Centre for Organisational Health & Well-being (COHWB)
Conducting high quality leading edge research of relevance and utility to Employers, HR specialists, Health and Safety Managers and Allied Health Professionals as well as the academic community.
Welcome to COHWB
The Centre for Organisational Health & Well-being is based at Lancaster University in the UK. It is a multi- and inter-disciplinary centre aiming to support employers, policy makers and other key stakeholders to develop sustainable, healthy work and healthy workplaces. The Centre brings together expertise from the Faculty of Health & Medicine, Lancaster University Management School, and the Work Foundation to address challenges associated with the changing nature of work and achieve its aim.
Professor Stavroula Leka,
Director of COHWB
About the Centre
Technological developments, climate change, global pandemics, demographic shifts and globalisation are transforming the world and the world of work. These forces are impacting who works and when, how work is organised and managed, and how work environments are defined. People and the work they do should be placed at the centre of economic and social policy and business practice to achieve a sustainable and healthy future of work. Sustainable work means achieving living and working conditions that support people in engaging and remaining in work throughout an extended working life for as long as they wish. For this to be achieved, it is important that the factors that hinder employment are tackled. Job quality and healthy work and work environment design are the cornerstone of sustainable work.
Engagement with policy makers, business leaders, HR and (allied) health professionals, health and safety professionals and the academic community is at the heart of our research, education, consultancy and policy work. Key themes in our work include:
- Healthy work and workplace design
- Mental health and well-being in the future of work
- Leadership in sustainable work and organisations
- Organisational health and resilience, innovation and competitiveness
- Regulation and employment systems in the future of work
- Human rights, responsibility, trust and employee voice in new work landscapes
- Agile policy making, governance and sustainable work and development
- Lifelong learning and sustainable working lives
- Equality, diversity and inclusion in employment and new forms of work
- Workplace intervention development and evaluation
COHWB Members
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Research Themes
We focus on three main research themes; Sustainable working lives, Interventions and Policy analysis. Select the relevant tab below to read more detailed information about each.
Tab Content: Sustainable working lives
This theme focuses on:
- Work transitions throughout the lifecycle of work and the promotion of agile working with a view to addressing economic inactivity, early retirement and changing meaning/expectations of work.
- Ways of working, and organisational culture and their impact on health, wellbeing and organisational outcomes.
- The role of leadership in shaping organisational health and wellbeing.
- Determinants of the value and meaning of work.
- Voices, inclusivity and psychological safety and how these can transform organisations.
Tab Content: Organisational health and well
This theme focuses on: the design, implementation and evaluation on key interventions to promote organisational health and well-being in various contexts. It includes the development of toolkits and guidelines for organisations in key areas, e.g. healthy work and healthy workplaces; menopause and working life; sustainability, health and wellbeing; and workplace health promotion.
Tab Content: Policy analysis and evaluation
This theme focuses on:
- Regulation and policy on work and health and its relationship with organisational and societal outcomes.
- Policy analysis through documentary analysis, secondary analysis of large-scale data, and qualitative research with key stakeholders to support policy evaluation and the development of guidelines.
- Critical analysis of indicators used to measure key dimensions of work, for example, remuneration in the context of higher workload and longer working hours; workload/productivity/work output measures in the context of the changing nature of work and multiple within-job roles.
Project Highlight
Effective delivery of occupational safety and health services: Promoting occupational safety and health as a universal fundamental right at work
High occupational safety and health (OSH) standards are crucial for the future of work and achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Recent trends, including demographic shifts, technological advancements, climate change, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic have evidenced the need to increase efforts to protect and promote health, safety and well-being.
Study with us
PhD in Organisational Health and Well-Being
We currently have over 40 students registered on our Blended Learning (Part time/Taught) Doctoral programme in Organisational Health and Well-Being. Enquiries are welcome for those wishing to study for a PhD by the traditional thesis based route. For further information about study or working with the Centre, please contact Professor Stavroula Leka
Organisational Health and Well-Being PhD
Traditional PhD (by research and thesis) in Health Research
We offer supervision of research students in many areas of health-related social science. We welcome applications from students wishing to pursue research in the areas of organisational health and well-being highlighted as the focus of our research interests. We are particularly interested in supporting applications for those applying for externally funded fellowships.
Health Research Traditional Route PhDCOHWB Publications
Publications by staff and associates of COHWB are listed below. By selecting View our publications, you will have the opportunity to filter publications by year, type and/or keyword
Recent and current research projects include:
2014-17 Giga, S. I., Collins, A., Cartwright, S. and Cowlishaw, S.
"The Role of Army Reservists: An Analysis of their Experiences and the Attitudes and Perceptions of Civilian Employers, Regulars and Significant Others".
Funded by the ESRC (£236,895)
2014-20 Almeida S., Fernando, M., Dharmage, S. and Cartwright, S.
"Promoting Employee Engagement, Career Development, Well-Being and Retention of Health Professionals in the Illawarra".
A joint project with University of Wollongong Business School
2014-15 Wadeson, P., Simpson, J. and Giga, S. I.
"Comparison of group-based mindfulness training versus smartphone app training for NHS workers".
Funded by the NIHR Research Capability Fund (£10k)
2014 Bingley, A., Collins, A., Oaks, R and Varey, S.
"Woodland working: Intergenerational skills gained and shared in the volunteer workforce".
Funded by the British Academy (£9095)
2013-14 Hillage J, Bevan S, Cartwright S and Hollingsworth B
"Evidence review of workplace policies and management practices to improve employee well-being". A joint project with University of Sussex and colleagues at The Work Foundation.
Funded by National Institute for Clinical Excellence(£170K)
2010-12 Cartwright, S.
"The impact of Presenteeism on Employee Health and Performance".
Funded by the BUPA Foundation (£110K)
2010-2012 Cartwright, S.
"The Impact of physical activity on employee health and well being".
Funded by Global Corporate Challenge (£60K)