Large organisations in the UK are generally more capable of providing their staff with flexible working arrangements than their smaller counterparts, it has been suggested.

According to Phil Flaxton, chief executive of Work Wise UK, large companies such as BT can even provide flexible workers with a home office or equipment including the right sort of chairs and computer screens.

He added: "Small to medium-sized enterprises will obviously find this harder and it’s not really the norm to be able to provide all of this."

Mr Flaxton went on to say that, as firms increasingly realise the long-term cost savings of flexible working arrangements, the practice of kitting staff out at home will increase.

According to a survey conducted by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, over half of the employees questioned (52 per cent) were aware of their right to request flexible working.