Egress Systems

Holding a sponsor licence? Right to work checks are only part of your compliance.

Home Office enforcement is at record levels. Around 3,100 sponsor licences were revoked in 2025, the highest number since records began in 2012. This is no longer just a care sector issue. Manufacturing, construction, hospitality, retail and professional services are all in the spotlight.

The guidance keeps moving too. In April, sponsors were told to check the right to work of anyone they "directly engage", including contractors. In May, that was reversed. Your processes need to keep up with changes that often arrive with little warning.

Many licences aren't lost over a missing passport copy. They're lost over the day-to-day duties, such as:

⏱️ Tracking attendance of sponsored workers

📋 Reporting to UKVI when a sponsored worker stops attending

📅 Keeping on top of visa expiry dates and follow-up checks

🗂️ Holding records that are ready for an unannounced compliance visit

Spreadsheets and paper timesheets make this harder than it needs to be. A time and attendance system provides accurate, auditable absence records and early alerts, so you can spot and report issues before they become problems.

The stakes are high. A revoked licence can't be appealed; you'll wait at least 12 months to reapply, and civil penalties for illegal working can reach £60,000 per worker.

If you'd like to see how Egress Systems can help you maintain reliable attendance records across your entire workforce, get in touch for a free demo.

Tel - 0115 931 4007
Email - [email protected]

Nine in ten people with migraine say they are not believed, as new report reveals condition’s mental health toll

Migraine affects around one in seven people in the UK and can cause debilitating symptoms, from severe head pain and dizziness to sensory sensitivity, nausea and vomiting.

Yet many people still face disbelief about its impact in healthcare settings, at work and among friends and family.

Nearly a third (31%) of people with migraine said they had not felt believed by a colleague or manager at work and almost one in four (24%) said they had not felt believed by their family or someone they live with. One in five (20%) said they did not feel believed by a healthcare professional.

Worryingly, The Migraine Trust’s helpline data suggests worsening mental health more broadly among people with migraine. Callers mentioning suicidal thoughts rose by 54% in the last six months and almost trebled year-on-year, up 270%. People reporting isolation and wellbeing struggles also increased, up 15% and 26% respectively.

Rob Music, Chief Executive, The Migraine Trust, said: “A common perception of migraine is that it is ‘just a headache’ and ‘it can’t be that bad’, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. This new report sets out the compounding effect that not being believed about migraine has on mental health and paints an incredibly concerning picture.

“Many living with the condition are facing disbelief and downplaying of their symptoms in all parts of their lives, from healthcare settings to workplaces, and even, sadly, among loved ones. The impact of this for those living with migraine can be devastating.

“We need to urgently tackle the stigma associated with migraine. This Migraine Awareness Week, we are calling for greater public understanding of the condition, especially among employers and healthcare professionals. This simple act can have a profound impact on the quality of care and support that people with migraine so desperately need.”

These latest figures add to existing evidence that paints a concerning picture of the mental health impact of migraine. Previous research conducted by The Migraine Trust has examined the different ways that the condition can affect mental health and wellbeing.

The Migraine Trust’s 2024 report, Migraine Hurts, found that almost nine in 10 (89%) people with migraine said the condition had affected their mental health, with over half (55%) describing the impact as significant.

Its latest survey found that more than three-quarters (77%) said not being believed about migraine had negatively affected their mental health.

Despite this, research published earlier this year found that only one in 10 (10%) had been offered NHS mental health support.

Managing people across shifts, sites and departments doesn’t need to mean relying on spreadsheets, manual timesheets or on-site servers.

With Focus.net, Egress Systems’ cloud-based time and attendance platform, organisations can access real-time attendance data from any web browser—helping them track hours, manage absence, build rotas and prepare accurate payroll data from one flexible system.

What can Focus.net help with?

✅ Live visibility of who is in, late, absent or due to finish
✅ Mobile clocking with geofencing controls
✅ Employee self-service for holiday requests, rotas and timesheets
✅ Skills-based rostering to ensure every shift has the right people in place
✅ Configurable reports, scheduled email updates and payroll exports
✅ Real-time fire roll call information for improved site safety

For businesses operating across multiple locations, this means less administration, more accurate workforce data and better-informed decisions when staffing levels change.

Whether you are managing a warehouse, manufacturing facility, retail estate, logistics operation or multi-site workforce, a cloud-based approach gives managers the information they need—wherever they are.

https://www.egress-sys.co.uk/time-and-attendance-software/cloud-based-time-attendance-system/

Managing time and attendance in higher education is rarely straightforward.

From catering and housekeeping to porters, grounds teams and administrative staff, every department can operate on different shifts, contracts and pay rules.

Add flexitime, annualised hours, time off in lieu and overtime into the mix, and manual processes can quickly become time-consuming.

Egress Systems helps higher education institutions bring clarity to complex workforce management with flexible time and attendance solutions built around how their teams actually work.

With configurable working rules, rota planning, editable timesheets, payroll reporting and HR software integration, institutions can:

✅ Track hours across departments and cost centres

✅ Manage variable contracts, overtime and flexitime

✅ Improve visibility for heads of department

✅ Reduce duplicate admin and minimise human error

✅ Export accurate time data for payroll

✅ Choose from fingerprint, face-recognition, proximity and NFC clocking options

For universities, colleges and independent higher education providers, the right system is not just about clocking in and out. It is about making workforce data more accurate, accessible and useful across the organisation.

Discover Egress Systems’ time and attendance solutions for higher education: https://www.egress-sys.co.uk/sectors/education/

Payroll is only as accurate as the time data that feeds it. When hours, overtime, absence and shift changes are managed across spreadsheets or paper records, mistakes can quickly become costly and time-consuming.

Egress systems can integrate time and attendance data with existing HR and payroll processes, helping teams reduce manual handling and work from more reliable information.

https://www.egress-sys.co.uk/

Choosing a time and attendance system is not simply about recording clock-ins. HR managers should look for accurate records, absence visibility, flexible reporting, rota support, payroll compatibility, employee self-service and a system that can grow with the organisation.

The right solution should make day-to-day people management easier, not create another platform to manage.

Read the Egress guide to choosing a time and attendance system. https://www.egress-sys.co.uk/resources/the-essential-guide-to-time-and-attendance-systems/

How often do we stop to ask whether our work supports the whole of our wellbeing — not just our salary?

The CIPD’s approach to workplace wellbeing is a useful reminder that it’s bigger than yoga sessions, fruit bowls or an employee assistance programme. Real wellbeing is holistic: it includes health, meaningful and fair work, supportive relationships, personal growth, financial security, healthy lifestyle choices, and values such as trust, dignity and inclusion.

For employees, it’s worth reflecting:

Does my work give me purpose, development and a sense of belonging?

Does it support my mental and physical health, rather than consistently drain it?

Is the pay and flexibility enough to support my wider life and financial wellbeing?

Do I feel respected, heard and able to be myself?

For employers, the question is equally important: are wellbeing initiatives addressing the working environment itself — workload, culture, autonomy, management and fair reward — or simply treating the symptoms?

Work will not meet every wellbeing need in our lives. But it should not make meeting them harder.

What does “good work” need to look like for you to genuinely thrive?

https://www.cipd.org/uk/knowledge/factsheets/well-being-factsheet/