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The project: Shift Work, Sleep, and Public Health: Bridging Research, Policy, and Practice

This project aimed to strengthen the translation of research on shift work, sleep and circadian health into public health policy, workplace practice and future interdisciplinary research. Building on MRC-funded SleepShifters research, the project sought to bring together researchers, policymakers, employers, occupational health professionals, unions, charities and people with lived experience to identify practical actions for improving sleep health among the UK's shift-working population.

To maximise reach and engagement, the project evolved from a single policy event into two complementary knowledge exchange activities:

• A national webinar: Shift Work, Sleep and Public Health: From Evidence to Action (29 May 2026), providing broad access to evidence and discussion across research, healthcare, industry and policy audiences.
• In person parliamentary event: Fighting Fatigue: Addressing Shift Work, Sleep and the Public Health Burden (10 June 2026), held at the House of Commons, focusing on policy priorities and cross-sector dialogue with parliamentarians and national stakeholders.

The parliamentary event was hosted by Ian Lavery MP, Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Occupational Safety and Health and facilitated by the ¹û¶³´«Ã½ and the Society of Occupational Medicine. It brought together parliamentarians, researchers, clinicians, employers, professional bodies, trade unions, charities and representatives from safety-critical and shift-working sectors.

Together these events aimed to:

• disseminate current evidence on shift work, sleep and health;
• facilitate interdisciplinary dialogue between research, policy and practice;
• identify priorities for future policy and implementation;
• strengthen collaborations to support future research, policy engagement and knowledge mobilisation.

Summary of project outcomes

The project successfully delivered two complementary national engagement activities, significantly extending the reach and impact of the original proposal.

National webinar- The webinar, Shift Work, Sleep and Public Health: From Evidence to Action, was held on 29 May 2026. It received 243 registrations, with more than half of those registered attending the live session. This enabled the project to reach a considerably larger and more geographically diverse audience than would have been possible through the parliamentary event alone.

The webinar brought together evidence and perspectives relating to:

• the health and circadian consequences of shift work;
• fatigue, workplace safety and public risk;
• organisational approaches to fatigue management;
• the experiences of shift workers;
• barriers to implementing evidence-based support;
• opportunities for prevention and early intervention.

A central message emerging from the webinar was that fatigue should be treated as a predictable occupational and systems-level risk rather than primarily as an individual worker responsibility. Participants also highlighted that evidence-based approaches already exist, including healthier rota design, fatigue risk management systems, sleep and fatigue education, sleep disorder screening and preventative sleep interventions, but are not implemented consistently or at scale.

The webinar findings directly informed the parliamentary briefing and the subsequent discussions held at the House of Commons.

Parliamentary event- The in-person event, Fighting Fatigue: Addressing Shift Work, Sleep and the Public Health Burden, took place on 10 June 2026 in Committee Room 15 at the House of Commons. The event was sponsored by Ian Lavery MP (chair of APPG for Occupational Health) and co-organised with the Society of Occupational Medicine. It was attended by approximately 50 people, representing a wide range of sectors and organisations, including:

• the Royal College of Midwives;
• the Royal College of Nursing;
• Yorkshire Police;
• NHS trusts;
• the Rail Safety and Standards Board;
• Network Rail;
• the Fire Brigades Union;
• the British Airline Pilots’ Association;
• the Health Services Safety Investigations Body;
• the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers;
• Unite the Union;
• charities and professional organisations;
• the Universities of ¹û¶³´«Ã½, Surrey, Oxford, King’s College London;
• occupational health professionals, researchers and representatives of shift-working sectors.

The programme included an introduction to the current policy landscape from Professor Neil Greenberg and Dr Talar Moukhtarian, followed by contributions from Ian Lavery MP, Dr Richard Onyon of Coventry and ¹û¶³´«Ã½shire Partnership NHS Trust, Anna Vereker of the Rail Safety and Standards Board, and Luke Collins of Unite the Union. A plenary discussion then focused on priority actions and next steps. Discussions highlighted the effects of fatigue and poor sleep on physical and mental health; workforce participation and retention; workplace and public safety; productivity and economic resilience; family and social life; sickness absence and presenteeism; and the sustainability of essential 24-hour services.

Participants identified an important mismatch between the existing research evidence and its implementation in policy and practice. Particular gaps included inconsistent definitions and measurement of fatigue, limited organisational accountability, insufficient recognition of risks beyond the end of a shift, and fragmented approaches that place excessive responsibility on individual workers

Parliamentary briefing and policy asks

A major output of the project was the development of a parliamentary briefing, synthesising research evidence, insights from the national webinar, and stakeholder perspectives. The briefing outlines the health, safety and economic implications of shift work and sets out a series of policy recommendations, including embedding sleep and fatigue within the Government's Keep Britain Working agenda, strengthening fatigue management within workforce planning and occupational health policy, improving organisational accountability, and supporting greater investment in prevention, research and evidence-based workplace interventions. The briefing is now being circulated to parliamentarians, government departments, regulators, employers and other key stakeholders, alongside a post-event report calling for coordinated action across research, policy and practice.

Immediate and emerging outcomes

The project has already led to tangible impact beyond the events themselves. Transport for London has invited the project team to deliver a workshop at its headquarters in October 2026, providing an opportunity to translate the evidence into organisational practice. The project also strengthened ¹û¶³´«Ã½'s partnership with the Society of Occupational Medicine, expanded relationships with national stakeholders across healthcare, transport, emergency services, industry and trade unions, and established a strong platform for future policy engagement, implementation activities and interdisciplinary funding applications.

Changes from the original plan

The original proposal centred on a single parliamentary event; however, this was expanded to include a national webinar prior to the event. This significantly increased the reach and accessibility of the project, enabling broader engagement from researchers, practitioners and policymakers while generating valuable evidence and stakeholder insights that informed both the parliamentary briefing and subsequent discussions. The project also produced a comprehensive policy briefing and post-event report, extending its impact well beyond the events themselves.

Has the project supported further interdisciplinary work

The project has supported substantial interdisciplinary and cross-sector collaboration.

These relationships have generated several potential areas for further work, including:

• organisational workshops and knowledge exchange, beginning with the Transport for London workshop planned for October 2026;
• further dissemination of the parliamentary briefing and policy asks;

The online webinar received 243 registrations, with more than half of registrants attending live. The House of Commons event was attended by approximately 50 participants.