START International strongly believes that the best model for a truly sustainable live/work community is one in which you live close to where you work.

For a community to be truly viable in the long term, there must be an inherent flexibility in the available living and working space, a flexibility which can cope with the changes in personal spatial requirements that inevitably occur during the course of a lifetime. The location of a smaller Innovation Centre within new residential developments as a stand alone building or in a horizontally elongated form with a street frontage means that - rather than having a spare room in a property that can only be used for working - residents are given the opportunity of taking up tenancy in a variety of sizes and types of workspace, as and when they are needed, thereby allowing their businesses to diversify, expand or contract while they remain living in the area.

Within such an environment, the potential for social isolation is reduced and interaction is maximised through access to the Centre's shared spaces and resources - the meeting rooms, exhibition areas and cafés which create a stimulating heart in the midst of a burgeoning community.

By connecting with the Innovation Centre, the work use of the space is monitored, enterprise is supported and business clustering is enabled, leading to a genuine and constantly evolving live/work community, sustainable over time.