Merton ranks top for best London borough for flexible working

The Flexible Working index, conducted by Ready Steady Store, has revealed the top cities, towns and London boroughs for flexible working in 2021.

Research found that Merton has the best balance between working from the office and working from home.

This comes after the Minister for Women and Equalities, Liz Truss, called for employers to 'normalise' flexible working.

As people want to be able to work from where they work best, the study looked at the below points for Londoners:

• Life satisfaction score

• Amount of green space within 1,000m radius

• Average rental cost of a two-bed flat

Study

Analysts created a weighted score for all points, which then gave each borough an average score on its benefits for flexible working.

Two-bed flats were considered, as RightMove revealed that there has been an increase in interest for two-bed flats, with people needing extra space for an office.

Haringey and Richmond Upon Thames ranked in the top three.

This was followed by Bromley and Bexley in south east London.

Mehran Chania, CEO of Ready Steady Store commented: “With more and more businesses recruiting from a wider pool and many of us now working much more flexibly, it’s no surprise that people are taking advantage of the affordability of smaller towns and cities.

"What’s interesting to note, however, is that those that topped the list were all located near to major towns or cities.

"This is proof that it’s not just working from home that’s important, but flexibility as a whole – people want to work from anywhere, but also be able to travel into the office easily a few times a week, so it’s important they’re not too far removed from the city.”