How bad is a bad sickness record?

[Emphasise]

I've been offered a new job and as part of the pre employment checks new employer has asked old employer for my sickness record. I have to give permission but obviously it won't look good if I refuse.

So, I used to be one of those people who'd never has a day off, but just under 2 years ago I started a new job (with small children) and seemed to catch everything going. Mostly I soldiered on but I had a couple of days off with a stomach bug and then went down with a really nasty virus that knocked me out for weeks. first week was in the holidays, then I had a week off, went back too soon and had to have a few more days the following week. So to answer the question asked, Ive had 3 periods of sickness totalling 9 days in the last 2 years. They were all within 6 weeks but it doesn't ask that.

Is that really awful? It's much worse than "normal" for me but will it seem so to someone who sees a lot if these iyswim?

I think you will be OK with that level. I had a similar bad run of luck and it didn't hold me back.

That would be fine in my business . And I work in a very process driven , efficient industry .

It wouldn't trigger any absence managment thresholds where I work.

It doesn't sound bad at all to me, either. Plus it's justifiable - not the pattern of a serial player of the system.

A decade ago my employer used the Bradford Index, which was (I think) number of incidents x no of days, over a rolling year. It quantified the issue & there were targets & tolerances, but no one was ever fired for it!