A scheme in the North East of England designed to boost the number of work from home jobs in the area has been extended.
The Home Working Fund was launched in 2009 and received around £800,000 in funding from One North East and the Department for Business Innovation and Skills. So far the scheme has created 285 new jobs in the area by offering companies up to £3,000 towards the provision of training and equipment of homeworkers.
ID Training and ID Support, a North East business that provides training and care services in the area, has around 15 homeworkers out of its staff of 180.
The company's director Gordon Quince told local paper The Journal that allowing people to work from home has been beneficial to employees and the business itself: “For us, it has increased staff morale and productivity. For the employees, it has allowed them to manage their work/life balance, especially employees with younger children, and enables them to work in a quieter environment.”
Allowing employees to work from home at least on occasion has been recognised as an effective means of lowering sick days and increasingly productivity. 
