Since opening in October, Gather Round Brunswick Square is already home to a bustling creative community. For a limited time only, Gather Round are offering a free day pass so you can try out the new space for yourself.
Designed for creatives, by creatives
Bristol-based Gather Round is a growing family of unique, soulful, creative workspaces, purposefully designed for creatives by creatives. Its mission is to build remarkable co-working spaces where creative thinkers and doers can connect, collaborate and thrive.
Founded by Fiasco Design owners, Ben Steers and Jason Smith, Gather Round’s flagship workspace in the Cigar Factory, Southville, opened its doors to Bristol’s curious creative community in 2019. The second space on Brunswick Square, St Pauls, opened last month and supports up to 90 professionals; freelancers, self-employed and micro businesses, from the surrounding areas of St Pauls, Montpelier, Easton, St George, Kingsdown and more.
Split over three floors, the beautiful Grade II listed building provides flexible areas with fixed and casual desks, private studios, meeting rooms, hang-out areas, communal tables and quiet areas for contemplation. It also boasts a dedicated private event space with a 60-person capacity.
A community of creatives
Its members are a truly eclectic and talented bunch; designers, writers, filmmakers, publishers, photographers, brand strategists and more. The supportive, collaborative community is valued as highly by members as the beautifully designed workspaces themselves: “Collaborating with exciting and interesting individuals is what gets me out of bed in the morning. – Gareth Rutter, Founder and Creative Director of Bellow Studio.
Gather Round offers private studio, resident and co-working membership options, with part-time flexible co-working costing £110 per month (plus VAT), and full-time memberships from £195 (plus VAT).
Get Your Free Day Pass Today
Knowing that signing up to a co-working space can feel like a big step, Gather Round are offering a free day pass* for Brunswick Square so you can try out the space for yourself. Get your free day pass here.
*For November only.
Social distancing rules and lockdowns during the coronavirus pandemic had a “catastrophic” and “devastating” impact on Britain’s arts, culture and heritage organisations, with output falling by 60% over the past 18 months.
That’s the finding of a major new report by researchers at the University of Sheffield which analysed how COVID-19 has affected museums, galleries, cinemas, theatres and other arts and cultural organisations.
As the pandemic took hold in March 2020, the impact on the sector was immediate. Annual gross valued added (GVA) output fell dramatically with a decline of around a third from the second quarter of 2019 to the same period last year in real terms.
Businesses categorised as “creative, arts and entertainment activities” along with libraries, archives and museums were worst hit with declines of 63% and 45% respectively.
Few businesses saw an increase although with millions of people locked down at home and looking for entertainment, computer games companies experienced a 18% rise in output, while book publishing firms increased output by 2%.
At the other end of the scale, with theatres shuttered during lockdown and then facing limits on audiences, output among performing arts organisations declined 60%, while it fell 70% at cinemas.
Government funding has been vital for the survival of arts, culture and heritage businesses during the pandemic. The study found that 55% of employees in the sector were furloughed through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. That’s the second highest sector behind accommodation and food.
At its peak in May 2020, 450,000 arts, entertainment and recreation employees were furloughed, falling to 150,000 by the end of May 2021.
Freelancers were hard hit too, given the high number employed by arts and culture organisations. They made more than 80,000 claims for grants through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS), 68% of the UK’s eligible population.
The funding was not without its problems though. For the fourth round of SEISS, 181,000 self-employed people in the arts sector were assessed for eligibility, the research revealed, but only 54% were deemed eligible – compared to 67% across all sectors.
“There is substantial evidence to suggest that a large number of people in the sector failed to claim under either the SEISS scheme or the furlough scheme, due to their strict eligibility criteria,” the report said.
“Many creatives move between employment and self-employment or do both at the same time – a reflection of the dynamism of the sector – meaning they’ve not qualified for either SEISS
or furlough, or only been able to claim small amounts of support.
“Others have their own companies for work purposes which were seen to fall between the two schemes. In short, there has been insufficient support for a large number of self-employed people in the CAH sector.”
Please respond to our new survey about the creative industries in Bristol and Bath. It will help us design – and advocate for – future support for the creative economy in our region.
