Launch your creative practice with a Starter Desk at Spike Island Workspace

Spike Island Workspace is launching a new Starter Desk scheme, offering discounted co-working memberships for emerging creative practitioners looking to establish themselves in Bristol.

For a limited time, successful applicants will receive a substantial discount on a designated desk for their first three months, giving them the opportunity to build their practice within one of the city’s most diverse creative communities.

Whether you’re developing a freelance career or growing a new creative business, at Spike Island Workspace you’ll work alongside artists, designers, filmmakers, architects, writers, makers and other creative professionals, with opportunities to connect, collaborate and become part of a thriving cultural community.

Who can apply?

The Starter Desk scheme is open to people who are either:

• Within two years of completing a further or higher education course in any creative discipline.
• Within the first two years of self-employment or building an independent creative practice or business.

Successful applicants must begin their membership by February 2027.

Why we’re introducing the scheme

Breaking into the creative industries can be challenging. Rising studio costs, the isolation of working from home and limited access to professional networks often make it difficult for emerging practitioners to establish sustainable careers.

The Starter Desk scheme has been developed to help remove some of these barriers by providing an affordable route into a professional creative workspace. It is designed to support early-career creatives at a pivotal moment in their development, while encouraging a more diverse and representative creative community at Spike Island.

We particularly welcome applications from people who are currently underrepresented within Bristol’s cultural sector.