Latest Office Occupancy Data Shows Highest Figure in 2022 So Far

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• Latest Office Occupancy Data Shows Highest Figure in 2022 So Far

15 September 2022

Data shows average office occupancy rates across London on Thursday 1 September were 42 per cent, one of the highest figures in 2022. Are soaring domestic energy bills to blame?

The latest occupancy data from The Freespace Index may suggest that workers are heading back to their offices to save on utility bills. Ofgem’s energy price cap will increase to £3,549 per year for dual fuel for an average household from 1 October 2022.  

How Much Does Home Working Actually Affect Energy Bills?

According to research conducted by SEFE Energy UK, a PC left on standby costs on average, £9.74 annually to power, as it still uses energy despite lying dormant. This is also the case for laptops – £4.87, additional PC monitors – £0.70, televisions – £16.24, printers/scanners – £6.50, stereo systems – £4.87, smart speakers – £3.25, DAB radios – £3.25, and mobile phone/tablet chargers – £0.32.

A Channel 4 Factcheck investigation estimated that working from home full-time would add about £50 a month to energy bills between October and December, despite other news outlets claiming that extra bills would run into the hundreds. In comparison to the cost of commuting to work, employees may still be better off.

Friday Still the Quietest Office Day

The average office occupancy across London on Thursday 1 September was 42 per cent, compared to 33 per cent the previous Thursday (25 August).

The Freespace Index data, which uses information from over 140,000 sensors worldwide, still indicates that Fridays remain quiet in UK offices. The average UK office occupancy on Friday 26 August was 10 per cent and Friday 2 September was 14 per cent.

Picture: a photograph of a person making a cup of instant coffee. Image Credit: Pexels

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 15 September 2022

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