Londoners least positive about working from home benefits, survey claims

Londoners and people from Scotland are the least positive about working from home (WFH), according to a new survey.

A quarter of Londoners said their well-being has suffered WFH and feel they have received fewer perks than workers in other regions.

The pandemic has hugely changed working patterns as offices have down scaled or even closed in response to government advice.

In some areas that has been overwhelmingly embraced by workers who feel they have a better work-life balance, according to research based on findings from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

However in London 25 per cent said their well-being was being adversely affected while 28 per cent reported that their work-life balance was worse than before the pandemic.

Almost one in five said working from home made it more difficult to come up with new ideas and half said it was more difficult to collaborate with colleagues.

In addition, 34 per cent experienced more distractions while work from home in London and 19 per cent reported that they were slower to complete work.

Only one area of the UK has felt more negatively about working from home than London, with 36 per cent of people in Scotland experiencing reduced well being, and 22 per cent a worse work-life balance.

The West Midlands sits at the top of the rankings – in total, 66 per cent of people in the region experienced an improved work-life balance, and 43 per cent had increased well-being.

Wales ranks a close second, and has the highest percentage of people who feel working from home improved their work-life balance, at 77 per cent. The North West placed third overall, with 47 per cent of people noting an improvement in well being.

The research was conducted by money transfer experts Xendpay, which analysed the latest ONS data from a study of UK adults in work.

A spokesperson from Xendpay said: “It’s fascinating to see the discrepancies in different UK areas when it comes to people’s experiences of working from home. While many of us have been in this situation for over a year, it’s clear that - when it comes to home-working - not every area is equal.”

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