BICESTER’S eco co-working space is now open again for people to work safely away from home.

The Perch Eco Business Centre in Elmsbrook has now reopened with limited capacity and safety measures to ensure social distancing.

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People who want to use the centre must book in advance and are then assigned a seat and desk.

If everything continues as planned, the space will return to normal operation as Covid restrictions are eased in line with Government advice.

In March 2020 co-working spaces across the country closed as part of the national lockdowns, meaning many people who relied on the dedicated workspaces were forced to work from home.

The benefits of remote working soon became apparent, and a survey conducted by TownSq, which manages the centre, found that 85 per cent of respondents wanted to work closer to home in the future.

Senior community manager for TownSq, Carl Turner said: “We’re pleased to be able to have people back in our spaces after a long time in lockdown. We’ve still been supporting our community remotely, but there is no substitute for sharing the same four walls as others.

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“Waking up later, booting the commute and spending more time with family are some real positives to working from home, but it can also be tough living and working in the same space 24/7."

The team opened for tours in March and held a 'headspace' day on April 1, where people were able to try out the spaces for the day, for free.

Mr Turner added: "Our recent headspace day gave people a chance to break away from their kitchen tables and make that distinction between home and office, without losing the benefits of working locally.

“Coworking has always been a strong feature of remote working, but now that more people and organisations are embracing a flexible ethos, we expect the demand to continue to rise and this roadmap demonstrates how we can support that across our hubs. ”

As well as being available for meetings and events the centre provides office space, giving a unique place for start-ups and small businesses to grow, creating jobs and boosting the local economy.

For more information, email lucy@thetownsquare.co.uk.

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