The £1.5bn Cultural Recovery Fund (CRF) was another vital scheme. It was set up by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in July 2020 in response to data gathered during the first lockdown which suggested 65% of arts and culture organisations had stopped trading and over 30% would run out of cash by September 2020.
The University of Sheffield report said the success rate of applicants for revenue grants was 69% and 70% for capital grants.
The amount of funding received through CRF varied between regions but the study said it “includes a handful of very large grants/loans which distorts the overall picture”.
Among those areas was Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath/Bristol due to a £23m loan to English Heritage based in Swindon and a £6m capital grant to Bristol Beacon (formerly Colston Hall) which is currently undergoing refurbishment.
The report also highlighted some local authority schemes set up to help creative businesses deal with the impact of the pandemic. The examples cited include the West of England Combined Authority’s Creative Sector Growth Programme. Find details in our creative industries funding guide.
The report includes a specific focus on the experiences during the pandemic of freelancers in the arts and culture sector in South Yorkshire. The findings are likely to ring true for thousands of other self-employed people in other parts of the UK.
More than three quarters of freelancers said their mental wellbeing was worse since the start of lockdown. Male respondents, under-30s, and those with a diagnosed mental health condition experienced even greater levels of distress.
The main causes of stress and worry were personal finances, unemployment and the ability to cover overheads. Anxiety over these issues was much higher amongst freelancers than the general population.
South Yorkshire freelancers also reported lower levels of wellbeing and happiness and higher levels of anxiety than the general public. With their mental health impacted, the report said the pandemic led “to a sense of lost identity, skills and motivation”.
Event crew, lighting and sound engineers reported greater worsening of mental health than respondents in other roles, with 53.8% saying that their mental health was “much worse” compared to 25.5% on average.
Professor Vanessa Toulmin, director of city and culture and chair in early film and popular Entertainment at the University of Sheffield, said:
“The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on the UK’s arts, culture and heritage sector. This landmark report reveals how social distancing and lockdowns over the past 18 months have had a catastrophic effect on the finances of people who work in the sector, as well as businesses and venues.
“People have lost their jobs, businesses and venues have closed and this economic impact has severely affected the mental health and wellbeing of people who work in the sector across the UK. People in the sector have been losing sleep and have had much higher levels of anxiety due to how the pandemic has affected their personal finances and uncertainty about the future.”
The creative industries contribute to making Bristol and Bath amazing places to live and work. But how can they grow and prosper? Tell us in our survey here.
We all love an underdog.
One of our Digital Designers, Mayumi Kurosawa, has overcome incredible odds to get to where she is today – a much-loved member of the Proctors’ team.
This is her story.
Act 1: A blessing in (deep, deep) disguise?
I may be happily settled in Bristol today, but the journey I took to get here started in Japan.
In 2018, I was working as a translator – my dream job back then. After five years in this role, my British-native husband told me he wanted to move back to the U.K. It wasn’t the best timing, but being the amazing wife I am, I agreed, making the decision to leave my job and challenge myself in a new country.
After along slog (another story in itself), I was finally granted permission to come and work in the UK. I landed an admin job working for a Japanese company dealing in imported car parts.
But bad timing struck again. The knock-on effects of Brexit were being felt in every industry, and within 8 months of starting my job, I was made redundant.
And to top it all off, my husband and I had just made the decision to move to a new city: Bristol.
Act 2: Kintsugi – Repairing what’s broken, with gold
After coming to terms with what had happened, I came to a realisation. Yes, I’d been dealt a few poor hands. But now I had a brand-new opportunity to discover what I really wanted from the next stage of my career.
So, I doubled down and made a plan: I gave myself one year to study and find out exactly what it was I wanted to do. And I had an idea of what that might be…
Act 3: The impossible dream
Since childhood, I’d dreamt of working within the creative industries. But I’d never felt confident enough to even talk about it – never mind found the guts to try. Nevertheless, the dream had stayed with me. And without the excuse of ‘being too busy’ now redundant, it was time for me to take a chance.
