FEWER South Lakeland residents are working from the office than they were before the coronavirus pandemic despite all restrictions coming to an end, figures suggest.

The Institute for the Future of Work research unit said Covid-19 rules led to a rise in homeworking across the UK, and many people are keen to maintain the benefits of working flexibly.

Google uses location data from phones and other personal devices to track trends in people's movement in different areas of their daily lives, including where they work.

The most recent figures show activity in workplaces in South Lakeland in the working week to April 1 was 21% lower than during a five-week baseline period recorded before the coronavirus pandemic.

This was unchanged from the five days to March 25.

The latest Google figures suggest that more South Lakeland workers are in the office than at a similar time last year, when the UK was just emerging from a series of lockdowns.

Between March 22 and 26 2021, activity in workplaces was 37% below the baseline.

And between March 23 and 27 2020 – when the first UK lockdown began – it was 61% below normal levels.