Whatever the Prime Minister announces on Monday the majority of Dorset Council staff will not return to offices until at least the end of June.

The council had originally said that staff would not be returning until April – but another pandemic wave has changed the situation.

Council chief executive, Matt Prosser, says the majority of the council’s 2,500 office-based staff are continuing to work from home in line with Government guidance

“Under covid-secure guidelines, we can have approximately 600 employees working from an office for some or all of their working week. The number of people working from an office varies from day-to-day and is certainly lower during lockdown.

"Employees will not be substantially returning to our offices before the end of June. With the current lockdown still in place and the government’s restrictions on office spaces likely to remain in place while the vaccine is rolled out, this felt like the right decision. We want to minimise the risk of spreading COVID-19 and make sure we can continue to provide vital services to our residents. We’ll review this in line with any announcements made by the government, as we have done throughout the pandemic.”