Overview

• A new ESRC-funded study shows hybrid work has not driven significant relocation of high-skilled professionals to less affluent UK regions.
• Over half of UK workers never work from home, and only 29% of high-skilled workers have fully remote roles, limiting flexibility to move away from cities.
• Hybrid work patterns, which tether workers to offices part-time, dominate among professionals, reinforcing urban concentration.
• The research warns that without investments in transport, broadband, housing, and local infrastructure, hybrid work risks deepening regional divides.
• Policymakers are urged to create remote work hubs and co-working spaces in second-tier cities to distribute economic activity more evenly.