Katie Herring, founder of Tribe Zero-Waste, opened the doors of her first brick-and-mortar shop in Faringdon two years ago. Since then she has gone from being the single operator of her business to having four part time staff. As she prepares to graduate from the Makespace community and move into a larger space nearby, we caught up […]
Have you ever wondered who exactly occupies the multiple Makespace buildings across Oxfordshire? With over 200 residents breathing new life into them over the past six years, you’d be forgiven for not keeping track. But all of that is about to change… Launching next month, the Resident Portal is a digital ecosystem designed to showcase the brilliant, […]
Earlier this month our friends at Stir to Action hosted their debut festival The ABCs of the New Economy at the Arts Mansion in Bristol. We were delighted to be a part of it. This two-day interactive event centred around the theme ‘Battling for the Ownership of the UK’s New Social Infrastructure’ and brought together hundreds of […]
Lessons from the ‘Meanwhile in Oxfordshire…’programme Last month we dipped our fingers into our first ever session at this year’s Marmalade Festival – a week of events centred on social change and collaboration. It was an opportunity to invite those that shared and supported our journey through the ‘Meanwhile in Oxfordshire…‘ programme, as well as those wanting […]
This month we are excited to share a deep-dive into the impact and insights of ’Meanwhile in Oxfordshire…‘, £1.9m programme launched in 2021 in partnership with Oxford City Council. With funding secured by OxLEP from the central government’s Getting Building Fund, the programme was developed to transform underused space, support local communities and diversify our urban centres. […]
As 2023 to a close, we’ve taken a trip down memory lane to highlight twelve memorable moments from the last twelve months. It has been a year of firsts, with fresh projects, places and partnerships, and we are so grateful to all those who have been a part of the journey: Here’s cheers to 2023, and to […]
Oxford City Council and Makespace Oxford are pleased to announce 100 organisations have been housed and 200 jobs created or supported through the ‘Meanwhile in Oxfordshire…’ programme since launch. ‘Meanwhile in Oxfordshire…’ launched in February 2021 and was designed to revitalise high streets following the COVID-19 pandemic. By re-purposing otherwise vacant units into independent shops, cultural venues, […]
On Saturday 16th September Makespace residents, collaborators, neighbours and our team gathered to celebrate 5 years at Aristotle Lane. In the summer of 2018 Makespace and its founding partners flung open the doors of the building formerly known as Aristotle House, bringing it back to life after being empty for 4 years. We began with a two-year […]
We’re proud to announce the transformation and opening of a previously derelict day-centre into an affordable, accessible space for local artists, entrepreneurs and community groups wanting to connect and flourish in the centre of Wantage. The recently renovated building, named ‘The Old Stables’ in reference to its historic location, was re-opened in December 2022 by Makespace Oxford, as […]
By Andy Edwards, Executive Director & Co-founder of Makespace Oxford The business of making space in our towns and cities genuinely accessible to all is complex. We are attempting to disrupt a deeply entrenched system in an incremental, pragmatic and positive way now. At the same time we are also daring to dream into an emergent future […]