A new report suggests the UK public sector is moving sharply away from remote and hybrid working, despite signs that the shift could be undermining recruitment and retention. According to the 2025 State of Digital report by Unit4, just over half of UK public sector organisations now require employees to be fully office-based, compared with only 7 percent in 2023. The proportion operating fully remote models has dropped from 37 percent two years ago to 15 percent, while hybrid arrangements have fallen from 93 percent to 49 percent. (more…)

Over two fifths (41 percent) of businesses have emphasised the need for people to work in a physical workspace such as an office over the past year, according to a new poll from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). While most of the firms (67 percent) who require onsite working say it hasn’t impacted recruitment or retention, one in ten relevant businesses (9 percent) have seen staff leave in response. (more…)

A growing number of remote workers in the UK are ending their week early on Fridays, according to new data that highlights the shifting rhythms of hybrid working. Figures from Virgin Media show that broadband usage among home workers drops by around 8 percent between 3pm and 5pm on summer Fridays compared with winter, suggesting that many employees are logging off ahead of the traditional end of the working day. (more…)

More than a million UK workers have quit their jobs in the past year due to a lack of flexible working, according to a new poll from the CIPD. The organisation’s latest report highlights a growing tension between employer demands and employee expectations, particularly among younger workers. The survey of 2,000 employers and 5,000 employees suggests that around 3 percent of the workforce left their roles since January 2024 because they were unable to access the flexibility they needed. The findings come more than a year after UK workers gained the legal right to request flexible working from day one. (more…)

A new analysis from the Office for National Statistics confirms that hybrid working is now the dominant form of flexible work for many people in Great Britain. The figures, which cover the period from January to March 2025, show that 28 percent of working adults now combine home and on-site work on a regular basis – the highest proportion recorded since the ONS began monitoring hybrid working patterns. This compares with just 9 percent who work exclusively from home and around 55 percent who are permanently based at a single workplace. The remaining proportion are made up of those with no fixed place of work or whose work locations vary, such as mobile or site-based roles.
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