Organisations can bid for £60m fund to support disabled people into work
UKPulse Consumer Desk
Businesses, charities, and innovators across the UK can now apply for a share of a £60 million fund to develop new ways to help disabled people and those with health conditions find and stay in work.
- The Pathways to Work Innovation Fund is open for bids until 26 October 2026.
- The fund aims to back innovative ideas, including AI-powered job-matching tools and digital therapies.
- An expert panel, including Paralympian Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, will help select the bids.
Organisations across the UK are invited to bid for a share of £60 million from the Pathways to Work Innovation Fund. The fund aims to support new approaches for disabled people and those with health conditions to enter, stay, and progress in employment.
The initiative, first announced in July, seeks ambitious and creative ideas from the private, voluntary, and public sectors. Potential ideas include AI-powered job-matching tools, prosthetics, and digital therapies for mental health support.
Applications for the fund will close on 26 October 2026. An expert panel, which includes Paralympian Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, will help design the fund and shortlist the best ideas.
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden stated that the government wants the best ideas from businesses, charities, and disabled people to transform employment support. This fund is part of the government's wider £3.5 billion drive to enhance support for disabled people and those with health conditions.
Why this matters: The fund aims to address economic inactivity caused by health conditions, which reportedly costs the UK economy £212 billion annually, by helping more disabled people and those with health conditions into work.
What this means for you: If you are part of a business, charity, or innovation organisation, you may be able to bid for funding to test new ways of supporting disabled people and those with health conditions into work.