The Pros (and Cons) of Coworking Spaces for Parents

*Collaborative Post

Working from home has been a saving grace for many parents. Childcare fees, the rising cost of living, short school days and wanting to be present for children while still paying the bills have led many parents to build WFH careers.

But working from home comes with its own challenges. The muddling of life and work, taking up space in the house with an office set-up, needing to ask family members to be quiet during calls, and the lack of a professional space to meet with clients can make the situation feel stressful.

The answer doesn’t have to be returning to the nine-to-five in an office. Co-working spaces offer tailor-made solutions for many parents ready to transition to working outside of the home while preserving the flexibility they’ve created. Is it right for you?

Flexible Contracts

Setting up a workspace at home isn’t the only way to work flexibly. Serviced offices and co-working spaces are designed with adaptability in mind, with rolling contracts, low-cost entry points and the option to increase days and space as and when you need to.

An additional monthly expense might be something you’re uncomfortable with, so make sure that flexibility is part of the deal.

Prime Location

Some home workers miss the buzz of working in a central location and all that comes with it: shops, restaurants, bars and cafes, meeting friends after work and feeling like part of the action.

Others find they need peace away from the hubbub at home, an out-of-town office with easy parking, familiar faces, speedy wi-fi and bottomless cups of tea.

Adding a commute to the office back into the working day might not be for everyone, but if you are ready to reconnect with the boost of being in town or find a place to focus, a co-working space provides the invigorating extra dimension that can stop work feeling like yet another household chore.

Separating Life from Work

The flexibility of working from home helps with the work and family juggle, but sometimes the two become too intertwined.

Dedicated WFH spaces at home can quickly fill up with bills, newsletters and kids’ homework. Boundaries between family time and work time become blurred, with a nagging feeling that you should be at your desk while dealing with household chores, and vice versa.

There will of course be times when childcare falls through or children pick up bugs and you’ll need to work from home, an important factor to remember when considering co-working.

But in an imperfect world, a co-working space is a practical solution, providing the space and time to get on with work, then shut the laptop and go home to the family when you need to.

From Growing Pains to Elbow Room

If your business is growing out of your WFH space faster than your children are growing out of their school shoes, it’s likely you’ll be in need of more space. The WFH set-up that was perfect when the children were small doesn’t feel quite so ideal as they get bigger and need a study space of their own.

Flexible co-working allows you to free up room at home as the needs of your family change, while ensuring you have the perfect space you need to work – though there will still be times as a working parent, such as during school holidays, when the hours at home need to increase.

If your growing business is ready to take on team members, co-working & serviced offices provide that space without the stress of long-term contracts, furniture purchases and setting up amenities.

Even if you start off as a team of one, there’s the flexibility to grow without having to move.

Good to Meet You

In-person meetings with clients and colleagues can dominate the whole day when you’re working from home. Rushing into town looking for a coffee shop or office, one eye on the time hoping the train will get you back in time for the school run, is never much fun.

Co-working spaces provide meeting rooms that are bookable when you need them at a reasonable rate, meaning you can invite clients to your space, impressing them with professional facilities and still maximising every minute of the working day.

Community and Networking

Spending the day flitting between video calls and parenting duties often means that the only in-person adult conversation you’ll have all day is at the school gate.

Co-working spaces connect solo workers with their local community, a brilliant opportunity for networking with local peers and generating new business ideas, not only a way to feel less isolated, but something that a traditional office rarely offers.

Flex Is Best

The evolution of home working and the associated technology has been brilliant for working parents, not to mention essential. If it feels like the time is right to switch things up, preserving that flexibility and convenience is key.

Finding the right co-working space can do just that with a solution for whatever you need, whether it’s a day or two a week in a local office, or five days in town.

*This is a collaborative post. For further information please refer to my disclosure page.