Home and remote working

Last updated: 02 Oct 2026

This article includes advice for members on the range of things to consider when moving to homeworking, whether that move is temporary or more permanent. You will need to think about a range of things, from how it impacts your wellbeing and caring responsibilities, to tax, insurance and performance management.

For more information on this topic, members can download our full guide to homeworking.

What to consider when moving to homeworking

If you are an office-based employee, your pay, annual leave, sick leave, pension, hours of work, staff appraisal and all other contractual arrangements should remain unchanged when moving to homebased working.

If you are starting a new role that involves homeworking, your terms and conditions should be the same as those your colleagues enjoy, regardless of whether they are also homeworkers or are office-based.

Employees tend to differentiate between contractual and occasional homeworking.

If you are a designated homeworker, a contractual variation specifying your position as a homeworker is likely to give you additional protections. It is also likely that the nature of your homeworking arrangement needs to be spelled out.

Employers should produce clear homeworking policies and regularly monitor their effectiveness, in consultation with union representatives.

Some of the issues to be considered in a homeworking agreement are:

  • flexible working
  • homeworking designated by your employer
  • the money the employer saves if you work from home
  • contributing to utility costs
  • provision of office equipment
  • ensuring career development plans remain in place
  • maintaining contact with your line manager and team
  • duration of homeworking
  • data protection.

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Getting the best from homeworking

The enforced period of lockdown meant that many of us experienced working from home for the first time in our working careers.

Although not planned, many have surprised themselves how well they have coped with the transition from office to home. But for others it has been a much more challenging experience.

Juggling caring responsibilities and work commitments means home has become inseparable from work leaving some feeling stressed and unsupported. Even for those who are happy working from home, the experience can lead to unsettled sleep patterns or cause aches and pains from working in cramped spaces.  

Many employers have noticed that homeworking has created new opportunities saving costs by reducing the size of their office footprint.

What are the most important issues you should look out if for your employer suggests a shift towards homeworking? 

  • Homeworking should be voluntary –  If you were working in an office before the lockdown and your employer has decided to make a current home working arrangement permanent, your employer should seek your agreement. If there are particular difficulties for individuals working from home, or you do not wish to make this change, you should talk to your employer. Where an agreement is not possible and your employer insists on a change to your work location you will need to seek advice from the union, as your rights will depend on your contract and personal circumstances. 
  • One size does not always fit all – Lockdown has allowed everyone to broaden their horizons about what work can be done remotely. It shows that homeworking can work just as well as office-based roles in some cases, but not all work is the same. Some jobs can only be done safely in a secure office others will need to be closely supervised. But even in jobs where remote working is a good fit, work routines and team dynamics will vary. New employees will find it more difficult to integrate with their work colleagues and those picking up new tasks may benefit from informal mentoring and advice in a shared office space. So there will always need to be a mix. Finding the right balance is something that you need to discuss with your employer if this is a step you are considering. 
  • Remote working can be unfair for women – While the flexibility of remote working can be attractive to many, it can also reinforce divisions in the home. Research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies during the pandemic found that women were more likely to take on the burden of additional caring responsibilities. There is also a risk that the best opportunities for progression and promotion will go to those who are office-based. This means that equality considerations should be right at the top flexible working arrangements. Any changes should be closely monitored to ensure that those who are working from home do not miss out. 
  • You need a safe home office environment – An office creates a space where the employer can regulate office security and is able to ensure that good health and safety practice is applied. Although the employer is still responsible for your welfare when you work from home many of these responsibilities are shift to the homeworker. You can safeguard your positon by designating an office space in your home. This should be an area where you can work without being disturbed, can take part in private business calls and ensure that sensitive material is not seen by others in your household. If this kind of space is not available then homeworking is probably not going to be the best choice in the long run. 
  • Line management support – Many roles do not require direct supervision but there is still a need for management direction. The conversation with your line manager should be an opportunity to get meaningful support and direction. Working out the best arrangement to have regular catch ups will help to build up a good working relationship. This is particularly the case when setting work objectives. Make sure these are clear, relevant and achievable. 
  • The employer should provide you with the equipment you need – As a minimum you will need IT equipment that is connected to secure your work systems, an office table and chair and any office stationery. Temporary measures taken during lockdown will need to be compared with what you would normally expect in your office. Some employer support is allowable, but remember some essentials, such as a good broadband connection, are not tax free. 
  • Make sure you have the right to disconnect – The rise of e-presenteeism brought on by the pandemic has left workers vulnerable to an overwhelming feeling of burnout. As commuting time turns into more work time, it can be difficult to stick to your core work hours. Remote working can feel like it is a never-ending stream of Zoom meetings. Any agreement to work from home should be accompanied by the right to switch off work devices at specified times and core hours for the organisation of meetings. 
  • A right to privacy – Working from home can blur the divisions between home and work. Your employer has the right to expect you to comply with procedures that protect data, but in return workplace monitoring should be proportionate, transparent and clearly set out in data privacy policies. 
  • Keeping in touch with office colleagues – Working from home has many benefits but it can also leave you feeling isolated. Scheduling regular catch ups with your colleagues is a good idea even if you can only do this remotely at the moment. If your homeworking arrangement becomes important then you will need to schedule regular face to face meetings with your work colleagues. 
  • Get a share of the benefits from homeworking – If remote working can be made to work within your organisation it can generate some tangible benefits. For the homeworker, less downtime travelling to work, more flexibility over work hours and a dedicated home space. The employer can make savings on the costs associated with running an office and the employer may want to cut some employee benefits. Make sure you are not short changed. If the employer wants more employees to work from home they will need to seek an agreement with the union.  

