News & Products
CO:WORX - SPACE TO GO FURTHER Co:worx Edgeworthstown is scheduled to open its doors in Q4 2021. The project involves the repurposing of a currently vacant Ulster Bank building on the Main St, which is of significant value to the built heritage of Longford. The repurposing of this fine building with its roots in the past, will become a gateway for the future. Co:worx Digital Hub will have a capacity for 38 workers and the Co:worx CPD Centre, a development centre which has a training capacity for 25 people. What is a digital hub? A Digital Hub is a shared workspace for a range of complementary activities, including commercial businesses, public sector and community organisations. It offers high-speed and cutting-edge technical facilities and services, as well as meeting rooms, event and training spaces, with a focus on connecting and bringing people together. Background to the Co:worx project The building was purchased by Longford County Council in 2017 with the intention of repurposing it as a digital hub. This project was taken on by a newly formed local by voluntary group, the Edgeworthstown Enterprise Hub CLG, including Hugh Quinn, Topline Quinns, who have created the Co:worx project. The project is supported and funded through Town and Village funding, Enterprise Ireland, Regional Enterprise Development Fund, LEADER funding and the Built Heritage Investment Scheme. National Remote Working Strategy Covid-19 has accelerated the digitalisation in the work place by five to eight years. According to the National Remote Work Strategy the pandemic has changed the world of work forever. Remote working offers many benefits such as less commuting, more time for family and leisure, and fewer transport greenhouse gas emissions. Other benefits include job opportunities for people who want to live in rural Ireland, people with disabilities and people with caring responsibilities, who cannot commit to long commutes.
Co:worx will have a dedicated Business Development Manager who will work closely with state agencies and skills providers to deliver remote working employment opportunities and digital programs to meet the needs of the Co:worx community. Their role will be to support individuals and companies and the local business community to network and grow. Co:worx will provide UÊ >ÊÛ LÀ> Ì]Ê Û>Ì ÛiÊ` } Ì> Êi ÌiÀ«À ÃiÊ ÕLÊÜ Ì ÊÌ iÊ connectivity to enable remote working and start-up businesses. UÊ >vv À`>L iÊ vwViÊë>Vi]Ê iiÌ }ÊÀ ÃÊ> `ÊiÛi ÌÊë>ViÊ for start-up businesses and support the digitalisation of community groups. UÊ >VViÃÃÊÌ Ê v À >Ì Ê> `ÊÌ iÊ«À Ì Ê vÊÀi ÌiÊ working opportunities via remote working, digitalisation and business networking events. UÊ >ÊÀ> }iÊ vÊÀià }Ê> `ÊÕ«Ã }ÊÌÀ> }ÊV ÕÀÃiÃÊvÀ Ê basic digital literacy and English language courses (in conjunction with the local ETB) and higher-level courses (in conjunction with Athlone Institute of Technology and Skillsnet Ireland). The indirect project impacts, such as the repurposing of a listed building, increased activity on the main street and the attraction of other professional services to the town are of equal importance. Digitisation is a powerful force for sustainable change for a rural community. The Edgeworthstown Co:worx project has been nationally recognised for its digital plan in the .IE Digital Town awards. This project will lead this change through promoting the uptake of digital services for local businesses, providing tailored digital literacy and digital skills for the promotion and awareness of remote working opportunities to the community. As the Rural Plan 2021 – 2025 identifies, these Co:worx initiatives have a unique opportunity to reimagine and re-value what rural Ireland means to the economy and to society and to more fully embrace the interdependence between rural and urban areas in a way that maximises the benefits for both. Developing digital capability is critical for business sustainability of the town and the surrounding community going forward.
Members of the Edgeworthstown Enterprise Hub CLG, including Hugh Quinn, Topline Quinns with Leo Varadkar TD, Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. July/August 2021
15
