Smithfield Works has been appointed by an expanding tech group as its venue of choice for 2024 – with all of its meet ups set to be hosted in the city centre office space.
PHP Stoke, a networking group for PHP developers – has used Smithfield Works since its formation in January 2023; however, this is the first significant investment the group has made, agreeing to hold every 2024 event at the venue.
PHP Stoke founders – James Brooks, software engineer at Laravel, and Andy and Rich Jones – from Aware Digital – use Smithfield’s communal area to host its 65-strong-and-growing group for its quarterly meetups. The group utilises the facility’s gigabit broadband, projection technology and kitchen facilities.
James said: “We’ve used Smithfield Works since we began at the start of last year and, as our group has grown quicker and bigger than anticipated, this year we were keen to lock down an official PHP Stoke venue and contract a space for our gatherings.
“In a room full of 60 plus people it still feels like an intimate gathering of minds, with a real sense of community. It’s a brilliant space to have speakers but also to allow people to mingle and network in a relaxed environment – it really does tick all of our boxes.”
Adele Simmons, community manager at Smithfield Works, added: “We are absolutely delighted to be PHP Stoke’s official venue. The workspace was designed to be sector agnostic and flexible enough, with a wide range of options, to suit the varying needs of modern businesses – even online companies need a physical space to get together at times!
“The communal area works so well for the PHP Stoke meet ups and it is a joy to see the room full of people, learning and opportunities and we’re talking to a number of delegates about our hot desk and membership options.”