I knew I was interested in design, in its broadest sense. But, of course, modern ‘design’ covers a wide range of occupations.
It took me a while to focus on one discipline. First, I started studying UX/UI design with an online course called Interaction Design Foundation. Then, I moved into front-end web development with Codecademy – an online platform offering coding classes for people interested in developing their skills within the digital design sector. Finally, I studied graphic design, learning even more about the principles of aesthetics and creativity.
Every discipline had its merits, making it difficult to choose which specialism I was going to focus on. And just one year of learning seemed too short to become skilled enough in all of these different areas if I wanted to secure a job.
Act 4: The Great Battle of Imposter Syndrome
The truth is, I spent a lot of time over the course of that year doubting whether I was making the right choice. However, I’m stubborn by nature, and after every moment of uncertainty I would rebound into bursts of productively, further pushing and developing my professional skills.
There’s a cliché for a reason: the only difference between the people who succeed and the people who don’t, is whether they give up on what they want. And I just didn’t let myself give up.
So, I started creating a portfolio. I turned my skills to a selection of different websites that I felt could be improved with a mixture of design and UX. Not only did the process help me use the skills I had learnt, it also helped me to test myself – and prove to myself that I really could become a designer.
When I had three websites redesigned and mocked up, I took a chance and started to apply to some roles.
Act 5: An ending – and a beginning
To my surprise and delight, I received interest from some of the applications I sent, and managed to squeeze myself* into the creative industry. Now, I’m a digital designer for Proctor + Stevenson – and I got here without a relevant degree or industry experience.
Everyone is very warm, keen to help, and I genuinely enjoy working here. They are serious professionals, but at the same time they love to laugh and have fun.
I’ve just started my new career, so can’t give much industry insight yet. But I hope I can encourage people who want to learn something new, or want a career change, that if I could do it, you can do it too.
Post-credits
A quick comment from Proctors (and Mayumi’s manager, Dan Hardaker, Director of Digital Design).
*There was no squeezing necessary when it came to offering Mayumi a role with Proctors. Her portfolio – and her story – demonstrated so much potential and clear talent that we knew would make her a perfect fit for the role.
It’s important to us to look past a person’s work experience alone. Your drive and attitude are just as important as the places you’ve worked before. We believe in giving people the opportunity to develop their skills in a professional environment, and in supporting your goals with mentoring and training resources. So together, we can lay a career path just for you.
Why not take a look at our current career opportunities? There could be a new flagstone waiting for you…
Desk available within a beautiful creative co-workspace in The Tobacco Factory, Southville, along with neighbouring creative businesses and freelancers.
A beautifully bright, desk space within a characterful studio. High ceilings, large windows with views across the city, large ply desks, ergonomic chairs, architectural lights, communal bookshelves, fibre broadband and storage options. A blank canvas to make it your own. There is also access to a communal kitchen area, various break-out spots and meeting spaces within the building. The space shares the same floor as some of Bristol’s most exciting theatrical, marketing, digital and architectural companies.
Rent includes all bills and weekly cleaning services. Please get in touch for further information and to arrange a viewing.
£195pcm + VAT
– Furnished
– Shared postbox
– Reception intercom
– Shared kitchen
– Free on-street parking nearby
– Secure bike storage
– Bills included
– 24/7 Access
cxpartners sees two new hires join the business to boost how we support clients as our portfolio grows.
We are thrilled to welcome two new team members – Gabriella Lambert and Chris Edge.
Gabriella joins us as Client Engagement Director, bolstering our account management and business development within our Financial Services team. She joins with a wealth of experience in creating sustainable customer experience strategies for multinational organisations, startups and the nonprofit sector. She previously worked at the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) as the Head of Customer Experience.
She has spent her career building customer experience departments and overarching design strategies that move from being sales and product driven to being customer-focused.
Feel free to reach out to Gaby at [email protected] to have an informal chat to learn more about ways cxpartners and the Financial Services team can help your business.
Chris joins cxpartners as Account Director, strengthening the client services team following a number of recent major client wins.
