Business

Hybrid working still the norm - but Belfast 'has its buzz back' says survey

The conversion of the old Debenhams at CastleCourt into a new cinema and leisure complex has been a boon for Belfast city centre
The conversion of the old Debenhams at CastleCourt into a new cinema and leisure complex has been a boon for Belfast city centre The conversion of the old Debenhams at CastleCourt into a new cinema and leisure complex has been a boon for Belfast city centre

HYBRID working is the 'new normal' for Belfast, a pattern now firmly established for three quarters of those with a job in the city, a new survey shows.

Exactly three years on from the first Covid lockdown - which brought with it stark images of desolate empty streets in towns and cities across the UK - the revolution in working life is now embedded.

But despite the death of the traditional nine to five day, the capital “has got its buzz and energy back” according to a Return to the Workplace survey from Belfast Chamber, which gauged the views of 394 workers in the city (those in the technology, professional/legal services and banking/finance sectors made up 65 per cent of the respondents).

Conducted between January 30 and February 10, it found that the average Belfast office-based worker is at his or her desk three days a week, most likely Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Just over half of workers (54 per cent) are in the office on a Monday and little over a third (34 per cent) on a Friday, with Wednesday the most popular day to be in the office.

Some 17 per cent said they currently work in the office all of the time, while 9 per cent are still permanently working from home.

Simon Hamilton: Much of Belfast's buzz and energy is backOpens in new window ]

Both employers and employees are embracing this new way of working, with 90 per cent of respondents satisfied with the arrangements their employer has put in place.

But according to the Chamber, the summary of responses poses profound questions for the future of Belfast city centre that will have to be addressed if it is to continue as the engine room for the overall economy of the north.

While the average Belfast office-based worker is at his or her desk three days a week, most likely Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, some 9 per cent are still permanently working from home according to a Chamber survey
While the average Belfast office-based worker is at his or her desk three days a week, most likely Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, some 9 per cent are still permanently working from home according to a Chamber survey While the average Belfast office-based worker is at his or her desk three days a week, most likely Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, some 9 per cent are still permanently working from home according to a Chamber survey

Writing in today's Business Insight (p26), Chamber chief executive Simon Hamilton says: “Whilst there are more office-based workers at their desks than there were a year ago, new working patterns have emerged which will, inevitably, impact on the wider Belfast economy.”

He added: “Offices are being reinvented for a range of different purposes and not solely for work, and city centres like Belfast need to be redesigned completely to become more mixed-use, residential, artisanal and flexible in its use of space - exactly the sort of shared vision we have developed over recent years.

“There is a broad consensus that we need our city to become a much more people centred place - somewhere that a mix of students, young professionals and families call home; somewhere that is easy to walk and cycle around; somewhere has more open and green space, and where we can make the most of our unique retail, hospitality and cultural offering that is so crucial to attracting and retaining the talent our economy needs.

“In short, Belfast must become somewhere people want to be - not somewhere people feel they have to be.”

The conversion of the old Debenhams at CastleCourt into a new cinema and leisure complex has been a boon for Belfast city centre
The conversion of the old Debenhams at CastleCourt into a new cinema and leisure complex has been a boon for Belfast city centre The conversion of the old Debenhams at CastleCourt into a new cinema and leisure complex has been a boon for Belfast city centre

The Chamber survey showed that a clear majority of respondents (73 per cent) rate positive levels of satisfaction with the city centre's retail, hospitality and cultural offer, with shops and lunchtime in cafes and restaurants remaining popular.

And despite the cost of living crisis, more than half (52 per cent) are using shops and services the same or more than during the pandemic.

Mr Hamilton adds: “It is pretty apparent the city’s future success will depend on its ability to attract new and different people to use our shops, cafes, bars and restaurants. That will still include office workers, but it will also be made up of students, tourists and people from our own city and across the region.

“The city is already addressing this new dynamic with the conversion of the old Debenhams at CastleCourt into a new cinema and leisure complex. While that's great, Belfast has to speed up its evolution.

According to separate data released by the Office for National Statistics, between September 2022 and January this year, 16 per cent of the UK workforce still worked solely from home, while 28 per cent were hybrid workers who split their time between home and the office.