Home businesses risk losing £658 million this summer

For many home business owners in the UK the peaceful working-from-home lifestyle has already been disrupted. Things have become a little noisier since the school bells chimed the start of the summer holidays.

According to recent research by Direct Line for Business, out of the 844,000 home business owners with dependent children, 60% will take time away from their businesses to spend entertaining their children. The holidays will cost home businesses more than £658 million over the six-week period. Home businesses based in the South East will be most affected and are set to lose over £118 million. Homeworkers will spend an average of four hours a day or 20 hours a week of working time with their children, instead of focusing on their business.

If you're a homeworker worry not! There are plenty of things you can do to decrease your chances of losing business this summer. If you're concerned about your losses, here are some simple solutions that could help you keep your business on track.

Home office

The trick is to keep work and leisure time separate and a good way of doing this is with a home office. If you haven't already built a home office, now is the time to do so! Try to spend your usual working hours inside your office space to ensure that you stay motivated, productive and business orientated during these hours. Take regular breaks and spend them with your children, just remember to time them appropriately! It's only natural that you will want to enjoy having fun with the children now they're off school but don't let your business suffer, there's always plenty of time after work!

Flexible workspace

If you're finding working from home too distracting it could be worth investing in a workspace. With a flexible desk you could spend your working hours in a professional office environment, at an affordable price. A flexible desk is a great solution for small business owners; you can have your desk as and when you need it, and there are no long-term contracts.

Virtual office

If you're simply looking to spend less time in work and more time with the kids this summer, a virtual office could be exactly what you need. Choose to have telephone answering services and you can be confident that all of your calls are being taken by a professional receptionist team. Save time this summer with a virtual office package and you will have the power to answer to who you want, when you want.