LIVEWORK masterclass

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LIVE/WORK masterclass DEWM 14 October 2009 Tim
Dwelly, Director, Live/Work Network
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About Live/Work Network...

• UK live/work experts
• Government advisers
• website information service
• 300 members developers, councils etc
• national policy reports and conferences
• live/work projects at Ross and Telford

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What is live/work?

• Property that combines workspace and home
  business premises for low carbon economy
• workspace underneath or to side of home part
• cuts costs one property to pay for, not two
• less carbon one property to build/fuel, not two
  
• no commuting
• reduces isolation of home working
• allows home working businesses to expand
• market home-based businesses wanting more
  professional premises

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Not just home working

• a spare room is not live/work
• garden shed is not live/work
• working at home is common
• but is the design/space right?
• does it look professional?
• is the homeworker isolated?
• can they separate workspaceand living space?

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What does live/work deliver?

• reduced costs for start up businesses
• more for less fewer buildings
• thriving visible micro business clusters
• low carbon business quarters
• premises for expanding home based businesses
• flexibility reduced business risk
• a daytime economy
• 24/7 use of property
• work-life balance
• more secure neighbourhoods

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This is not new rural live/work

• pre-industrial buildings were often live/work
• living above workplace was commonplace
• farm buildings can make good conversions
• eg Harewood Farm near Ross-on-Wye

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Meanwhile in France...

• ateliers in many towns
• live/work/sell...

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...and other parts of Europe

• Pictured a werkbund (living/working space)
• 1929 Wroclaw Poland
• in Germany and Holland live/work is common

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USA huge live/work market

• live/work explosion not just big cities
• cities have live/work building codes and flex
  use
• lofts in urban areas
• three story houses

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Live/works time has come...

• 41 of all UK businesses home based (BERR)
• homeworking boom doubled in ten years
• over 2 million do it - two thirds self-employed
• live/work pure mixed-use
• sustainable use of employment sites
• reduces commuting (45 min trip 1 day per week)
• helps affordability two for the price of one
• cuts construction carbon hugely
• perfect for low carbon economy

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...and yet

• its hard to make it work
• we are planning for the wrong economy
• plans/strategies were drawn up pre low carbon
  and certainly pre-recession
• this is not industrial era, maybe not commuting
  era
• yet planners often find live/work unsettling
• they are used to zoning homes and work apart
• planning guidance is limited (PPS4)
• limited experience so believe bad press
• easier to say no

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Even more challenges

• no special live/work tenancy
• sui generis use (not housing, not commercial)
• hard to mortgage if workspace too dominant
• no clear government policy/funding
• very few local planning/LDF policies
• housebuilders prefer an easy life with
  residential
• wrong developer can backdoor residential
• specialist developers usually need employment land

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Traditional approach riskier

• relies too much on commuting
• relies too much on large employers
• risk of 0 use of site if single user
  leaves/fails
• businesses not locally owned
• large vehicles - noise/pollution
• low skills, low pay, low prospects
• wrong kind of business if a town/region is to
  thrive
• too many eggs in one basket big risk

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National live/work policy

• PPS4 promotes live/work use
• Barker Review suggests new uses of employment
  land including live/work
• Taylor Review recommends live/work exemplars
• HCA backs live/work in single conversation
• circular 03/2005 live/work sui generis
• live/work a use in its own right, but must
  deliver workspace as priority

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More business - less buildings

• business parks, innovation centres are looking
  old fashioned
• not enough government money to do these any more!
• and they are too carbon hungry
• new economy micros dont relate to these places
• live/work makes smarter use of buildings and land
• perhaps the commuter city is not the future
• we need beehives - not (white) elephants

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Live/work spreading across UK

• once a London phenomenon
• now going big across UK, approvals all over
• Ipswich, Leicester, Bolton, Newquay, Swansea,
  Cherwell
• drivers IT, high housing costs, rejection of
  commuting
• niche live/work developers emerging
• lessons being learned from USA
• RTPI calling for live/work not business parks
• a new sector emerging

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Live/work in the West Midlands

• sites approved/pipeline at Birmingham, Coventry,
  Burslem, Ross-on-Wye, Astley and more
• rural schemes inc Duchy of Cornwall
• home business support hubs in Ironbridge,
  Shrewsbury
• some LAs actively pursuing live/work pilots
• specialist developers keen to come
• emerging as a live/work region where home based
  business is prevalent

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Ross-on-Wye, Telford Wrekin

• Model Farm 10ha site at Ross includes 2ha for
  live/work
• Spaceworks the preferred live/work developer
• masterplan and SPD approved
• council owned site
• study here at Telford has identified possible
  sites
• Ironbridge - strong prospects for re-use of old
  buildings
• Newport market town a good location
• early days, study ongoing

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West Midlands facts

• highest of homeworkers of any region
• 8.95 of regions workforce works mainly from
  home
• but in rural districts figure is 13.23
• home working 48 higher in rural districts here
• most rural home workers are self employed
• 8.03 of rural workforce runs a home based
  business
• these are 2001 census figures, certainly higher
  now

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Home business in LA areas

• Home based businesses potential live/workers
• of workforce running business from home egs...
  South Shropshire 14.34
  Birmingham 2.98Herefordshire 10.09
  Coventry 2.74 North Shropshire
  9.09Malvern Hills 9.05Stratford-on-Avon
  7.94Bridgnorth 7.68Wychavon
  7.04Staffordshire Moorlands 6.81
• West Midlands 4.34, England 4.69

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How do live/workers work?

• usually need more space than a home
• often 2/3 employees/subcontractors
• work from home not just at home
• need separate space
• expanding homebusinesses

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Open plan live/work lofts

• urban classic, often warehouses
• open flexible space, mezzanine floors
• started in New York
• London city-edge 90s
• best for singles

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Live above/work below

• urban or rural
• separates work and living
• lots of workspace
• but mortgage problem if two floors?

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Renovation restored mews

• new employment use
• more sustainable
• neighbours prefer this ?

before/after
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Renovation historic buildings

• old building, new uses
• eg Creative LoftsHuddersfield

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Renovations industrial estates

• new creative quarter
• eg Bristol Paintworks

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Low carbon live/work units

• new option for public land
• modular eco live/work units
• no developer/bank loan needed

www.cloudninelivework.com
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Workhubs perfect partner

• shared facilities
• meetings/networking
• replicate urban buzz
• business support

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What works - main lessons

• live/work wont happen on residential land
• no holy grail to guarantee work use
• inflexible conditions kill viability
• incentives/disincentives a better approach
• use planning obligations - eg B1 use of workspace
• but also use design to create live/work feel
• planning gain go for business facilities, eg a
  hub
• plus affordable live/work units (not affordable
  resi)
• avoid residential housebuilders!
• do it carefully, but do dare to pilot ideas

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Live/work - not just an option