Hampshire County Council has agreed grants totalling £25,000 to set up Smarter Working Centres in Havant, Gosport and Fareham.

 

Smarter Working Centres offer entrepreneurs, business start-ups, home-based businesses and commuters the chance to work and meet locally and avoid the stress and cost of the peak-time journey to work. Smarter Working Centre members also benefit from the access to support, training and advice from expert organisations such as Job Centre Plus, Enterprise First, Business Link and Train to Gain.

 

Accommodation and usage costs are kept low at Smarter Working Centres by offering users the option of 'pay as you use' or discounted prepaid usage options. Depending upon the membership package chosen, work-space can work out at as little as £3 per hour or £10 per day. Even less if organisations are willing to pre-book longer periods. Individuals and businesses signing up before the end of February will be eligible for additional offers reducing costs further.

 

Businesses interested in using a Smarter Working Centre can find out more at the website www.smarterworkingcentreshiow.org.uk. The site provides an easy introduction for those new to the concept of Smarter Working Centres and offers real-time space availability checking, on-line booking and secures on-line payment.

 

The Fareham Smarter Working Centre will be based at Fareham Enterprise Centre just off Newgate Lane and will be run by a partnership between Fareham Borough Council and Enterprise First. The Smarter Working Centre will be on the first floor, which will be refurbished and equipped with state of the art internet-ready IT facilities. There will also be access to meeting room facilities and to the team of FEC business advisors.

 

The Sanderson Centre will be home to the Gosport Smarter Working Centre. The accommodation that has been allocated for the Smarter Working Centre will be completely refurbished with four open-area internet-ready and/or PC equipped workspaces provided in addition to a small private office area. Sanderson Centre staff are experienced and well-positioned to provide support and optional services including courier and virtual reception services.

 

Havant Smarter Working Centre is located at Studio Seven premises on the Ridgeway adjacent to the A27 Havant/Langstone/Hayling Island junction. The premises have been refurbished to a high level with a communal area, ground floor meeting/training room and private office units. The shared office facility is situated on the first floor, where five workspaces have now been established and equipped.

It is anticipated that all three centres will be operational by the end of January 2010.

 

Councillor Jonathan Glen, Executive Member for Economic Development, said: “A Smarter Working Centre offers affordable pay-as-you-go, no commitment, accommodation for commuters, business start-ups, remote workers and particularly existing home based businesses. These three centres will all offer high-speed broadband work stations and meeting space to businesses in South Hampshire and are hopefully the start of a countywide network.”

 

The Hampshire Smarter Working Centre network will be established over the coming months. Facilities are already available in Whitchurch and Fordingbridge and in addition to Havant, Fareham and Gosport funding has been now agreed for centres in Basingstoke and Aldershot.

 

Smarter Working Centres are one of four initiatives the County Council has introduced to help local businesses to assist workers and help independent businesses develop new opportunities to prosper in the economic downturn. The projects are funded with £425,000 from the Local Authority Business Growth Incentive (LABGI). They were created following the work of the Senate to identify action that could be taken by local authorities to help businesses in the economic downturn.

 

The other measures the County Council has put in place includes a retail support package which aims to help local retailers improve their online presence, encourage consumers into the town centres and provide new skills to redundant shop workers . There are also grants available to enable the voluntary and community sector to offer work experience and volunteering places helping people to gain new skills and grants to encourage businesses to take on apprentices.

 

The exact grants awarded are:

Fareham - £7,071

Gosport - £9,000

Havant - £9,000

 

The funding allocated matches the amounts the operators of the new Smarter Working Centres are investing in the new facilities.  Maximum match funding available is £9,000 split into two elements - £4,500 for set up costs and £4,500 for year one operational support.

 

For media enquiries please contact: Kirsty Gunner, Media Communications Manager (Policy & Resources) Tel: 01962 847110 Email: kirsty.gunner@hants.gov.uk