A record 2.8m people are locked out of work due to long term sickness. This is bad for them, bad for businesses and bad for the economy.

Labour’s new Back to Work Plan will help drive growth, opportunity and prosperity in every corner of the country.

So it was great to be in Leeds today and visit Smart Works the Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin – a fantastic charity giving women the confidence to fulfil their potential.

Women like Fran – who fled domestic violence and left everything behind but was then supported by Smart Works to find work and get back on her feet.

As Smartworks Chair Tracy Fletcher says “the service is practical but the result is magical.”

You can read more here about the visit in the Independent here.

You can read the DWP’s press release here.