Wiltshire Council is spending almost £1.5m on sickness benefits from 2020

The figures were released in a Freedom of Information request

A Freedom of Information request has revealed that the total cost of extended sick leave at Wiltshire Council in 2020 was £1.481 million.

It also showed that the most common reasons for extended leave are related to mental health issues.

Extended sick leave refers to leave of six months or more.

Since 2020, there have been 120 extended periods of absence at Wiltshire Council taken by 116 staff.

Most of these employees came from the adult welfare department, followed by the highways and transport department.

Reasons for sick leave include issues such as long covid and cancer.

However, the most common reason is listed as ‘stress/depression/mental health/fatigue’, with 55 of all absences falling into this category.

This means that 46% of extended sick leave at Wiltshire Council in 2020 was taken for mental health struggles.

Outgoing board CEO Terence Herbert recently said negative public perception was one of the most difficult aspects of working at the authority.

In 2016, the council’s corporate director, Maggie Rae, left her role after being sidelined for three months due to stress-related issues.

Wiltshire Council has been contacted for comment.

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