THE rise of a new wave of cottage industry has emerged in a survey which shows the extent of home working in North Yorkshire.

The new report says the county has the second largest regional proportion of people working from home in England.

In total those who "live above the shop" accounted for 12.2 per cent of the population in both North Yorkshire and Somerset, while Cornwall and the Isle of Scilly lead the field with 14 per cent.

The figures were revealed in a national study into modes of transport used by people to get to work, compiled by NOMIS, a web-based database of labour market statistics at Durham University, for the GMB union.

Using the 2001 census, the study showed 44,011 of the area's workers named their home as their place of work - a staggering 52.2 per cent increase on the figures recorded in the census of 1991.

Nationally, more than two million workers in England were shown to be working from home, which means the figures have doubled in the last ten years.

The jump can be attributed to the use of new technology, such as laptop computers, email and mobile phones.

Chief executive of York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce, Len Cruddas, said: "I am not at all surprised, because technology often means the place of work has no bearing on the business operation.

"There are people who have to work at home because of their own particular circumstances and it's great that option is open to them.

"Today one of our own members of staff is working from home due to family commitments. The technology available makes this possible."

Andy Wallhead, head of North Yorkshire for Yorkshire Forward, said: "The region is well known for its high proportion of entrepreneurs and new business owners, where home-working is often an ideal solution, especially with lifestyle-orientated businesses. Rural economies stand to benefit if residents are spending more time at home, rather than commuting into towns and cities.

"All of which helps to achieve our goal to create a strong and stable economy for the people of North Yorkshire."

Meanwhile, Paul Kenny, GMB senior official, said: "Those who predicted that new technology would lead to an increase in the number of people working mainly at or from home were right. Many of those workers are already union members."

Updated: 08:55 Thursday, April 03, 2003