Council’s four-day office rule costs £300,000 as recruits turn down job offers

Alec Doyle, Local Democracy Reporter

A council’s requirement for staff to work in the office four days a week has cost almost £300,000, with some prospective recruits turning down job offers because of the policy.

Wrexham Council has spent £289,492 adapting office spaces to accommodate more staff on-site, according to a review of its hybrid working arrangements.

Despite that spending, employees still report difficulty finding private rooms for confidential calls and online meetings, alongside increased pressure on city centre parking.

The policy, introduced in September 2025 despite opposition from more than 90% of the workforce, will come under scrutiny when councillors consider its first annual review on Thursday.

The council’s Customers, Performance, Resources and Governance Scrutiny Committee will examine whether the changes have delivered their intended benefits.

These included better communication, more training opportunities, stronger working relationships and greater opportunities for teams to solve problems together, with the overall aim of improving services.

However, the review includes no data demonstrating an improvement in service delivery.

It also says the impact on recruitment is difficult to establish because the council introduced a new online recruitment system a month after the policy took effect.

Managers reported seeing more good-quality candidates applying for vacancies, but the review does not say how many were recruited or how many declined offers because of the working arrangements.

“Managers have seen limited impact on hard to recruit roles and some managers noted employment offers have been declined due to the candidate understanding the hybrid policy,” the review states.

“Feedback from new employees shows that colleague presence in the office has helped them be inducted into the team, build relationships with colleagues and able to learn from those around them in the team.”

Staff in city centre services have reported particular difficulties with the return to more frequent office attendance.

“The main services impacted are city-centre based services – Social Care, Finance and ICT, Economy and Planning, Governance and Customer,” the review states.

“The workforce within these areas have shared their reservations with the policy through the employee survey, line manager conversations and the trade unions.

“Employees note that the policy has increased pressures on city centre parking and notes the pressure on finding a meeting room to take confidential calls and online meetings.”

The policy does not apply to all staff. The review reveals that 42 roles, covering 331 employees, have been granted exemptions.

These will be reviewed after either 12 or 18 months to determine whether they should be extended.

Unison

Trade union Unison, which has campaigned against the policy, said the council’s offices could not accommodate the increased attendance.

“The council’s buildings do not have enough space to support near-full-time office attendance,” it said.

“At the same time, permanent desks and team spaces have been removed in favour of hot-desking. Staff are being pushed back into offices that are no longer designed to accommodate them.

“A policy that only functions because it is quietly ignored is not a serious policy. It creates confusion, inefficiency and unnecessary stress, while doing nothing to improve outcomes for the public.”

The committee will consider the report on Thursday, October 1.

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