The Live Work Network offers a service to developers in both public and private sectors. We will consider your development proposal and test whether it conforms to what we believe is a model of true live/work^TM

Broadly, we believe that true live/work is mixed use of a property for both business and residential purposes

Essential ingredients are:

• designed for true work use
• work use monitored
• enterprise supported
• business clustering enabled
• quality broadband
• achieves transport reduction
• offers more than residential home working
• helps cuts costs by combining work and live

Desirable ingredients are:

• shared resources and facilities - a heart/hub
• proximity to move-on work space for expansion
• sufficient scale of development to achieve business impact
• appropriate location, close to key work centres
• links to business/education sectors
• brownfield site
• sustainable impact o­n domestic life

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Afterthought live/work?
Small scale or individual live/work properties can be true live/work. But they cannot easily create clusters of businesses. Units that are part of an overwhelmingly residential development may offer little more than a new build equivalent of a home-working use. In this situation they could therefore be developed as residential....

Homeworking called 'live/work'
Some developers provide residential homes with space for home working - perhaps an extra room with telecom points. Although related to live/work, these properties are better seen as well specified homes. They are harder to describe as true live/work as they can usually offer little more than any property with a spare room

Bogus live/work
Where developers gain planning permission for a 'live/work' scheme when the true intention is a residential development, this gives live/work a bad name. There are good profits to be made buying land designated for employment use then selling homes built o­n it at residential prices. However, if properties are designed for true live/work and planners/developers have ensured there are some controls, true live/work can be achieved