THE economic recession has not dented women’s desire for flexible working arrangements, well ahead of extended maternity pay, according to new research.

A survey of 1,700 women by jobs site WorkingMums.co.uk showed virtually everyone rated flexible working as very important to them.

Although significantly more women had been made redundant over the last year, over three-quarters said they needed flexible jobs.

The women stressed the importance of flexible hours for full time jobs, homeworking, followed by support for childcare.

Extended maternity pay was way down the list of family friendly issues, according to the study.

Many women said they had considered setting up their own business as a way around the flexibility problem.

There were far fewer working mums working full time this year, said the report.

Women were often reluctant to discuss flexible working options before going on maternity leave with nearly half saying they hadn’t had a conversation with their employer about the issue.

Gillian Nissim, founder of WorkingMums.co.uk, said: “The survey shows that flexible working is top of working mums’ agenda and will not go away. It is the key issue that employers must grapple with if they want to retain the kind of skills offered by working mums.

“Employers who want to be prepared for the eventual upturn in the economy would do well to listen to their voices rather than risk losing them to more forward-thinking rivals.”