"I lived in London preCovid. I moved out to a village near Swindon when I was able to work from home, which I have done for nearly six years.  But my boss now requires me back in the office.  I can't afford the travel - what do you advise"

A long item in The Metro that I have quoted for Transport Scholar members only here where I can do so without putting more in public than copyright restrictions might allow.

Original source is https://metro.co.uk/2025/10/27/im-60-000-a-year-cant-afford-commute-work-24522027/ - it is viewable without subscription, but is advert infested in that form; none-members here can read it should they wish.

 
My Dad joined Midland Bank when he left school, and stayed with the same organisation - it became HSBC - until he retired.  He was a brilliant man, though we had some different views, and his career progressed over the years. Starting as a behind-the-scenes bank clerk, out of public view and informed by his managers that he could never be promoted to a customer visible role because of his physical looks. He found promotion to be third man in a little office in London where the very earliest of automated accounting was taking place - "Punch Card Accounting Department" with magnificent old machines with wires feeling out the holes in cards and the job of calculation mechanical, though the wires were driven with solenoids and cards moved with electric motors.  It was a move for the family - from the seaside resort of Ainsdale from where he had commuted to Southport or Liverpool, to Petts Wood in Kent, carefully chosen to be a place to live within, affordable and within a sensible commute from his office - walk to Petts Wood Station (15 minutes), train to Holborn Viaduct (about 40 minutes) and walk to the office (another 5 minutes).

Careers move on. Perhaps it's time for Alex to refactor his role - be it with the same company or a different company.  Or for him to work with his employer to sort out another solution.  Or for him to accept that he's living in a none-susttanable (financially) way and move back to a cheaper locations.

Dad's move was a dramatic one for us - from the seaside to the smog of London - but looking back, my goodness, what a career move - so good for that, and also for Midland Bank / HSBC where the little "Punch Card Accounting" became "Card Services Department" where dad was promoted from 3rd in 11 staff at the department to being the manager of around 120 staff, and seeing the department through from the original machines to an IBM 360/20 and then DEC equipment, and from an accounting role to the office where plastic cards for card machines, and cheque guarantee cards, were encoded.

At about the time he retired, I was moving (for work) to Chippenham, and Mum and Dad moved to Devizes to a new start in life for what - I am delighted to say - turned out to be a very long retirement.  I was concerned at the break from a very much established life in the London 'burbs where, yes, there was a community - but I need not have worried. I read of Alex's concerns - perhaps it's time for him to be brave and restart in something that he'll be happy with by refactoring, even if there is short term pain.  And, yes, I have told Dad's story but I too have moved on from roles which had become ill-fitting as my career developed - hard at the time and on a couple of occasions enforced - but, Alex, you can end up so much more fulfilled over time.

 

I guess I would have advised not to assume that WFH would be a permanent arrangement, so don't make any irrevocable decisions based on it?

Many civil servants are practically having to be dragged back to their desks.

 
Despite improved productivity from many of those WFH........

 

Is that the case though?

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tracybrower/2023/08/06/the-productivity-problem-with-remote-work/

Most online articles seem to suggest the same.

 
Can only speak from talking to our daughter and those on her team who are mostly still WFH (their choice).

 
I find the ... discussion ... about working from home really interesting. I was working for from home than from my office as early as 1980; I visited my office perhaps two or three times a month, worked at home for one or two days a week, and spent the rest of my time with customers on their own sites in the South West.

At subsequent work, as technical director (sound too grand!) of a Computer Aided Design software writer and system seller, we had an office on Station Road, Kingswood and I was in the office perhaps 2 days in the the average week and being our own company, the other 4 days worked (as opposed to 3) were at home - writing and testing code from first light until the midnight candle ran out of wax and spluttered into darkness.  The rest of the team - up to three more technical staff - also did substantial work from home, but we had a rota to ensure the office was manned daily to provide technical support, and we liaised in the office once a week to bring together the work we had done / were doing, and planning ahead too.  Worked a treat; great team that I was immensely proud of.