through their local GP every five years; employers should promote these and encourage attendance.

While private health screening is often an up-front investment, these can lead to early diagnosis and more affordable treatments, reducing long-term healthcare costs, says Husted.

“Display screen equipment assessments are also a valuable preventative tool to help identify and mitigate poor workstation setup risks,” she adds. ”Managing the impact of sedentary work on staff musculoskeletal health can have a positive impact, and an online self-assessment is a cost-effective tool. Flu jabs are another useful form of support.”

Using in-house resources

Wellhub’s aforementioned research also found that when senior leaders actively participate in wellbeing initiatives, employee engagement rates jump from 44% to 80%, suggesting staff are looking to their employers to lead the way. They can share their own stories via wellbeing champions, who learn to recognise signs and signpost to relevant support, and employee representative groups, committees or networks that can pass feedback up to management and cascade information back down.

“Wellbeing champions communicating wellbeing support in tandem with top-down communications can drive home the message,” says Neal. ”The best way of doing this is by using real-life stories from staff who can share their journey and how their employer has supported them, bringing to life initiatives in a way that letters or bulletins can’t.”

Hosting wellbeing seminars or webinars are also effective forms of in-house support. Drawing on the expertise of employees within an organisation to craft these could help boost attendance. “Focused sessions on specific health and wellbeing topics, such as financial wellbeing, heart health and nutrition, can be beneficial,” says Husted. “Employers should also consider organising workshops or lunch-and-learn sessions to address these areas.”

Flexible working, recognition and reward programmes, enhancing existing staff policies, and signposting to existing services, are further examples  of wellbeing support that are not cost-intensive.

Additionally, collaborating with benefits providers can help employers understand what they can provide in terms of extra support and assess their return on investment of existing services.

“Employers can reach out to them regarding information on a particular topic or awareness event and they can provide free material, such as webinars and resources, that can be shared with employees,” says Cook.

Policies, education and resources, therefore, can all play a vital role in supporting employee wellbeing on a budget.