LONDON (REUTERS) - People in Britain continued to gradually return to their workplaces in late August, something that Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants to speed up in September to help the economy recover from its historic coronavirus slump.

Fifty-seven per cent of working adults travelled to work between Aug 26 and Aug 30, up from 55 per cent two weeks earlier and 33 per cent in May, the country's statistics office said on Thursday (Sept 3).

Those working exclusively from home slipped to 20 per cent from 22 per cent, the Office for National Statistics said. That figure stood at nearly 40 per cent in June.

Mr Johnson has urged more people to get back to their workplaces as schools across Britain reopen after the summer holidays.

Last week, one of the country's business leaders said that big urban centres looked like ghost towns, putting at risk swathes of companies which cater to commuter workers.

The Office for National Statistics said footfall in retail areas hit more than 75 per cent of its level a year earlier in the week starting Aug 24, largely driven by people returning to high streets.

Counts of cars, pedestrians and cyclists in London and the north east of England returned to around pre-lockdown levels.

However, there was a reminder that Britain is facing higher unemployment as the government winds down its job retention scheme - online job adverts remained around 55 per cent of their 2019 average for a fourth consecutive week, the Office for National Statistics said.

Separately, a survey published by the Bank of England showed companies expect the hit to sales and employment from the pandemic to last well into next year.

The Decision Maker Panel survey, conducted between Aug 7 and Aug 21, also found that the share of employees on furlough fell to 12 per cent in August from 18 per cent in July and a peak of 36 per cent in April.