MINISTERS and business leaders are meeting at the start of May to discuss the progress of the first year of the Work Wise initiative to promote flexible working practices.

A group will discuss the results at the QEII Conference Centre, London, at an event coinciding with National Work Wise Week from May 16-22.

The remainder of the week will include regional events focusing on the impacts of smarter working on the environment, transport, staff welfare and employers. There will also be a National Work from Home Day on Friday, May 18.

A Work Wise spokesman said: ‘Work Wise UK is a national not-for-profit initiative to promote smarter working practices such as flexible, remote and mobile working, and working from home. The objective is for half the working population – 14 million workers – to have had the opportunity to work smarter by 2011.’