United Kingdom Public Servants were working in shrinking office space well before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, a new report has revealed.
Annual figures published by the Government show that by 2019-20, office space had reduced by some 20 per cent in comparison to 2013-14 levels.
These statistics suggest the number of Government employees commuting daily is likely to continue falling.
Most Public Servants have been working from home, some or all of the time, since the pandemic hit the UK in March last year.
Some Ministers are keen for workers to return in large numbers from next month, but have held off from formally instructing their staff to do so.
Now these latest figures suggest that flexible working is likely to stay in place as the State’s office footprint declines.
In 2013-14 the Public Service had 11.3 square metres of space for every full-time equivalent worker, but that figure has fallen every year since.
In 2019-20, the most recent year for which statistics are available, the Government owned or rented 8.9 square metres of office space per employee, a decline of 20 per cent over seven years.
The drive to reduce the amount of commercial real estate used by the Public Service was started as part of the previous Coalition Government’s austerity program, but also fits with an agenda of more flexible working in future after the pandemic proved remote work coulc be done successfully thanks to modern technology.
London, 19 August 2021
