WORKING from home in the borough appears depends on where you live.
Research has found Warwickshire was among the top areas of the UK for people continuing to work from home following the pandemic.
The working from home revolution that began at the height of Covid has had a lasting impact on people’s working habits according to a Coventry and Warwickshire business leader.
Research by St Andrews University, which has been supported by the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce’s head of policy Sean Rose, highlights statistics from the ONS’s Census 2021 on the proportion of people working from home.
Nationally, around one third of people were working from home at the time of the census and the areas with the biggest proportion were in London.
But research shows Warwick district was in the top ten per cent – with 44.7 per cent of workers basing themselves at home. In some areas of Leamington, that rose to more than 50 per cent.
But in Rugby borough there were considerable differences between individual wards, with some revealing under 20 per cent working from home, yet the likes of Dunton, Stretton-on-Dunsmore and Marton were all over 40 per cent.
Dr David McCollum, at the University of St Andrews, said home workers could provide an economic boost to an area.
“Remote workers tend to be highly qualified and concentrated in thriving and well-paid sectors. Attracting and retaining these kinds of professionals can boost the demographic balance and socio-economic profile of areas and stimulate economic regional growth.
“More people spending more of their time in their local area can also have positive impacts on the vibrancy and cohesion of local places.”
Mr Rose said the change in working habits had brought both challenges and opportunities.
“While the data has been taken from a census in March 2021, there is no doubt that Covid has changed working patterns forever and it is interesting to see which parts of the region have been affected most.
“At the time, there were still some Covid restrictions in place so the numbers might be skewed slightly but there is absolutely no doubt that for many businesses and many individuals that working from home is here to stay.
“There’s also a wider impact on the economy. It has seen the creation of new co-working spaces and more ‘cafe’ workers and while it has brought new challenges for businesses, it also presents new opportunities too.”
