Thousands of local people who have been working from home during the coronavirus crisis have been told they are unlikely to be able to return to the office anytime soon. 

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said keeping non-essential offices closed is a “trade off” which helps allow children to attend school.

No date has been given for the reopening of non-essential offices and call centres, with Ms Sturgeon stressing that working from home should remain the “default” position for those able to do so.

However, when asked during a coronavirus briefing whether people should be prepared to continue to work from home until into next year, Ms Sturgeon said: “Working from home remains the default position and I think we have to be prepared for that being for some time.

“It comes down to these trade-offs, there is only so much interaction with each other we can absorb without allowing the virus to run out of control. It’s about how do we allow the things that really matter, like kids in school, to go ahead without overwhelming ourselves to the point where we have to go back to everything being closed down.”