EDSPACE, a coworking and events space for educational startups in London, have recently moved their entire shared space from Camden to Hoxton. We caught up with Brendan Earley, their superhero community manager, to get all the details behind the space and it’s recent move.

So Brendan, you’re the go-to-guy at EDSPACE, how did you get involved with the lovely worlds of coworking and education startups?

Hello Included, thanks for giving me the chance to elucidate on my passion for co working and education. It’s great to be working with like minded people.

I came into this sector in a rather roundabout way. Previously, I was as a Key Worker for young homeless adults in London. My work involved overseeing 3 homeless shelters, as well as running employment workshops and a social enterprise offering painting and decorating work experience.

Due to changes in government policy we lost a lot of our funding and therefore premises. This left a host of young people in a very difficult situation. I was lucky to have the support network and qualifications to find new employment unlike the majority of the people I worked with. This in turn was a major driver for my move into the education and co working sector. From my experience, the young people I worked with, perceived education in an incredibly negative light. However, it was clear that their employment prospects were diminished by a lack of qualifications.

Therefore when the opportunity arose to manage an eco system of education start ups it made sense to me. To help grow companies whose raison d’etre is to improve learning outcomes and accessibility to education was a no brainer. Furthermore to run a space which hosts such a diverse range of start ups approaching the problem from different perspectives was fascinating.

EDSPACE has recently moved, can you tell us what the motivation behind the move was, other than more space?

The motivation behind the move was two-fold. Firstly we are responding to the growing demand facilitated by increasing investment into the education sector. Our previous HQ could not keep up with demand for space and neither could it offer the facilities we know add value to our community. We wanted to provide a space which meets start ups demands as well as offering a professional setting.

Secondly, as we work with education start ups, we wanted to be based in an educational institution. The reasons for this are two-fold:

1. To be able to offer year round beta testing of students and teachers to give a boost to start ups struggling to procure data around their products.

2. Setting your business in the marketplace in which it will be used will add invaluable insights in to how a school operates and how your product falls within that dynamic.

Amazing things happen in coworking spaces all the time, can you share one moment at edspace that really made you ‘get’ coworking?

Every day is filled with connections and collaboration which brings to mind “getting” coworking as a concept. The most recent instance occurred when the Somaliland government sent a delegation to EDSPACE to learn more about innovation in education. Our community presented their visions and spent time adapting their products to the specific need of the Somaliland Government. Meetings and discussions are ongoing. Being able to draw upon the knowledge and enthusiasm clustered in our space bought home the power of collecting innovation under one roof.

What’s next for EDSPACE in the near future?

EDSPACE is a very ambitious movement. We plan to expand to major city hubs globally and plant the EDSPACE flag as the home of innovation in education. Our unique partnership with Hackney Community College has created a model for us to transplant anywhere which cultivates leadership in this sector.

Further to this we envisage EDSPACE Innovation Hubs being set up in developing countries, whereby teachers can congregate and be exposed to the latest trends and tech advances in education provision.

So there you have it, the latest from EDSPACE, from the gent who knows the what’s what’s behind the scenes. Thanks for your time Brendan and for bringing your space and members into our growing network.