The cost of living crisis is starting to bite, and energy bills are hitting us the hardest. The government may have announced a £2,500 energy cap, but that’s still over 100% higher than last year. We’re all having to adapt to higher bills as the new normal. As energy bills are rocketing, will we see a return to the warmth of the office this winter?

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered working patterns for many of us. Recent Government statistics show that 38% of us work at home at some point during the week. But that doesn’t tell the whole story. Travelling to a single place of work has been restored as the most common working pattern since May 2022.

The rise of hybrid working suggests that employers are giving employees the choice to work either at home or in the office. That allows employees to work flexibly, deciding whether to heat homes and pay to power devices or head back to the office.

Weighing up the pros and cons

For many of us, flexible working has freed us from the costly commute – saving us on average £300 per year and an estimated hour every day. But with energy bills doubling in recent months, we need to look again at the calculations.

When working at home, we must pay to heat our homes and power our devices. Experts suggest this could help us, on average, an additional £131 per month. Of course, we could stick on an extra jumper or cuddle up to the dog or cat, but the bottom line is that it will cost us all more to work at home.

So, should we all head back to the office? Unfortunately, it’s not quite that simple. Rail prices are rising, and while fuel prices have stabilised, they’re still almost 40% higher than in 2021.

If we look solely at the figures, both sides have pros and cons. But the benefits of working in an office aren’t just counted in terms of costs. Working in an office can significantly impact our ability to collaborate and feel like a team.

Creating connections

Working at home has been hard for some of us. Almost a third of those surveyed by the Royal Society for Public Health (19%) felt that working at home was worse for their health and wellbeing. We’re not suggesting that working from home is bad for everyone’s mental health, but some staff can struggle – and additional pressures on finances could increase these worries. On the flip-side, some staff may experience anxieties about returning to work.

In light of this, what can businesses do? During what could be a brutal winter, employers must ensure that offices are warm and welcoming places. Creating positive spaces where we can meet, communicate, and collaborate is essential. We know that when we’re physically close, we can make stronger connections with others, and it’s highly likely we’ll need this extra support.

Mental health charity MIND has some great resources employers can use to create a positive and supportive environment at work.

Here at Holman, we continue to invest in ensuring our office locations are great places to work at any time of the year.

If they need a little extra support, our mental health champions are there to provide it. Part of our ongoing success is about recognising and rewarding great performance, which we do through our Partners in Excellence programme.

Holman benefits from industry-leading levels of staff engagement and satisfaction because whether staff work in the office or at home; they’re made to feel part of the family.