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The Transforming Education in Norfolk Group (TEN Group) is a federation of educational institutions in
Norfolk. Managing absence effectively for more than 1,000 staff is crucial to its success.

Hannah Browning-Beales, TEN Group HR, explains why the organisation chose FirstCare: “we had used two other absence management providers [and] they couldn’t provide an in-depth level of data […] We then found FirstCare, and they met our needs and the costs fitted within our budget, which was a bonus.”

FirstCare’s service highlighted a pattern of mental health related absence which had previously gone unrecorded. Hannah said: “the data also identified a rising trend in mental health problems. We found that those affected were absent for longer periods of time, which had a huge impact on the productivity of our team… Using FirstCare’s accurate, real-time data we prioritised the mental health support we offer.”

As a direct result, TEN Group bolstered its occupational health offering, introducing drop-in sessions where employees are able to get advice from a nurse if they feel anxious or stressed. These efforts prompted a 17% reduction in days lost to Mental Health absence compared to the previous year; a saving of 389 days.

Within four years, the average length of absence was reduced by 48% from 14.8 days to 7.63 days – representing a saving of around £1.34m (7.17 days per person).

“Return-to-work interviews are another factor that has helped reduce our absences. […] over the past three years we have seen our compliance go from 53% to 77%, and we believe this is owed to the FirstCare system that generates reminders.”

Positive Business Impact
  • Within four years, the average length of absence was reduced by 48% from 14.8 days to 7.63 days.
  • Talking about FirstCare’s reporting system, Hilary Bright - Director of HR Services at TEN Group - said: “I find the reporting easy to use. In addition to being able to plot absence trends easily, we are able to analyse reasons for absence at the press of a button.”
  • “I would – and do – recommend FirstCare to other organisations and have demonstrated the system to a number of them.”
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Mitigated risk:

Hannah said: “Before FirstCare’s help, we had always been aware of the problems we had with musculoskeletal absence, but the data also identified a rising trend in mental health problems.” Thanks to real-time absence information, the trust was able to prioritise the mental health support available.

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Increased productivity:

Staff affected by mental health problems were absent for longer periods of time which, Hannah said, “had a huge impact on the productivity of our team.” Thanks to FirstCare, the average
length of absence was all but halved within four years.

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Cost savings:

The 48% reduction in absence duration over 4 years equated to savings of around £1.34m. FirstCare was able to provide a more in-depth level of data with more effective analysis and reporting tools than TEN Group’s previous suppliers and “the costs fitted within our budget, which was a bonus”.

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We are able to analyse reasons for absence at the press of a button.

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Do you want to improve productivity, streamline admin and support employees? FirstCare delivers all three. Let’s discuss your specific challenges and how the right absence management solution will help you overcome them. Get in touch by phone or email for a free consultation. Or you can request a call back using the form below.