He is highly experienced, with over 15 years working in client services and marketing at digital, creative, employee engagement and film production agencies. He has added value to clients and delivered solutions in many sectors including IT, healthcare, manufacturing, professional services and education.
Chris is also a qualified PRINCE2 Agile Project Manager. If you’d like to get in touch, please contact him at [email protected].
Gaby and Chris are brilliant new hires for cxpartners as we continue our growth as a team and support our growing client base. We have recently welcomed new clients such as WaterAid, UK Export Finance and UCAS.
Welcome to the team!
We are hiring for several roles at the moment, in both our Bristol and London offices, including:
What’s the purpose?
It can be hard to find meaning in what you do.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a digital strategist, a dog walker, a traffic warden, or a chef. If you don’t feel connected to your work – if you don’t feel a sense of purpose – it can be hard to stay engaged or committed.
Purpose is a big deal right now. The advertising and marketing industries have been accused of reckless greenwashing, in a bid for products and services to appear more appealing. They’ve been accused of promoting overconsumption and wastefulness. It’s even been said that we’re driving the climate crisis.
And at Proctors, we’re not blind to those concerns. (It’s why we’re so selective with our own campaigns, clients and partners.)
But we’re also firm believers in the merit of our own, ‘personal’ purpose. A purpose which is as simple as helping others, by using our time, talent and resources wherever possible to create a better world.
So we do this by giving back to our communities: whether local, global or simply like-minded. From sponsoring the local Easton women’s football team, to running the annual South West Design + Digital Student Awards, to ensuring our office is eco-friendly and self-sustainable, and by fundraising for chosen local charities.
Because for us, our Corporate Social Responsibility is just another part of our work. And we treat it with the seriousness and dedication it deserves.
Raising money for cancer research, Business Beats Cancer West of England
Our Founder and Chairman, Roger Proctor MBE, is passionate about ensuring Proctor + Stevenson do our part.
As a board member for Business Beats Cancer West of England (BBCWoE) – Cancer Research UK’s Business-facing arm in the region – Roger offers both our services and the personal commitment of Proctors employees to their cause.
Throughout our partnership with BBCWoE, we’ve created awareness campaigns complete with copy, design and marketing support, and assisted with event promotions year-round. And, of course, we got stuck in to raise some of those all-important funds ourselves.
Firstly, we took part in ‘The Big Hike,’ where a group of brave Proctorians hiked 26.5 miles through the Brecon Beacons on a beautiful, brisk Saturday, raising an impressive £1,832 for cancer research.
As if that wasn’t enough, even more Proctorians then took on ‘The Big Ride Cycle Challenge’ – a 79.2-mile loop starting from our offices in Easton and continuing through Cheddar Gorge, Wells, and the surrounding areas. With thighs of steel, our amazing team raised another £815 – a storming success.
If you’re a friend of Proctors, you’ll know every Christmas we create a ‘Christmas Card video’, treating our clients, friends, and family to a behind-the-scenes look at our team which will lift spirits and spread a little hilarity, too.
But when the COVID-19 saw us all locked down last year, the team agreed we should do something different.
We took a step away from the dressing up and hijinks, and instead approached a local charity to offer some help instead.
Caring in Bristol are a local charity working towards an incredible goal: to end homelessness in Bristol, for good. But during the pandemic homelessness tripled in Bristol, reflecting a nationwide trend. And it left the team with an even bigger task ahead.
So, our incredibly talented team of animators, copywriters and our marketing team got to work to produce a video which would get Bristolians digging deep for the cause.
The result? More than £20,000 of donations in just under two weeks, absolutely crashing through the Caring in Bristol team’s targets – and deservedly so.
It goes without saying, but the entire Proctors team was so proud of what we achieved for such a brilliant cause. So much so, you may want to watch this space…
If you’re an aspiring Philanthropist, looking for a cause to get stuck into, or are a charitable cause looking for support, Quartet Community Foundation are your answer.
They bring people together who want to work on community projects in the west of England, supporting hundreds of thousands of people through local frontline charities and voluntary groups.
