4th Mar 2021
A new look and feel for WorkLife Central
We have some exciting news about a behind-the scenes project we’ve been working on… the revamp of our own offices at WorkLife Central in Ashby.
Although our business is very much rooted in the same values as we were at the start, we’ve evolved in many ways as a result of the desire to create workplace environments that are designed with people using them in mind. The last couple of years has seen a progression in our internal ways of working and thinking, as well as more focus being placed on workplace wellbeing and mental health. So it was time to transform elements of our office space to reflect this.
Our focus on designing spaces that revolve around human health and wellbeing has always been important, but it has a renewed focus. Our Designer Rebecca is now a workplace wellbeing specialist, having become a WELL Standard Accredited Practitioner in 2020. We’ve been exploring other ways that commercial office design can positively influence how employees feel about being at work through our research into the Human Givens model.
Of course, WorkLife Central is a space not only for our team to enjoy and work productively within, but for the wider East Midlands business community to visit and explore in order to experience how a well-designed office looks, feels, and functions.
We’re looking forward to receiving visitors again, but in the meantime, here’s a glimpse at some of our favourite highlights from the refurbishment.
Fun in the kitchen and work café
Our team love to innovate and share ideas over a coffee to keep us going throughout the day. In the kitchen, we’ve added a fun quote to the wall to personalise the space and give it a more casual feel than the rest of the office.
This space is where our team to come to have lunch, grab a drink with clients, or to relax away from their desks.
A Zee Bench table from Spacestor creates a central seating area, paired with Cavatina chairs from Steelcase in a range of options to show the product’s versatility.
Two Sixteen3 darcy tub chairs, and a two-seater Fence Booth from Pledge have been added to create two smaller seating spaces.
Bringing design to life in the project lab
Our Project Lab was already one of the most-used spaces in our office as it’s where design ideas transform into visual representations, but we think it’s going to be even more popular now! It’s a good job the area now benefits from a GoBright device that glows green when it’s available and red when it’s booked.
A new interactive digital screen and audio system have been installed by our technology partner TecInteractive (who installed all the new tech throughout the building), with airplay to easily connect devices. This means remote screensharing can be used effectively in video calls as well as face-to-face sessions.
When The Project Lab isn’t being used for meetings, the digital screen displays project images and information about our team.
We also have new resources for holding workplace design consultancy sessions with clients, or internal design team concept and ideas workshops. A new peg board surrounds the Project Lab screen where samples and swatches can be displayed to bring the clients’ new workplace fit outs to life during design presentations.
Tech-enabled agile workspaces
As well as in the project lab, we’ve installed new technology throughout the office, both upstairs and downstairs.
The large open space downstairs has been styled using furniture that promotes agile working and technology to keep it adaptable to our team’s changing needs. The movable screen can be moved across to the booth seating for small team sessions, or used elsewhere for larger team meetings. This enables our clients to see what is possible and how it might function within their own workspace.
The Shed and the Boardroom both have brand new video conferencing set ups, as does the collaboration space under the stairs – which also has a write-on wall display that our team often use for generating ideas at the start of projects.
Upstairs work café
Our upstairs work café has benefitted from more plants and biophilia (thanks to our friends at Plant Plan!).
We’ve created a larger table in this space, reusing the existing legs and fitting a new top. The bench seating alongside the table is from Pledge – they’re modular so we can change the table layout for times when we’re hosting events and workshops.
We’re now looking forward to filling this space with people again when we can safely do so.
Concentration spaces
The rest of the upstairs space has probably seen the biggest transformation.
We’ve used furniture, technology, and clever acoustics to form a series of spaces for smaller groups or individuals to work quietly.
The two-seater Residents Meet booth from Spacestor provides a private workspace for one or two people. As you enter, the lights come on and there’s power so laptops or phones can be charged too.
We use lots of Steelcase products in our projects, so this space seemed like the perfect area to demonstrate how versatile their office furniture products are.
The Bivi desk from is an agile working setup that’s easy to configure to your needs. We’ve set it up as a breakout space for a few people.
The Flex sit stand desk is another ergonomic piece that can be customised to individual needs. As well as being height adjustable, the acoustic surround on the desk is magnetic for easy removal when needed.
Steelcase’s B-Free modular seating is also used here. We’ve opted for a bag drop with a power point on one of the seats as it creates an ideal little space for those times when a more relaxed seating position is required to get those final bits of work done – without running out of charge!
The Share It collection is also great for creating collaborative spaces in open plan office areas. You can opt for a high or low table, connect cupboards, extend it or adapt it depending on what works best for your people. Here’s how we’re using it.
Graphics to reflect our brand values
Another notable change is the installation of wall graphics to spaces where there were opportunities to convey our brand values and personality.
As well as new kitchen graphics downstairs, we’ve installed a welcome message that our team and visitors will see as they walk in. We particularly like the phrase ‘designed for creative minds to thrive’ – it encapsulates what our space is designed to do, and what we do for our clients!
Upstairs, our boardroom is now branded inside and out. Outside you can see an origami bird taking flight. It reflects the essence of our work – to bring ideas to life and see our clients thrive in their new spaces.
Inside the boardroom our slogan ‘Making Space Work’ has been placed on the wall so it can be seen in the background by those dialling in for video calls.
‘We Grow Together’ has been added above the screen upstairs to remind us of the great things we produce on a daily basis when we work effectively collectively as a team with our clients and our supply chain partners.
Take a look around
We can’t stress enough how valuable it is to see how it all works together in practice. A visit to WorkLife Central enables you to and see the space in real life. You can see designs, talk to the team, try out the furniture and tech – and of course, you’ll be able sample the great coffee from 200 degrees coffee!
If you’d like to come and see us when things open up again, simply get in touch and we’ll contact you when we’re able to welcome you.