Only a small fraction of UK businesses offer any break-out areas or facilities in which their employees can seek inspiration, a survey by serviced office provider MWB Business Exchange and YouGov has discovered.

It found that only 6% of those questioned said that their company had any such areas in their office, while 21% of respondents identified availability of break-out areas as a key factor in influencing their choice of employer.

The majority of those who said that such areas were key factors when it comes to choosing prospective employers were in the younger age brackets of 18-24 and 25-34.

John Spencer, chief executive of MWB Exchange, says: “These figures show that break-out areas are crucial and that not enough offices are dedicating space in which employees can seek inspiration and brainstorm ideas, effectively hindering the creativity and effectiveness of staff and with that, the business in its entirety.

“The lack of such areas is also potentially preventing companies from attracting the cream of young talent, especially when younger jobseekers place such an onus on whether businesses have break-out areas or not.”