Community building and workspaces

Shared places and regular get-togethers that help people find work, start something or simply see other people: community workspaces in different countries, makers' circles for people 50+, and neighbourhood groups.

Discuss a community and workspace pilot All programme ideas

Why it matters

  • 1 in 6 people worldwide is affected by loneliness, which is linked to about 871,000 deaths a year. WHO, 2025
  • In the EU, 13% of people say they feel lonely most or all of the time. EU Loneliness Survey, JRC, 2022
  • In Latvia, 43% of people aged 65 and over are at risk of poverty or social exclusion, more than double the EU average of 19%. Eurostat, 2025
  • By August 2025, Ireland's Connected Hubs network brought together 392 remote-working hubs, including commercial and community ones. Commercial hubs that received grants had to give back 25% of the grant's value over three years as free or cheaper space for social enterprises and local students. Comptroller and Auditor General, Ireland, 2025
  • In Spain, the Holapueblo programme, backed by Redeia, IKEA and AlmaNatura, reports helping 215 people settle in rural villages and supporting 58 new businesses since 2019. Redeia, 2025 (programme figures)

Programmes

Each one is scoped with you: place, budget, timing and what we measure. A first pilot runs in one place for a few months.

  • Community workspaces in different countries

    Worldwide

    Fund desks, internet and training in partner venues, with free places for job-seekers, students and social enterprises.

    We count
    Desk-days used (from a booking log), share of free places used
    We look for
    Businesses started and still active after 12 months, people who found work

  • 50+ makers' circles

    Worldwide

    Regular craft and social sessions such as weaving, mending and tea, shaped by the people who come.

    We count
    Sessions held, participants
    We look for
    People who keep coming, change in loneliness (the same question as the EU survey, answered anonymously)

  • Neighbourhood connectors

    Worldwide

    Help residents start and keep up shared activities in their own area, from a walking group to a repair corner.

    We count
    Activities started, participants
    We look for
    Activities still running after 6 months, volunteers who stay

How we report it

Every report keeps what we counted apart from what changed, says how each number was measured, and lists what the data can't show. Where it helps your own reporting, we map the data to:

  • B4SI: inputs, outputs and impacts of community investment
  • GRI 413-1: local community engagement and impact assessment
  • ESRS S3: affected communities, if your group reports under the EU sustainability rules
  • UN SDG target 10.2: social and economic inclusion of all, and 11.7: safe, inclusive public spaces

Rules we follow here

On top of our general rules: no gambling promotion, recognition only where the law allows it, independent partners and open books.

  • Booking and check-in start on the first day, so use can be shown rather than guessed. Ireland's auditor could not measure how much its hubs were used.

  • Free places go to the people they are meant for, and reports show how many were used.

  • Questions about loneliness are voluntary and anonymous.

Start a pilot

Your staff run a workshop or a mentoring morning at a partner space. Tell us the countries you operate in, your timing and a rough budget, and we will reply with a pilot outline.

Email info@cuthere.lv How we work