New index reveals Harrogate in Yorkshire is the UK’s best place to work from home, with superfast broadband, good schools, low crime rates, and acres of green space on its doorstep[1]
Bath and the Mendip area of Somerset sit second and third in Uswitch’s Remote Working Index[1], which ranks the UK’s biggest towns and cities on seven metrics, including crime rate, green spaces and number of local GPs
With a fifth (19%) of workers wanting to work from home more often[2], broadband speed is considered the most important factor by a third (34%) of people moving to a new area[3]
Almost one in five (17%) have already moved or want to move due to remote working[4]
Derry, Northern Ireland, comes fourth on the index, Edinburgh, Scotland, is ninth, and Swansea, Wales, is the tenth best place to work from home[1]
The UK’s biggest cities fare poorly, with Birmingham in 82nd place, London 88th, and Manchester ranking 100th[1].
As millions dream of leaving the UK’s cities due to changing working patterns, Harrogate in Yorkshire has emerged as the best place to work from home, according to research by Uswitch.com, the comparison and switching service.
With its superfast 60Mbps broadband, huge amounts of green space in the area, low crime rates and good schools, the Yorkshire spa town tops the list as the UK’s ideal remote working location[1].
Bath and the Mendip area of Somerset — which includes England’s smallest city, Wells — come second and third in the Uswitch Remote Working Index, which ranks the desirability of the UK’s 100 biggest towns and cities based on broadband speed, green spaces, air quality, crime rates, quality of schools, and GPs per 100,000 people.
The top three are followed by Derry City and Strabane, Wigan, Cheshire, St Albans, York, Edinburgh and Swansea[1]. Swansea scores highly due to fast broadband and extensive nearby green spaces including The Gower peninsula.
In comparison, the UK’s biggest cities rank poorly on the Index, with Birmingham 82nd, London in 88th place, and Manchester ranked 100th[1].
When choosing a new place to live, half of people (53%) said house prices were most important, followed by green spaces (45%), crime rates (43%), broadband speeds (34%), air quality (28%), local GP numbers (20%) and the quality of local schools (16%)[3].
A fifth of people (19%) want to spend more time working from home once the pandemic is over, and one in six employees (16%) want to work from home full time when life returns to normal[2].
The proportion of people hoping to spend three or more days working from home each week is expected to double from less than one in five (17%) to more than a third (35%)[5].
Almost a fifth of people (17%) say they have already moved or want to relocate due to the benefits of working from home[4]. People generally want to move from cities and larger towns to smaller towns and villages. One in four (23%) currently live in a city of more than 500,000 residents, but only one in nine (13%) wish to do so in the future[5]. Conversely, the proportion who live in a village is only 15%, but rises to three in ten (30%) who would like to do so[6].
Adelana Carty, broadband expert at Uswitch.com, comments: “The pandemic has turned our working routines upside down and given many of us a taste for what our lives could be like if we worked from home on a more permanent basis. Unsurprisingly, this has resulted in millions of people dreaming of ditching the rat race and moving away from the big city.
“Our Remote Working Index reveals some of the country’s best places to work remotely and Harrogate comes top thanks to its superfast broadband, huge amount of green spaces, good schools and great doctor numbers.
“With the likes of Derry and Wigan so high up the list, it shows how different our priorities are once we are liberated from having to worry about the length of our commute.
“After house prices, the amount of green space in the area is the biggest priority for people hoping to work from home, and places like Swansea look hugely appealing when you think of the gorgeous Gower peninsula on its doorstep.
“If you’re moving to a new area to work remotely, the speed and reliability of your broadband connection could be one of the most important things about your new location.
“Do your research and run a comparison online to see what speeds you could get before you commit to the move.”
Find out how you could save nearly £1,000 a year with Uswitch here.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Rory Stoves
Phone: 020 3872 5613
Email: rory.stoves@uswitch.com
Twitter: @UswitchPR
Notes to editors:
1. Uswitch’s Remote Working Index ranks 106 of the UK’s biggest town and cities by seven metrics. Each of its ranks in these seven categories is then weighted according to how survey respondents valued them: 45% said green spaces, 43% said crime rates, 34% said broadband speeds, 28% said air quality, 20% said ‘the amount of local doctors’, 16% ‘the quality of local schools’. Calibrating these to 100%: makes 24% green spaces, 23% crime rates, 18% said broadband speeds, 15% said air quality, 11% said ‘the amount of local doctors’, 9% said ‘the quality of local schools’. Data sources: Broadband speeds: Ofcom Connected Nations 2019; House prices Zoopla, Green spaces: UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology: Corine land cover, and Ordnance Survey: OS Open Greenspace; Crime rate: Data.Police.UK and Scottish Government: Recorded crime in Scotland 2018-2019; Air quality: Defra: Modelled background pollution data; Local doctors: NHS Digital: General Practice Workforce, Public Health Scotland: General Practice data tables; Welsh Government: GPs in Wales. Local schools: Gov.uk: All schools and colleges in England, Welsh Government: Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation. Number of coffee shops: Yell.
2. Opinium surveyed 2,003 UK adults from 9th to 12rd October 2020. Results were weighted to reflect a nationally representative criteria. Respondents were asked ‘Before coronavirus, in a typical week how many days a week did you work from home and from the office?’ 41% worked from home. Respondents were asked ‘Once coronavirus is over, how many days a week would you ideally work from each of the following?’ 60% replied ‘Work from home’. 60% - 41% = 19%.
3. Respondents were asked ‘Which, if any, of the following would be most important to you when looking to move to a different area? 53% said house prices, 45% said green spaces, 43% said crime rates, 34% said broadband speeds, 28% said air quality, 20% said ‘the amount of local doctors’, 16% ‘the quality of local schools’.
4. Respondents were asked ‘Which, if any, of the following statements apply to you in regards to the coronavirus pandemic?’ 8% said ‘If I was told to continue working from home, I would consider moving to a different area’, 6% said ‘I am considering moving from my current home because I no longer need to be close to my place of work’, 5% said ‘I chose to move back in with my / my partner's parents during the coronavirus pandemic’, and 3% said ‘I have already moved from my previous home because I no longer need to be close to my place of work’. 17% of people selected at least one of these options.
5. Respondents were asked ‘Before coronavirus, in a typical week how many days a week did you work from home and from the office?’ 17% said they worked from home at least three days a week. Respondents were asked ‘Once coronavirus is over, how many days a week would you ideally work from each of the following?’ 35% replied they would like to work from home at least three days a week.
6. Respondents were asked ‘Which of the following best describes the area you currently live in, and if you had a choice which type of area would you most like to live in?’ 23% currently live in a large city, while 13% would like to do so in the future. 15% currently live in a village, while 30% would like to do so in the future.
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