New Mills coworking community celebrates a successful first year

And it's a business born from a problem that will be familiar to many local people.

Run by a husband and wife duo, Sam and Laura, they share how their first year has gone and the reaction from the local community.

"It's just hard to focus when working from home. Washing, kids, pets and deliveries. There are endless distractions." explains Sam – one-half of the husband and wife team who opened the space.

"On top of that, sitting in your back bedroom or at your dining table all day can be a pretty lonely existence. You end up not leaving the house all day." he adds.

Neighbourhood Coworking was created to scratch Sam and Laura's own itch. As two people who had worked from home for many years, they were starting to feel lonely, bored and in need of a change of scenery.

"We wanted there to be a coworking space in New Mills. It was a case of if not us, then who? So we threw ourselves into it." explains Sam.

Neighbourhood offers a place to work for local people who want an alternative to working from home or commuting. The coworking space provides a third way - working near home.

"We had no idea if the space would be successful or not. We just had a gut feeling that there were lots of other people out there working from home who felt the same as us." adds Laura.

And there was. Over the past year they’ve built a coworking community of 40 members who regularly come to use the space, not just from New Mills but all over the High Peak.

The coworking space offers day passes for people who want to use it occasionally or memberships for those who want to attend on a regular basis.

Feedback from the members has been overwhelmingly positive.

"We've had a brilliant response to the business and have created an incredible community of coworkers. They're telling us that their working weeks have improved to no end by using the space and that's fantastic to hear." explains Laura.

"Neighbourhood has become so much more than a place to work. It has developed into a weekly highlight for our members, giving them an opportunity to work alongside other local people, make connections and have some much needed social interaction in their working week."

In addition to offering a workspace, members can attend quarterly social events to encourage local connections. Neighbourhood also launched an exclusive membership perks scheme earlier in the year, which offers discounts with local businesses and encourages members to put money back into the local economy.

"We're excited to see where the next year takes us."