More than 90% of staff work from home at some local authorities.
Council offices are between a quarter and half as busy as offices in the private sector, according to data gleaned from Freedom of Information requests by The Times.
The failure of local officials to return to their desks has raised concerns about whether council taxpayers are getting value for money with local authorities servicing so much excess desk capacity.
Conservative-run Buckinghamshire County Council, for example, supports nearly 3,000 desk spaces across its buildings but an average of only 340 of its 2,400 office-based staff are coming into work each week.
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Residents fed up with colossal council tax bills and bumper pay rises for staff will no doubt be disappointed to find out they are paying a small fortune to fund these barren buildings.”
