Nearly half of Hampshire residents aren’t getting a good night’s sleep, according to a health specialist.

Big Health, who provides digital Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), surveyed 1,500 Hampshire adults about their sleep, revealing a 46 per cent of are currently experiencing poor sleep.

Almost a third (29 per cent) agreed that their sleep had worsened during the pandemic.

Their findings found 84 per cent of Hampshire adults are now getting less than the recommended 7-9 hours of sleep every night, amounting to 1.95 million hours of sleep lost per night.

A spokesman for Big Health said: “A lack of sleep can negatively affect mental and physical health, making sufferers prone to serious medical conditions, such as obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.”

The findings of the survey has prompted North Hampshire Clinical Commissioning Group (NHCCG) to partner with Big Health to provide free access to Sleepio. Sleepio is an NHS-accredited digital programme, backed by clinical evidence, that teaches CBT techniques to help those struggling with poor sleep and insomnia.

CBT teaches people techniques that are scientifically proven to make a lasting difference to their sleep. Sleepio is an NHS-accredited digital programme of CBT, backed by clinical evidence and accessed by over 150,000 people in the UK to date.

Big Health co-founder and professor of sleep medicine at the University of Oxford, Professor Colin Espie, said: “Poor sleep is a longstanding problem for many people, and the pandemic has introduced new changes and pressures that place additional strain on our mental health.

“Sleepio is fully automated and accessible online, with no waiting time. This means more people can access digital medicine that’s clinically proven and backed by real-world evidence whenever and wherever they wish. We’re proud to be working with North Hampshire CCG to provide universal access to safe, effective, non-drug treatment for insomnia through Sleepio.”

Dr. Nicola Decker, clinical chair at NHCCG, said: “We are excited to be working in partnership with teams offering innovative digital solutions. We will be measuring the impact and outcomes of this pilot together so that we can adapt the way that services are commissioned, thus offering better, safer and longer-term solutions for this truly disabling problem.”

Dr. Tim Cooper, Mental Health Lead at Hampshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Whitewater Loddon Primary Care Network (PCN) said: “Primary care sees the majority of mental health needs across the system and we recognise the challenge patients currently face in waiting for psychological support. Offering Sleepio is a way to proactively address this challenge, giving patients instant access to evidence-based treatment. The learnings we generate can be applied to other digital solutions in the future, which will support innovation locally and further afield across the NHS.”

All North Hampshire residents can access Sleepio’s evidence-based therapy for free online or through a referral via their primary care practice. For the next week only, this offer is also open to residents outside of North Hampshire, who can sign up for free via the same link. Visit www.sleepio.com/nhs to learn more.

Sleepio has already been made available to over 5million people across the UK to improve their sleep and all-round health, including all 1.5m NHS employees in England, all 1.6m Social Care staff in England, NHS and Social Care staff in Scotland and Wales, and over 2m residents in the Thames Valley in partnership with the Oxford Academic Health Science Network (AHSN).