The newly-formed House of Lords Select Committee on Home-based Working has launched a Call for Evidence as part of its inquiry considering the effects and future development of remote and hybrid working in the UK.

The Committee invites individuals and organisations to have their say on the challenges and opportunities posed by remote and hybrid working, and the impact on productivity, the economy, and wider society.

Respondents are encouraged to address any or all of the following topics:

Workers and employers

1. What are the challenges and opportunities of remote and hybrid working for workers? To what extent do these vary depending on the worker’s characteristics, such as their job role, gender, race, age, disability, income, educational background, carer/parental status and living situation?
2. What is the impact of remote and hybrid working on individual physical and mental health? How does this impact and the steps taken to manage it compare to traditional site-based work?
3. What are the challenges and opportunities of remote and hybrid working for employers, including concerning recruitment and retention, the potential for collaboration and creativity, management, worker attitudes and expectations, and use of office space?
4. To what extent do the challenges and opportunities of remote and hybrid working vary depending on the nature of the employer, for example its size, sector, organisational capabilities, and geographical location?
5. How can employer and worker needs be balanced within the context of remote and hybrid working, to ensure mutually beneficial employment arrangements?
6. What is your view on why some employers have implemented back-to-office mandates, while others continue to support hybrid or remote working?

Productivity and wider consequences

7. What is the impact of remote and hybrid working on individual, organisational and national productivity and resilience? How can the productivity impact of remote and hybrid working be more accurately measured and defined so that meaningful comparisons can be made between different organisations?
8. What, if anything, is the impact of remote and hybrid working on the UK’s economic growth and international competitiveness?
9. Are there any other wider consequences of remote and hybrid working that you would identify, at the local, regional and national level? In particular, is there an impact on regional disparities within the UK, unemployment, development of skills, habits of socialising, or the environment?

Cross-cutting issues

10. To what extent do the individual, organisational, and wider socioeconomic effects of remote and hybrid working vary depending on whether work is carried out in a fully remote or hybrid manner?
11. What data is available on the prevalence and effects of remote and hybrid working? Are there any gaps in the available data?
12. How do the prevalence and effects of remote and hybrid working in the UK compare internationally? Are there lessons that can be drawn from other countries and is there anything unique about the UK?
13. What is the relationship between the experience of remote and hybrid working at an individual and organisational level and broader societal and economic factors?

Policy recommendations

14. What is the appropriate role for the UK Government in addressing and researching the challenges and opportunities of remote and hybrid working, bearing in mind that they are evolving and impacted by technological change?
15. What, if any, are the key policy and/or legislative changes the UK Government should make in this area? Where remote and hybrid working is appropriate, what can the UK Government do to facilitate good practices in the workplace?
16. To what extent can trends or policies on remote and hybrid working help the Government to address other policy objectives, such as boosting economic growth, tackling regional disparities, encouraging the economically inactive into employment, or net zero?

Commenting on the launch of the Call for Evidence, Baroness Scott, Chair of the Committee, said, “since the pandemic, remote and hybrid working have become increasingly important for large parts of the UK workforce, with around 40% currently estimated to work from home at least some of the time. They have also become a hot topic more recently amid calls in some quarters for workers to return to the office. We are interested in examining the effects of remote and hybrid working including wellbeing and mental health outcomes, productivity levels, and the wider impact on UK economy and society. We will also explore the issues arising for employers and workers, including for management, recruitment, retention and collaboration. The Committee aims to conclude with practicable and deliverable recommendations for the Government to support effective delivery of our new workforce reality, where remote and hybrid working co-exist alongside traditional site-based working”.

The deadline for submissions is 25 April 2025, and the Committee is due to report by 30 November 2025.

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