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Month: June 2019

Serviced and virtual offices provide options for disabled entrepreneurs

Posted on by aleks

With more and more disabled entrepreneurs choosing to start their own business, both virtual offices and serviced offices from the Serviced Office Company provide options when it comes to choosing the location for your new headquarters.

In many business sectors, impaired mobility and other disabilities are not a significant barrier to setting up as self-employed, as newly published research from IPSE, the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed, highlights.

The study, published in partnership with the trade union Community, reveals that only one in eight disabled entrepreneurs say they were pushed into self-employment due to redundancy or a lack of opportunities elsewhere.

Over the past five years alone, the number of working Brits who are registered as disabled has increased by 30% to 611,000 people, one seventh of the working population.

Most of the problems they face are the same as all entrepreneurs, with issues like late payment high up the list.

However, although the decision to go self-employed may have been their own free choice, one in five said their motivation for doing so was to improve their working conditions, more than any other driving force for going it alone.

Jonathan Lima-Matthews, head of public affairs at IPSE, said: “Working for themselves is an overwhelmingly positive choice for disabled people. They can enjoy the freedom to work when, where and, crucially, how they want – something many told us they couldn’t do in permanent employment.”

Options to start a business with a disability

Whatever your disability might be, at the Serviced Office Company we do our best to cater for it so that you do not face any unnecessary barriers to starting a business with a disability.

Some of our workspace options include:

  • Virtual offices that give you a professional, desirable business address without having to leave your own home.
  • Serviced offices in key locations, accessible by public and private transport, and with adequate disabled access.
  • Meeting rooms available as and when you need them, giving you the flexibility to host customers, suppliers and other visitors just metres from your own office.

We have serviced offices in Manchester and London, allowing you to establish your headquarters in the north or south as you wish, and always located close to the core business districts of either city.

Alternatively, with the option to have virtual offices in London and Manchester, you can feasibly base your business from home no matter where you live, and still have a prime city postcode and contact details.

Finally, if you choose to work on-site from our serviced offices in Manchester or London, there are some added features that can help to make all occupants more comfortable, including those with various disabilities or other unique needs.

These include:

  • 24-hour access to work when you want.
  • On-site parking for improved accessibility.
  • On-site shower rooms if you ever need them.
  • Breakout areas for nearby accessible relaxation.
  • Accessible kitchen facilities and refreshments.

Starting a business with a disability does not have to be significantly more challenging than starting any other business – and with flexible serviced office space and virtual offices in London and Manchester, the Serviced Office Company is here to help you achieve that ambition.

Take Pride in the workplace with serviced offices

Posted on by aleks

The Serviced Office Company is proud to provide workplaces to a diverse range of clients and thanks to the communal areas, kitchens and breakout rooms that come with our serviced offices, you can benefit from sharing ideas and collaborating with those people.

June is Pride month and while for many people that means celebrating, it is also an important opportunity to raise awareness of some of the difficulties faced by the LGBT+ community, including in the workplace.

Earlier this year, the Government Equalities Office published research that showed 56% of cisgender individuals with a minority sexual orientation had chosen to hide that orientation in the workplace.

This ranked behind only public transport (on 65%) as the most likely places for those individuals to hide their orientation.

Respondents spoke of being passed up for promotion, and in some cases rejected for job opportunities completely because the interviewer felt they would not fit in with the company culture.

At the Serviced Office Company we welcome clients from all walks of life, majority and minority groups alike, and believe that this rich diversity is part of what makes our serviced offices such a vibrant and rewarding place to do business.

Why choose serviced offices in London and Manchester?

We have serviced offices in Manchester at Exchange Quay and Clippers Quay, providing excellent access to MediaCity, Salford Quays and Manchester city centre alike.

We also have serviced offices in London at Davenport House on Pepper Street, Glengall Bridge, just a short walk from Canary Wharf.

Both locations give you serviced office space at the very heart of some of the UK’s biggest business districts, with access to vast and diverse local economies, supply chains and customer bases.

For LGBT+ entrepreneurs though, the cities are among some of the best places in the UK to live and work, both offering cosmopolitan cultures that are among the most welcoming of minority groups of all kinds.

The Government Equalities Office noted that some of its survey respondents felt safer after moving to either London or Manchester, with Brighton also mentioned as one of the three “large cities with a significant LGBT population” where this was the case.

Serving an LGBT customer base

Of course there is no reason why LGBT+ entrepreneurs must start businesses with an LGBT customer base; however, if you choose to do so, being based in serviced offices in London or Manchester puts that community on your doorstep.

That makes business more efficient, while also making you better able to provide your clients with the products and services they need.

And should you need to meet with them in person, we also offer flexible meeting rooms in Manchester and London to give you a professional, practical space for interviews, negotiations and face-to-face conversations in general.

We are rightfully proud of the communities we serve – and of all our clients who serve those communities in their turn too – regardless of majority or minority status, or how and whether you are marking this Pride month.