Prospect makes sure you have access to independent and expert advice on issues like this and many others – so that you can get the best out of work. 

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Work-life balance and the right to disconnect while working from home

Home working raises new issues around the increasing use by employers of new technology and software to communicate with and manage their workforce, and the implications of this for work-life balance, privacy, accountability, and fairness.

There is increasing evidence that some workers struggle to maintain a fair and healthy work-life balance in the face of new communications technologies.

Always on working cultures of checking emails and taking calls away from work have become widespread in many companies and industries. Some people may be happy to work like this, but if expectations are not managed fairly it can pose serious issues for equalities and diversity, work-related stress, morale and productivity.

These issues can be made more acute by a shift towards increased home working. There can be important benefits for many workers from increased flexibility about where they work; but for some it can make it even harder for workers to maintain boundaries between work and the rest of their lives

Prospect is encouraging employers to learn from best practice in the UK and overseas, which can mean agreeing fair ground rules with their employees about when they can be expected to take calls, read emails, join online meetings or engage with work in other ways outside their normal contracted hours.

Employers are increasingly turning to new technologies and data analysis techniques in how they manage and reward their employees. This can include:

  • surveillance technologies from keystroke monitoring to CCTV, sensors, and voice recorders
  • using data obtained through such technologies along with other personal data and performance metrics to inform decisions around pay, promotion, work allocation etc
  • relying on algorithms or AI programmes to analyse this and other data to profile employees and shape decisions around their work, management, pay or promotion.

The issues these technologies and practices raise around privacy, accountability and fairness can be even starker for home workers.

Remember, employees have rights under the GDPR to know what data employers are gathering or storing on them and how it is being used.

Find out more about the right to disconnect and read our guide

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Performance management and homeworking

The switch towards remote working has raised some questions about how performance is managed remotely and the typical tools used to assess performance may not work as well when access to offices is limited.

Here are some tips to follow to ensure performance management works when homeworking:

  • Have regular conversations with your line manager – ensure these are via video or phone call, where possible, rather than over email.
  • Agree work objectives that are measurable so you can show work is being progressed.
  • Don’t become isolated: take an active part in team meetings.
  • Record your achievements so you have them available to point to.
  • Keep a record of any changes in objectives.
  • Raise any concerns that may be affecting your performance and agree a solution
  • Guard against unconscious bias – contact Prospect if you feel you are being treated unfairly based on:
    • age
    • gender
    • caring responsibilities
    • being married or in a civil partnership
    • being pregnant or on maternity leave
    • disability
    • race, colour or nationality
    • religion
    • sexual orientation.

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Caring responsibilities and homeworking

The separation between work and caring responsibilities has been more difficult for many of us to manage since the start of the pandemic.

Some staff may now have additional caring demands, so line managers must be made aware of any changes. If your organisation has a formal process for Prospect recording care plans, then this should be kept up to date.

If there is no formal process, speak to your line manager and follow this up with an email to record any arrangements agreed.

If there is an emergency, speak to your line manager about any difficulties you may be experiencing, particularly if this means that you are likely to be unavailable for periods of time during normal working hours.

Find out more about requesting flexible working

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Working from home with children

More people than ever are balancing working from home with caring for children.

Currently there is no government guidance for this situation that many parents are experiencing, but after consultation with members in this position we have collected some anecdotal advice on strategies worth trying:

  • Be realistic about what you can achieve – both with yourself and your employer
  • Communicate clearly with the children you are caring for so they understand when you’re working and not as available
  • Plan a fun activity to do each day and build your work plan around this
  • Stay positive – try to keep things in perspective and keep a sense of humour!
  • Don’t compare yourself with others
  • Have a planned routine for each day and the week that everyone follows
  • Get as much sleep as you can – you need to take care of yourself to take care of others
  • Honesty is the best policy – if your best laid plans have been unavoidably changed by childcare be honest with your team and manager and reshift the deadline.

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Mental health, wellbeing and home working

It is often said that working from home can help us keep our work-life balance in equilibrium, and support our mental health. While this is true, it can have its downsides, potentially introducing new sources of stress as it reduces or removes others. This is especially the case if home working arrangements are poorly designed and implemented.

Whether you work from home or on site, your employer has the same obligations to ensure that, as far as possible, you aren’t exposed to issues arising from work that will cause stress and mental health problems.

Health and safety law only considers risks caused by or arising out of work. Pressure can come from a range of sources, including our personal lives. Some of the pressures we experience when working at home will arise from the conflict between our work commitments and our home commitments. If you have become a home worker in response to pandemic, your home life will have changed too. All this will mean that individuals’ overall ability or capacity to cope with additional work pressures is reduced.

