The way we work is changing
The way we work is changing, with employers across the country adopting new trends and establishing new cultures that allow for hybrid working and flexible attitudes.
Andrew Byrne, CBRE, is part of the agency team on our Matchworks business estate in South Liverpool. In this blog, he reflects on the role of the physical environment, and what workspaces need to offer in the modern world.
We’re proud to be agents at Matchworks. This is a great looking business park on which Urban Splash has successfully restored a collection of art deco listed buildings, creating contemporary, well-designed workspaces.
But developers today need to offer more than good design. Organisations are fighting for great talent, and that means they need an attractive proposition for their staff. It’s not just about remuneration either, instead it’s about creating a positive working environment, in a great location with amenities that extend beyond the 9 to 5.
Thanks to regular investment, that’s what Urban Splash has delivered at Matchworks. There’s a healthy schedule of events – including lunchtime socials and street food pop ups – that help establish the area as a real commercial community. It helps anchor people here and encourages businesses to work together and establish fruitful new connections.
Then there are the amenities. Matchworks is classed as an ‘out of town’ business park, meaning it’s not in a central location. Many of such business parks fail to offer basic amenities, but Matchworks got a lot to offer in keeping people on site before, during and after work.
As workplaces prioritise the physical health and wellbeing of their colleagues, Matchworks offers an abundance of facilities – a gym that’s open 24 hours and packed with more than 200 pieces of equipment; an indoor climbing centre with rock walls for all abilities; a hot yoga studio, and landscaped gardens for lunchtime walks.
The site also offers breakout space during or after the working day, with the café offering within The Climbing Hangar, an offering which draws on local produce to establish a delicious food offering of baked goods and pizzas; the landlord also offers regular pop-up events, and there’s a retail park right opposite.
Another key requirement for prospective occupiers right now is the sustainability credentials of a workspace. Urban Splash first transformed Matchworks in the early 2000s, but its foresight in recent years has led to further investments and the installation of electronic vehicle chargers and solar panels.
The result is a business estate that is 92.4% let – and I think that’s down to Urban Splash’s own culture, and own innovative approach – something that means the place has changed in line with trends.
The way we work is changing, and Matchworks is an evolving environment that can accommodate any business for the long term.
Find out more about Matchworks, where just four spaces remain ranging from 1,344 sq ft to 8,852 sq ft.
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