The average UK office occupancy rates hit the highest levels in January since the national lockdown was imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Figures from Remit Consulting, which produces the leading occupancy study, showed it had reached 37.1% in the last week of January, the highest level recorded for five years.
The management consultant began analysing data taken from access control systems in major office buildings around the UK at the end of the national lockdown in May 2021. Last week, 31 January 2025, office occupancy rates reached an average of 37.1% over the five working days, 1.2 percentage points higher than the previous best weekly average of 35.9%, in March 2024 and April 2023.
Since the pandemic, working patterns have been characterised by Mondays and Fridays being the quietest days of the week. Last week’s record-breaking figure was boosted by a particularly high occupancy rate of 33.7% on Monday, January 27. This was the second consecutive Monday when the office occupancy rate topped 33%.
Lorna Landells of Remit Consulting said the latest figures show a continued shift in office attendance patterns.
"While hybrid working remains the norm, the steady increase in office attendance, particularly on traditionally quieter days like Monday, suggests that businesses and employees are finding greater value in in-person collaboration.
“Our ongoing research suggests that this indicates a longer-term adjustment in workplace behaviours as organisations refine their hybrid strategies to balance flexibility with the benefits of face-to-face engagement."
Landells described the upward trend in office occupancy as "certainly encouraging". But she added: "Businesses continue to face the challenge of aligning workspace utilisation with evolving attendance patterns, ensuring they strike the right balance between operational efficiency and employee flexibility.”
There are diverse views in the property sector regarding what constitutes maximum occupancy for offices, with some industry commentators suggesting that, due to holidays, external meetings, staff sickness and other operational issues, offices were only ever 60-80% "full" before the pandemic.
Previous research from the BCO suggested a figure of 60%, while other market practitioners suggest a figure of between 70% and 80% at peak times in the calendar, although this will have varied widely according to individual buildings and businesses.