We’ve been working with the team at Quartet for years, and have developed real, personal friendships with them. So when we heard they had begun a Coronavirus 2020 relief fund, we wanted to help in any way we could – which, as it turns out, meant hosting a virtual ‘Quarantine Quiz’!
We used the quiz to raise money for the foundation – and along the way, we experienced a real boost to our own morale too.
Babbasa are a Bristol-based organisation who work with young people, businesses, and the local community to address inequality in all its forms, and produce a fairer city. They offer advice on recruitment policies, and work with organisations to explain how they can diversify their workforce, as well as providing potential candidates.
So we partnered with them to get their advice on our own recruitment policy, to ensure we’re doing everything we can to create an inclusive culture – and actively work towards creating a fairer city.
Purpose is what you make it
Whoever you are, and wherever you work, it’s important to feel you’re doing the things that align with your values.
And at Proctors, we do that by ‘doing good’ and giving back wherever we can.
As you’ll see, it’s not all about big, transformative gestures. But about the things we can all do as a team to make the world just a little bit brighter.
So we’ll carry on doing what we can by working closely alongside charities and organisations to help those in need – both locally and further afield. We’ll continue to ensure we’re cultivating a sustainable office environment, and remain a place where employees feel valued and appreciated for their hard work.
To see more of what Proctor + Stevenson are involved in, have a look at our CSR page on our website. Or if you’d like to do some good of your own, contact us at [email protected].
Starting a new job can be a nerve-wracking process, especially when it’s your first opportunity after being at uni. Luckily, I’m here to share my experience of starting at Proctors and gaining my first real industry exposure.
Here are some of the questions I found myself asking, the challenges I faced – and some of the lessons I learnt.
What if I don’t know what I’m doing on my first day?
In any new job, a fear of failure is perfectly normal. Luckily, the Proctors people went out of their way to ensure I felt comfortable in the office, had sufficient training/inductions and the resources to get on with my projects, setting me up for success.
It’s important companies give you ample time to find your feet on your first day. So, if you don’t know what to do next, just ask how you can help. Remember, you were hired – you’ve already made it past the stressful interview part! Treat your first day as a fun celebration. Everyone is excited to meet you!
What’s it like starting in a Tech role?
Joining the Tech team at P+S straight after leaving university showed me the differences between education and real-life industry work really quickly.
In uni, I was constantly shifting my focus to find a speciality. This meant that almost each semester I would be creating a new project with a different focus and practicing a different coding language. However, at P+S I was able to focus on my strengths first, with support from seasoned (and friendly) developers, and begin specialising in the areas that I am most interested in.
Over my first few weeks, as I was introduced to all of the developers around me and all of the teams that I would be interacting with, all of the nervousness of a new role left as I settled in to my first full development role and focused on my workload.
How will I remember all these people?
Meeting everyone on your first day can be overwhelming, sometimes it can feel like you’re crashing a private party. Forming relationships takes time, and a supportive workplace recognises this.
At P+S, I was introduced to all the departments I would be working with, encouraged to reach out to anyone if I had any questions, and met with a multitude of messages from co-workers welcoming me to the company. Wednesday quiz nights and Friday night socials allowed me to meet people in a non-work environment. And as time went on more new employees joined, we all easily bonded over being new to the company.
Don’t forget, you’re not expected to remember everyone you meet immediately, but making the effort to get to know your co-workers over lunches and socials will help you feel at ease in your new job.
What do I do if I’m not busy with work all the time?
Sometimes work may be slow whilst you’re being given time to settle in, and you may feel guilty for not tapping away at the keyboard for all 8 hours of the workday. Just remember, people are giving you time to relax into the job and no one wants you to be overwhelmed. Take your time with tasks, regularly check in with co-workers to make sure you’re doing the right thing and focus on the small wins.
When working in a marketing agency, time management is incredibly important and often we are working to strict deadlines. At P+S, I was given access to a plethora of training resources for when I had a moment of downtime, to develop my industry skills.
Stay positive and believe in yourself
The most important thing to remember is to stay open-minded and treat your first job as a fresh start, a learning opportunity, and a chance to meet cool, like-minded people that can help you build an exciting career.
