What employees want: a guide to the UK’s 22 most popular workplace benefits

There are so many benefits out there - so how can you cut through the noise and pick what’s best for your team? To help make things simpler for you, we’ve put together the 22 most popular benefits out there, with a handy guide to make choosing what right for your team as easy as A-B-C

Benefits 101
Remote Benefits

⋅ min read

There are so many benefits out there - so how can you cut through the noise and pick what’s best for your team? There’s no one benefit that will make everyone happy, which is why a flexible approach is best for any team. 

Lots of trailblazing startups and SMEs are leading the way when it comes to making their employees feel valued, and with the right picks for your team, you can join them. To help make things simpler for you, we’ve put together the 22 most popular benefits out there, with a handy guide to make choosing what right for your team as easy as A-B-C.

woman exercising

Health & Wellness ❤️

1. Private healthcare insurance

With ever-increasing strain on the NHS, giving your team private healthcare insurance is an easy crowd-pleaser. All providers have different levels of offerings that you can pick depending on everyone’s needs and your budget.  

Popular providers: Bupa, Vitality, Equipsme 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Simplicity: ⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

2. EAP, Mental Health & Counselling | 💻 Perfect for remote

If your team is mentally well, they’re much more likely to be able to give their best to their role! There are lots of options out there, including e-counselling, meditation apps, and online cognitive behavioural therapy depending on the sort of support you’d like to give employees.

Popular providers: Spill, Sanctus, Headspace, Modern Health, Health Assured 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3. Health Cash plan

Healthcare cash plans are schemes that cover employees’ routine medical and dental expenses (up to a limit), and they’re growing in popularity at the moment. So if anyone on your team needs a filling or two, you can help take the sting out of the dentist’s bill.

Popular providers: Medicash, HealthShield, BHSF

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4. Extra medical (Digital GP, Blood Testing, Nutrition, and more)

There’s a big range of additional benefits that can help your team stay on top of their health in the long term. From internal health tracking to vitamin subscriptions, you can help your team stay in good health and informed about what’s going on inside their bodies - a pretty great offering from an employer! 

Popular providers: Babylon Health, Vitl, Thriva, Boots for Business

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

5. Fitness classes & wellness treatments  | 💻 Perfect for remote

Keeping fit boosts people’s mood, energy levels and focus - all things that make people better at their jobs! Since coronavirus started, it’s become harder for people to go to the same spin classes, yoga, or whatever it was they enjoyed. By offering remote-friendly fitness benefits too, you can help your team enjoy their favourite exercise from the comfort of home. 

Popular providers:  ClassPass, Urban, Fiit, Fitwell

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

6. Gym memberships

If anyone on your team enjoys pumping iron at the gym, helping them out with a subsidised membership might be just their cup of tea. There’s a range of options that vary in price, facilities and location flexibility. 

Popular providers:  Puregym, The Gymgroup, GymFlex, Gympass

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

7. Group Life Insurance

It’s not something anyone likes to think about, but should the worst happen and you lose an employee, group life insurance will help out their family with a lump sum payout. 

Popular providers:  Yulife, Aviva 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Table with laptop and notepad

Learning & Personal Development 📚

8. Online learning | 💻 Perfect for remote

Helping your team improve their professional skills can boost their motivation - and boost your business. From online courses to an audiobook subscription to remote courses - whatever learning best suits their professional goals, there’s something out there to help them upskill.

Popular providers: Sunlight, Learnerbly, Kindle,  Audible , Linkedin Learning, Skillshare

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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9. Personal growth & development  | 💻 Perfect for remote

Sometimes it’s helpful to take a step back from the rush of everyday life, and reflect on how we can do things better. Coaching and storytelling platforms are a great way for your team to reassess their priorities and work out how they can give life - and their careers - their best.

Popular providers:  TLC Lions, Flux Leadership Coaching

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Desk with screen and laptop, screens reafs "Workhard anywhere"

Lifestyle 🧘🏻‍♀️

10. Employee Discounts  | 💻 Perfect for remote

Everybody loves money off their favourite stuff - and with all the different discounts  options out there, your team can enjoy more of their top treats for less thanks to you. 

