Sign of the times

A feature on live/work in the Sunday Times this month triggered a welcome flood of phone calls to liveworkhomes and a 200% increase in visits to the site.

‘We had a sudden rush of calls from agents wanting help to market live/work properties on their books, private owners looking to sell a live/work style property and developers keen to get in touch with the Live/Work Network,’ recalls liveworkhomes marketing manager Liz Wakeham-Jones.

‘What was interesting was that all callers were very well informed about live/work and seemed delighted to find an online portal promoting live/work properties in the UK.’

The highly informative piece (well, we would say that wouldn’t we) by journalist Lynne Greenwood, published in the paper’s Homes pullout and online, covered live/work schemes including the flagship Electric Wharf in Coventry and two developed by housing associations for affordable rent in Burslem, near Stoke on Trent, and in Huddersfield.

Live Work Network director Tim Dwelly added: ‘National press coverage like this shows live/work is coming into its own, reflecting the huge trend towards flexible working and a better work/life balance.

‘The Sunday Times article also blows out of the water the myth that live/work is a London-phenomenon – get the ingredients right and you’ve got a recipe for working and living that can adapt to a huge range of business and household set-ups in any part of the country.'