At P+S, we are always looking for talent to join our team across Creative, Strategy and Technology. Click here to find out more about our current vacancies or send your CV to [email protected].
Workforces in the creative industries are at risk of becoming more unequal unless efforts are made to improve diversity and inclusion.
That’s the warning by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Creative Diversity following an 18-month research project with King’s College London and the University of Edinburgh.
The resulting report, Creative Majority, publishes a framework of five guiding principles which it says will lead to immediate and long-lasting change. It also makes a series of recommendations to the government and businesses.
The UK’s creative industries remain unrepresentative of the population as a whole, the report says.
Straight, able-bodied, white men living in London are only 3.5% of the UK population, it highlights, but “this small minority still dominates the creative sector, and in particular occupy a vast number of the most senior creative roles”.
Chi Onwurah MP, co-chair of the APPG for Creative Diversity, said the coronavirus pandemic has deepened this issue with fewer creative organisations and job opportunities for diverse talent.
Disabled people, younger workers, those not engaged in higher education and mothers are among the employees hardest hit by the pandemic. Individuals from a minoritised racial group have also been hit hard. Employment in the arts and entertainment sectors for women in those groups has fallen by 44%, more than any other group in any industry.
“Without action, we risk exacerbating inequalities further in the creative industries and an entire generation of talent – the future of the sector – could be lost,” Onwurah warned.
As part of the research, roundtables were conducted to gather evidence about diversity and inclusion in the creative industries. Among those participating were Sam Friedman, associate professor of sociology at London School of Economics and commissioner at the Social Mobility Commission, who said:
“In most of these industries there’s a kind of historical legacy of who’s done this kind of work in the past and how they’ve been able to embed, even institutionalise, their own ways of being that still, in the present, are able to shape taken-for-granted ideas about who is appropriate to promote and progress, and that’s basically the legacy of white, privileged men in this country in almost every elite industry.
“What’s being valued is a misrecognition of merit that tilts in favour of behavioural codes and forms of self-presentation that dominant groups and yes, people from privileged backgrounds but also this is hugely racialised and gendered, around acceptable ways of being in the workplace.”
Robert Adediran, EDI consultant and former executive director at London Music Masters, said:
“There’s a strong sense that everyone who is at the top is there because they are the best people for the role and that’s very damaging because it prevents us from looking for talent elsewhere.
“In music, particularly classical, there’s a sense that the art form has reached a pinnacle, that it could not possibly get any better than it already is. Again, that is very dangerous because it robs one of the key drivers for diversity and inclusion, which is to make the art form better. There isn’t the drive to bring new people in to change things and to push a more creative output or a better creative output.”
Miranda Wayland, BBC head of creative diversity, said:
“We can’t really be effective until we tackle the question of what ‘good’ really looks like. I can sit here and come up with different metrics about how diversity of thought and diversity of inclusion in our recruitment practices are really at the heart of it, but if those people who are making decisions aren’t really thinking about what good looks like, no initiative, no scheme, no target that we’ve all been imbedded in supporting over the last 10, 15, 30 years, is going to make a difference.
“We need to break the illusion that ‘good’ only comes in a certain package, from a certain background, with a certain title and a certain destination.”
The report said the creative industries have many lessons to learn from how society has adapted to big changes in the way people work.
Working from home, collaborating remotely and new safety measures show that “change, on a massive scale, is possible in a short time frame”, the report said. “The same momentum now needs to be applied to equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI).”
The report publishes five principles as a framework for good and effective practice that it says should act as benchmarks for anyone wanting to see results in EDI.
The five principles are:
Read more detail about the framework in the full report.
The report also makes a series of recommendations to policymakers and creative organisations.
It says: “This report represents a challenge and represents a demand. It offers a chance for policymakers, along with organisations and businesses, to step up and to lead.
“We need bold and visionary leadership to support diversity in the creative economy. As our report shows, the challenges are great. Yet, bold and visionary leadership will reap the rewards of a diverse workforce and audience. It is a challenge to which we need policymakers to rise.”
