London has among the highest number of co-working spaces in the world. But with almost 1,500 to choose from, where do you go?
We’ve picked five of the best – featuring plants, free barista coffee, wood working studios and meditation workshops.
Mortimer House
Location: 37-41 Mortimer Street, Fitzrovia, London, W1T 3JH
Features: Mortimer House promises more in the way of luxury rather than fun. Members have access to the Mortimer House loft and gallery, living room, den and meeting rooms as well as a yoga and reformers pilates studio, gym and in-house events.
Price:
Club: £80 a month (includes VAT). Club is for those who just want to network. Invite up to three guests to see DJs, talks, workshops, live music and monthly events from cultural figures in the living room and den.
Traveller: £250 a month (excludes VAT). Traveller grants you access to all communal floors, meeting rooms, gym and event during the weekend as well as on eight weekdays out of the month.
Resident: £500 a month (excludes VAT). With Resident, you have unlimited access to communal floors, meeting rooms and events any day of the week and ‘unfettered’ access to all working lounges.
Home (Bureau): from £1,000 a month. Have access to a dedicated single-serving workspace and unlimited access to communal floors, meeting room, gym and events any day of the week.
Home (study): from £6,000 a month. The study option gives you a dedicated team office (ranging from five to 26 people) who all enjoy access to communal floors, gym and events any day of the week.
A joining fee of £250 applies for all memberships.
Makerversity
Location: Somerset House, Victoria Embankment, London, WC2R 1LA
Situated in the basement of Somerset House, Makerversity is a practical space for creating with co-working spaces attached to it. It’s well-suited to designers, engineers, entrepreneurs, technologists, inventors, craftspeople, technicians and artists.
Features: Makerversity is very social, with weekly members breakfasts, talks, skill shares and events, regular community socials. It also promises free use of meeting rooms, free tea and coffee and a central London postal address.
Most of its appeal is in its practical workspace. Find all manner of tools in the wood workshop, digital workshop, textile workshop, engineering workshop, sound studio and assembly space.
Price:
Full-time membership: from £390 a month. This will give you permanent deskspace, available 24 hours a day.
Roaming membership: from £240 a month. Includes hot desk space for up to 60 hours a month.
Under 25 membership: free for three months. Under 25s can get 24-hour access to hot desk space. The free period is followed by nine months’ membership at 50pc discount. You’ll have the chance to present in front of Makerversity’s member businesses and broader network and be mentored by a longer-term member.
Makers with a Mission: Free for six months. The package gives you 24-hour access to hot desk space. To be eligible for this programme, you must be working on a project which will improve the world ethically, socially or sustainably. Make an application through the Makerversity website.
All membership comes with access to all tools and machines.
The Coalface
Location: 46 Clifton Terrace, Finsbury Park, London, N4 3JP
Features: In a welcome north London location, The Coalface offers up free barista coffee, herbal tea, flavoured water, free breakfast and retro sweets. It also has mail services and phone booths and is pet friendly.
To liven up your presentations, you’ve got AV equipment in meeting rooms. The meeting rooms themselves accommodate between four and 14 people.
Price:
Memberships: from £225 + VAT per month.
Private offices: from £375 + VAT per desk per month.
Fixed desks: from £325 + VAT per month.
Meeting rooms: from £30 + VAT per hour.
Fora
Location: 35-41 Folgate Street, E1 6BX
Fora has a ten-strong network, mostly based in London: Brick Lane, Old Street, Clerkenwell, Fitzrovia, Soho, Shoreditch (Great Eastern Street), Borough, Southwark and a space in Reading.
Features: The earthy workspace dishes out free tea, coffee, snacks and breakfast alongside regular workshops, get-togethers and monthly drinks. Fitness buffs can do a spot of yoga, hit up HIIT classes and get some personal training – all subsidised. For some serenity, spend time in the wellness studio, residents’ garden and roof terrace and the Spitalfields Conservatory.
Price:
Open desk: £375 per desk per month (£450 desk rate across the whole network). Guaranteed deskspace in a co-working hub and use of all facilities.
Owned desk: £575 per desk per month. Your own desk and chair with lockable storage. Includes access to Fora facilities across the network.
Owned office: from £775 per desk per month. For businesses of two people or more, the basics are taken care of and you can size up as you like.
LABS
Location: 1 Water Ln, Camden Town, London NW1 8NZ
The latest in the LABS portfolio – Hawley Wharf – is one of three in Camden with another five in the Holborn area.
It houses LABS Incubator, designed to support newer businesses with tools and room to grow. Membership is open to entrepreneurs and businesses that have been operating for no more than three years and have fewer than 15 people working for them.
Features: LABS at Hawley Wharf has free tea and coffee, allows pets and has an events space that you can hire.
Price: All of the LABS spaces work off three price points.
Roaming: Starts at £199 + VAT pcm
Private: Price on application.
Enterprise: Quote available upon request.
Quotes for event spaces are also available upon request.
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