When the Spool Factory co-working hub in Boyle, Co Roscommon, was forced to close due to Covid-19 restrictions, Sarah Marriott regularly parked her camper van in the SuperValu carpark in Ballaghaderreen, switched on her WiFi router and got to work.
The former Irish Times journalist was on the road three or four days a week before the pandemic, visiting clients of her company, Plain English Ireland, which specialises in teaching writing and communications skills to professionals.
The arrival of Covid-19 meant Marriott’s visits to offices around Ireland had to stop and saw her become immersed in a world of Zoom meetings and online teaching.
Marriott lives in rural Co Roscommon, where the wifi is “fine for Netflix and for editing” but not reliable enough for someone tasked by a company with providing training for dozens of its workers. Finding a spot with a reliable internet connection led to some difficult moments for her.
“I was on a Zoom meeting one day in the supermarket carpark and someone knocked on the window, asking how much I wanted for the van,” she says.
When remote-working hubs reopened in May, life got less stressful, as Marriott could return to the Spool Factory. She does not expect Monday’s latest easing of restrictions, which will see a phased return to the office begin, to change things too much, as she believes people are hesitant about opening up or going back to workplaces.
No rush back
Brian Nerney, owner of the Spool Factory, which is based in the former headquarters of the Roscommon Herald, also doubts that there will be a mad rush back to city offices.
He is adding 10 “office suites” for those seeking more privacy than that afforded by hotdesks and co-working spaces.
Nerney anticipates future demand will come from people tired of the isolation and back-ache associated with working from the kitchen table, but who are not keen to spend five days a week in the office.
“A lot of my inquiries are long term, people who are not making too many changes until Christmas,” he says. “I think a lot of people are waiting for things to settle down.”
Nerney reckons that from January a lot of employees will be content to spend two or three days a week in the office, and another day or two at home or in a co-working hub.
The Spool Factory opened during lockdown for essential workers who could not work from home due to broadband issues, and ended up facilitating three people.
“One was working for a medical devices company, and another in financial services, which was deemed essential. I asked if they had a plan B, and it seemed to be that they would be out of work,” he says.
Urgent need
While 1,000MB broadband is available in the town of Boyle, access to it through co-working hubs is important for those living in rural areas where connectivity is poor.
“I recently had someone who was on a break in Lough Key Forest Park who suddenly had an urgent work situation to deal with and needed a hot desk ,” he says.
Marriott misses seeing people but does not miss long days on the road, so online working suits her.
“Most of my clients are still remote working, and I think only 50 per cent will go back to the office,” she said. “I wouldn’t be still in business if it wasn’t for the hub. A camper van can get very cold. It’s been a lifeline.”