The recommendations to government include:
The recommendations to creative industry businesses and organisations include:
This event is a practical series of five virtual sessions to set you on the right track with your diversity & inclusion (D&I) efforts. It will help you make sense of what D&I means for your business, why it matters, and how to turn the conversation into action. You’ll get insights, tools and techniques to help you overcome any fears and obstacles, before starting to develop a plan.
The first session has already taken place but book the remaining four sessions by 9.30am on 6 October and you’ll be sent a recording of the first session along with the presentation slides.
Sign up here. Bristol Creative Industries members get £75 off the ticket price.
Prolonged work stress and burnout are on the rise in employees according to a study conducted last year by Indeed. The findings showed that over half of those that took the study (52%) had experienced burnout in 2021 and that burnout is affecting employees of all ages and types of workers in 2022.
Encouraging and supporting employee wellbeing is becoming more of a concern for management and those in positions of leadership. Having happy and healthy employees is good for productivity, talent retention, and for the long term success of a business- but it’s also a concern on a very human level. For those managing and caring for a team of people, it’s hard to watch anyone struggle.
But how do you ensure that you are making the right steps for employee wellbeing? There are many solutions, but it all depends on the nature of your organisation and the people working within it. Companies such as Bumble and Nike have made headlines by giving their staff a week off to re-energise and others such as Google have wellness programmes that allow staff to spend more time with their families, choose how they best recharge, and allow them to pursue fulfilment outside of the office.
You don’t have to be a massive, global company to implement staff wellness practices. In fact, many small businesses and start-ups that rely on the efforts of a small, dedicated team have found the benefits of having a rewards package that looks after employee mental health.
At Yuup, we offer businesses the opportunity to purchase experience vouchers as rewards for their employees or to book group wellness sessions to refresh and rejuvenate their team. With a diverse range of lifestyle and wellness hosts and experiences on Yuup, we have something to suit and support any team.
One of the biggest issues plaguing the office is the lack of a decent night’s sleep. Irregular sleeping patterns, bad sleep habits, and disrupted sleep can cause fatigue, burnout, stress, and illness.
Working together with our host Giles, you’ll embark on a journey to demystify sleep and discover solutions to this nightly battle. As a coach, mentor, and author of ‘Positive Sleep – A Holistic Approach to Resolve Sleep Issues and Transform Your Life’, Giles has overcome his own obstacles with sleep and insomnia and is prepared to guide you through your own recovery.
After the session you will receive a copy of his book to take home and continue your journey.
We have a number of experiences to enjoy with Breathe Meditation, both for individuals and groups. This experience, in particular, is an excellent idea for team-building with a difference. Instead of after-work drinks or a challenge to get the cogs going, it might make a refreshing change to go for something that boosts everyone’s mood and gives you all time to connect on a deeper level.
Encourage harmony and peace among coworkers with a work lunch like no other.
Clare is an artist currently studying to become an art therapist. With a wealth of knowledge in emotional healing and de-stressing, Clare will guide you and your team through unwinding through both creativity and nature.
Set against the peaceful backdrop of Bridge Farm, their workshops centre around wellbeing and communication and their experience is a great way of creating a safe and open space for colleagues to open up about any internal difficulties they might be experiencing.
We’ve all lost our confidence at one time or another. Self-doubt, low-self esteem, and impostor syndrome can all creep in- especially if we aren’t feeling our best shiny selves. It’s hard to admit if you are lacking or have lost confidence in yourself, and it can seriously affect your performance at work.
Confidence is not all about being good at public speaking or being the loudest voice in the room, it’s about trusting in yourself and your abilities. If you have noticed an employee or colleague that seems to be wavering in their self-belief, offering support in this area could completely change their life and stop them from heading towards burnout or mental distress. Similarly, you might feel that you need to develop your inner cheerleader and would benefit from this one-on-one masterclass in confidence.
Creativity and Community: a Love Story
Calling the laptop cafe junkie, the kitchen table connoisseur and the battle-weary spare room crew. There’s a new way. A way with the flexibility, community and creativity you need at its centre. And the coffee is (probably) way better.