Popular providers:  Perks at Work, The Dining Club Group (Tastecard), Perkbox

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

11. Home office set-up  | 💻 Perfect for remote

Since Covid-19, a lot of us have seen a lot more of our homes than we’d banked for at the start of the year. But without the same comfortable set-up as you have in the office, it can be much harder to concentrate (and avoid back problems). Helping your team find the right desk, chair and computer set-up can make a big difference to productivity, and these companies are set-up to help you make it happen as smoothly as possible.  

Popular providers:  Hofy, Firstbase 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Cyclist on cycling lane

Transport 🚌

12. Cycle to work

Cycling is a healthy and increasingly popular way to get around - and get to work. Cycle to work schemes make buying new bikes easier and cheaper by taking advantage of a tax break.  

Popular providers:  GCI, Cycle2Work, CycleScheme, Dash

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

13. Company car

If lots of your team prefers to drive to work, or if driving is a necessary part of their role, sorting them out with a company car is a perk many will jump at. 

Popular provider: Tusker 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

14. Season pass

If your team tends to take public transport to the office, reducing their costs with a season ticket loan scheme can take a load off their mind - without the hassle of doing the admin themselves. 

Popular providers: Commuter Club 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Jar with coins and label "House Funds"

Wealth & Finance 💰

15. Group income protection

If anyone on your team gets an illness or injury that stops them from working for a while, group income protection will make sure they still get paid - without putting your company out of pocket.

Popular providers: Unum, Yulife 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

16. Earned income  | 💻 Perfect for remote

If anyone on your team gets hit with unexpected costs from time to time, this form of financial assistance will help employees keep their heads above water by giving access to their monthly salary before payday. 

Popular providers:  Wagestream, SalaryFinance, Hastee, Earnd

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

17. Financial wellbeing | 💻 Perfect for remote

Getting paid is great, but not everyone knows how to make their earnings go further. Financial wellbeing is an important of employee wellbeing. By helping your team learn about personal finance, you can help them build their long term security. 

Popular providers: Wealth at Work, Nudge, Mintago 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


family holding hands

Family & kids 👨‍👩‍👧

18. Salary sacrifice childcare

For the parents on your team, helping ease access to childcare will be a big load off their minds - and make focusing on their work that bit easier. Employees that are registered by their employers are able to sacrifice part of their salary for tax relief on childcare through the government-run workplace nursery scheme. 

Popular provider: Workplace Nursery 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

19. Childcare assistance

Finding good and reliable childcare that fits around work is a source of stress for most working parents. You can help employees and give them one less thing to worry about - and let them bring their whole selves to work - by sorting them out with a top notch babysitting or child minding service. 

Popular providers:  Koru Kids, Yoopies, Bubble

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

20. Parenthood support | 💻 Perfect for remote and flexible working

Becoming a new parent is daunting for most, and balancing raising a brand new human with a career can be overwhelming. Giving new parents access to childcare support can help ease the transition into parenthood. And for those trying for kids, helping them out with services that will help them conceive is a pretty great offering from an employer too. 

Popular providers:  Peppy, Parentscheme, Apricity

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


office workers eating together

Food & Drink 🍔

21. Office lunches

Everyone loves a take away every now and then - or all the time. Whether your team prefers burritos or sushi, tacos or burgers, paying for some tasty meals to be delivered to the office is an easy way to improve employee happiness and create a positive working environment.

Popular providers: Deliveroo for Business, City Pantry, Feedr 

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

22. Home food delivery 💻 Perfect for remote

Working remotely doesn’t stop people from enjoying office snacks, and you can bring your team joy - and an energy boost - with tasty treats and meals delivered to their homes. 

Popular providers: Oddbox, Planty, Snackcess, Cakedrop

Employee appeal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Affordable: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Admin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Popularity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

And there we have it! As you can see, there’s a huge range out there - and picking the best selection for your team can be time-consuming and admin-heavy. At Ben, we offer a one-stop solution that gives your team access to all of the above, with none of the fuss. 

Everyone has their own set of needs, and normally you’d have to either spend weeks setting up different benefits options for everyone’s different needs - or you’d offer benefits that don’t help your whole team. With Ben, you can help the parents on your team with childcare benefits, and the gym bunnies with a discounted membership and fitness classes. With this flexible approach, you can sort your whole team out with their diverse needs, and help them give their best in their roles as a result.

If you’d like to find out more, you can book a demo here. 

Are you an employee benefit provider that should be in this list? Get in touch here and we’ll see what we can do.   

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