Thursday 4 June & Friday 5 June
The agenda is fluid and we reserve the right to adapt programming. Speakers are added as they are confirmed.
Event Schedule
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Arrival
Info
Arrive early and connect. This isn't a queue-for-coffee-and-check-your-phone registration. It's an hour of facilitated networking designed to break the ice before the day begins. Coffee, conversation and the chance to meet the people you'll be learning alongside all day.
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Welcome to GCUC UK
Info
Join Emilie Lashmar, GCUC UK Director and Producer, and James Panepinto, Group Ancillary Revenue Manager at Clockwise and UK chair of Future Leaders of Coworking, as they open GCUC UK Manchester with an energising welcome.
Speakers
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The Rise of the Regional Flex Market
Presentation
The UK has over 4,400 coworking spaces and the fastest growth is happening outside the M25. With live market data, this session unpacks the numbers behind the regional flex boom and the rapid rise of enterprise demand. Where is supply growing fastest? Why are corporates choosing flex over traditional leases? And what does this mean for operators and investors positioning for the next phase of growth? Essential viewing for anyone making decisions about where and how to grow.
Speakers
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Beyond the RSVP
Panel
The coworking industry talks about community constantly. It measures it rarely. This session makes the commercial case for changing that, and hears from operators and specialists who are already doing the work to prove what belonging is actually worth.
Speakers
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Mid Morning Break
Info
Time to refuel, revisit the exhibition space and continue the conversations started in the morning sessions.
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The Regional Opportunity + The Data Gap
Panel
The strongest case for regional flex is being made by the operators already doing it. This session brings together people who've built and scaled coworking businesses outside London for an honest conversation about what the economics actually look like. WIN, the operator-led data collective, will share what the numbers say and make the case for why more regional voices need to be contributing to them. Part panel, part call to action.
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Lunch
Info
A proper lunch break. Eat, network, explore the exhibition and recharge before the afternoon workshops.
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Workshops and Roundtables
Workshop
The best conversations at GCUC UK don’t always happen on stage. These sessions go deeper, with smaller groups, honest dialogue, and the kind of peer-to-peer exchange you won’t find anywhere else. Come with your questions, your challenges, and your shortcuts. Leave with something you can actually use.
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Workshop 1: The OpenOps Project: What Does It Actually Cost?
Hosted by: Ben Newton, Operations Director, Patch
The hotel industry has had shared cost benchmarking for 40 years. Coworking has nothing. Patch put their real P&L data into the open and built a free tool for operators to compare supplier costs on a like-for-like basis. In this roundtable, Ben shares the numbers, runs a quick exercise to test your assumptions, and opens the floor to help design the framework. If you have ever wondered whether you are overpaying for cleaning, utilities, or internet, and had nobody to ask, this session is for you.
Speakers
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Early Afternoon Break
Info
A short break between workshops and the afternoon main stage sessions.
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The Generous Operator
Panel
The premise is simple: you have to earn the right to be generous. This session is about the commercial work that creates the headroom for the gestures that matter, whether that's for your members, your team, or your wider community. Three speakers from across flex, property, and living bring different angles to the same question: what does it look like when financial rigour and genuine hospitality stop being in tension?
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Late Afternoon Break
Info
A short pause before the closing fireside chat.
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Building Manchester: Fireside
Fireside Chat
A conversation about the future of city-making. This session explores how culture, creativity and long-term thinking shape successful regeneration — and what Manchester’s evolution reveals about the next chapter for regional cities.
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Drinks Reception
Info
The day doesn't end when the sessions do. Join us for drinks, conversation and the kind of connections that only happen when the formalities are over.