Shared office spaces have been popping up since San Fran paved the way and a generation of freelancers and startups are flourishing. Offices split across cities and a new approach to flexible working from modern start-ups mean that co-working is here to stay.
The benefits of joining a co-working space are as long as your to-do list;
Increased productivity
Spaces designed for your working day and with focus and efficiency in mind. A relaxing, comfortable space to break for a coffee is as important as a heads-down quiet space for deep thinking.
Peers
The inspiration of like-minded souls around you and a friend always on hand to give feedback.
Connections
Co-working spaces can’t promise lifelong friendships, but they do have chats over coffee and someone to share lunchtime with.
A work-life balance to be proud of
You get to go home! A different place to where you work! Such a novelty!
Networking
A whole load of independent, creative businesses looking to work with independent, creative businesses (just like you).
Cost Efficiency
Pay only for the space you need, with the flexibility you need as your business grows into a huge, massive, gigantic billionaire corporation.
Bristol’s favourite co-working space Gather Round know all about the benefits of co-working, and they know exactly what makes the perfect space. The team there couldn’t find what they were looking for so they decided to create their own; a space designed by creatives, for creatives.
After meeting Fiasco Design and Pixelfish at Gather Round and seeing the incredible work they were capable of, working with them on our launch was a natural choice. They helped the vision for Twelve, our sustainability strategy and communications consultancy, become a reality. – Jess Ferrow, Founder of Twelve
Gather Round; Community, Creativity, Collaboration
Bristol is a city long-known for its celebration of creativity. Tastemaking musicians, culture aplenty and a love of art found from the pavements of Clifton to the patched grass of Turbo Island (if you know, you know).
The decision to build a creative business here was a simple one for founders Ben and Jason. After a successful start, their design studio Fiasco Design grew quickly and they found themselves moving studios as they expanded. After struggling to find a workspace that wasn’t a corporate office with extortionate rates and a long term contract, the idea of Gather Round was born.
The Southville residence at the old Cigar Factory proudly hosts creative thinkers and doers that call it home. Morning coffee chats, lunchtime collabs and a deep understanding and respect of one another is something that has happened naturally. They’ve created a space that allows that all to thrive. They’re soon to be heading north of the river to Brunswick Square to hold court for another incredible bunch of creatives.
Why Gather Round?
I met Amelie of Duo Hue when she joined Gather Round. She was looking for some imagery to further her brand, it felt like the perfect collaboration. Sharing a space made the planning and creative process easy and the work we produced featured in national press. – Nic Kane, Photographer/Director
Body
The Gather Round team have a few simple rules; no indoor caravans, tardis-style meeting rooms or beanbags; just beautiful spaces and good design. They’ve got all shapes and sizes covered with roomy co-working areas, permanent desk spaces for freelancers and separate offices for micro-businesses. There are spaces for collaboration, whether you’re musing over an idea, chatting out a project or need a full-blown meeting room to launch your world-takeover plan.
Mind
With Flexi desks, Resi memberships and dedicated studios for small businesses, there are flexible memberships for business needs.
For solo entrepreneurs, micro-businesses or small startups the support of peers is invaluable. Within the community at Gather Round, you’ll find support from like-minded people. Our campfire talks, morning workouts and members breakfasts, fuel the mind and body of all that attend. A day that starts with a croissant amongst friends and ends with a creative discussion on businesses in the climate emergency – is a day well spent.
Soul
Here at Gather Round, they take design seriously. Their buildings are chosen because of their character and soul. You won’t find grey walls, no-spill carpets and budget-friendly lighting. Beauty breeds beauty, and Gather Round have created a space that feels like home. If your home has deep velvet sofas, bespoke shelving and enough plants to start a greenery obsession.
The latest offering in the beautiful Brunswick Square is almost at the ribbon-cutting stage. An almost perfect location with Bristol greats such as Circomedia, Farro Bakery and Yoga on The Square, all just a stone’s throw away. Temple Meads station can be reached in 15 minutes and you can (almost, but not quite) hear the thrum of the city centre close by. They’ve created a slice of creativity in a building steeped in it and it awaits Bristol’s brightest and best.