Some of the factors that can cause stress for a home worker are well known, such as the support you receive from colleagues and your employer, but there are others that may not be so obvious.

See our top tips for looking after mental health while working from home

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Health and safety and homeworking

Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HSWA), employers have a duty to protect the health, safety and welfare of their employees, including homeworkers.

With very few exceptions most of the regulations made under the HSWA apply to homeworkers as well as to employees at an employer’s workplace.

The same health and safety law and standards apply to homeworking as they do to office working.

Although employers are not required to maintain homeworking spaces, if they require an employee to work from home they do have a responsibility to ensure that the working space is adequate.

Any accidents or injuries sustained while working from home should be reported to your safety representative in the same way as they would be if they occurred in the office.

Employers should consult with safety representatives if they are planning to introduce any measures that affect the health and safety of employees.

Risk assessment

Before a homeworker is appointed, employers must define the activities to be carried out and assess any risks to the homeworker.

You should insist that a risk assessment is carried out if you are already working from home and, as far as you are aware, a risk assessment has yet to be completed.

Employers need to take five steps to make sure that a proper risk assessment is done:

  • identify any hazards
  • decide who might be harmed and how
  • assess the risks and take appropriate action to remove them or reduce them as far as possible
  • record the findings – check the risks from time to time and take further steps if required.

The major points to consider when setting up the homework area are:

  • equipment must meet basic standards and be properly installed
  • workstations must be adjusted to a comfortable position, with the keyboard in the correct position
  • computer/laptop screens should be free from glare and reflections
  • chairs should be adjustable to suit the user
  • lighting should be adequate
  • the workspace should not be cramped
  • storage for reference material, files and paperwork should be adequate.

If homeworkers use electrical equipment provided by the employer, the employer is responsible for its maintenance, but employers are only responsible for the equipment they supply.

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Equalities and working from home

Employers must continue to take account of the Equality Act 2010 when staff are working from home. Those with protected characteristics are often treated unfairly, and have been harder hit by the health and economic impacts of the pandemic.

Disability discrimination

The government has extended the Access to Work scheme to provide more financial support to disabled people working from home during the pandemic.

The employer may have additional duties to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act – for example, by ensuring the employee has the ability to continue working from home, adjusting hours, or changing duties. It would be unlawful discrimination if employers were to try and avoid their responsibilities to provide reasonable adjustments by targeting disabled workers for furlough or redundancy.

Sex discrimination

Women were already taking on the majority of domestic care, whether for children or elderly dependants but now there are additional pressures to do so, such as homeschooling, less help from friends and family and reduced childcare services. According to the TUC, 90% of working mothers have said that they have taken on more childcare responsibilities since the pandemic began.

Read more: Prospect members’ tips for working from home with children.

Race discrimination

According to a TUC survey, BAME people working from home have reported that they are not receiving the support they need and that they are facing higher levels of surveillance and scrutiny.

Others have reported that they’ve been asked to do more work than would have been expected in the office.

It is therefore very important that employers are reminded to continue equalities monitoring across the whole employment process, including home or remote working, and address the inequalities faced by BAME workers.

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Insurance and tax considerations around homeworking

Working from home can have an impact on your tax situation and insurance policies, so it’s worth checking if you need to amend any of these. It may also have an impact on your mortgage or rental agreements.

Insurance

Anyone working from home should check their insurance policy. Traditional household contents insurance often excludes equipment used for commercial purposes, for example.

You must therefore ensure that your employer’s own insurance covers the equipment they have provided.

It is also wise to ensure that building insurance will continue to be valid. Insurers may believe there is a greater fire risk because more electrical equipment is installed and/or that these items make the home a more attractive target for burglars.

Council tax

The part of your property used for work may be liable to business rates, depending on:

  • the extent of homeworking
  • if any modifications have been made to facilitate homeworking.

The remainder of the property will continue to be liable to council tax (although an alteration may be made to its banding).

If any increased charges are made as a result of the Valuation Office Agency believing that business rates do apply, they should be met by the employer.

Mortgages, rental agreements and leasehold details

You should check your mortgage, rental agreement or leasehold details to ensure that homeworking does not in any way affect your security of tenure or any other related matter. Some mortgages, rental agreements and leases have covenants that may be affected by homeworking. In most cases there may just be a notification requirement.

Homeworking allowance and tax relief

If you are working from home while remaining in paid full-time employment, your employer may pay you a tax-free allowance towards your additional household expenses.

Currently, HMRC allows employers to make a payment of £6 a week towards such costs without keeping records. Employers may pay more than this where you can provide proof of payment.

If your employer does not pay this amount, you cannot claim it directly from HMRC, however you may be able to claim tax relief.

More information on making claims for expenses for homeworking is available from HMRC.

You may, however, be able to claim these expenses directly from HMRC if you are not in regular paid employment (for example, if you are self-employed).

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Get support as a member

Speak with your representatives: 
If you work in an organisation that has local Prospect representatives, you should speak to them about any work-related issues.

Call the member contact centre on 0300 600 1878 or email [email protected]

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