Closer to home working…. WE are all WORKing

The billion-dollar business WeWork has filed for bankruptcy in the US, but that doesn’t necessarily mean co-working spaces are going out of fashion or are not needed or are not part of the economic growth of the country.

Hybrid working is here to stay with many embedded within communities fostering a unique cluster of self-supporting freelancers, business owners and those just wanting something different from the archetypal office.

The National Enterprise Network, the leading organisation supporting start-up, micro and small businesses, has almost 90,000 sq ft of lettable low-cost co-working and office accommodation across the country.

Almost 60% of businesses in a recent NEN survey have found their business home in one of these dedicated spaces, which are run by locally-based enterprise agencies who also offer business advice and support.

These community-based workplaces deliver a supportive environment where co-workers can collaborate, innovate and access support which is focused on their needs. Most are not-for-profit which keeps the rates affordable, and they provide a full range of services for their clients, often including fully-funded business advice.

The concept of co-working spaces may simply be evolving – to the benefit of High Streets in towns and suburbs – but the increase in these community-based workspaces in the UK over recent years is demonstrating the country’s new focus on work-life balance.

Alex Till, NEN chair, said: “It’s interesting to realise that this trend is more about flexibility of life and our engagement with everything around us. There are attractions both to employers in terms of reducing overheads at corporate offices by paying for their employees to use this spaces as well as to the employees who work closer to home, reduce commuting time and cost and can be nearer to childcare and gym if needed.

“Plus, there is the added bonus of being part of a much more energised and exciting day, engaging with dozens of workers every day on either a hot-desk or fixed-desk basis, with access to meeting rooms and quiet areas.”

NEN members with managed workspace include:

• EDEAL – South East

• Erewash Partnership Limited -East Midlands

• Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce – South East

• Let’s Do Business (South East) Group Limited – South East

• North East Business and Innovation Centre – North East

• Project North East – North East

• STANTA (St Albans Enterprise Agency Ltd) – East of England

• Yorkshire in Business Ltd – Yorkshire & Humber

• Basildon & District Local Enterprise Agency Ltd – East of England

• Business for London Limited – London

• Colbea – East of England

• EDBS – North East

• MENTA (Mid Anglian Enterprise Agency Ltd) – East of England

• Somerset Business Agency CIC – South West

To find out more about NEN and the work it does representing, connecting and promoting its members, please go here: https://nationalenterprisenetwork.org/