Responsible office fit-out toolkit published by Building Better Partnerships

Commercial property trade body Building Better Partnerships (BBP) has today published its latest free industry guidance – Responsible Fit-Out Toolkit: Offices. The Toolkit claims to provide guidance for owners and occupiers on how to integrate sustainability and wellbeing into an office fit-out. The authors claim that while workplace design plays a pivotal role in demonstrating a business’s values and can have an immense impact on the comfort and productivity of those working within and visiting a space, opportunities are rarely fully appreciated.

Developed with the input of BBP members, the Toolkit claims to cover the whole fit-out cycle from search criteria through to design, construction and finally occupation. Each section identifies key points of intervention where owners and occupiers can engage on sustainability risks and opportunities. It also provides occupiers with a suite of design principles to help support conversations with design teams and contractors.

The Toolkit claims to be the first fully on-line resource developed by the BBP, ensuring that it can continue to reflect evolving standards and best-practice. The Toolkit already features many case studies from its members and the BBP is calling on the wider real estate sector to review its content and provide further case studies. The BBP will now start work on a similar Toolkit for the retail sector.

Louise Ellison, Head of Sustainability, Hammerson and Chair of the BBP said: “This long-needed practical guidance on delivering a sustainable office fit out is important for all parties involved in what are often complex projects. Freely available, easily accessed advice that will assist teams in delivering a markedly superior product for clients and ultimately for people working in our offices is absolutely where our industry needs to head, and I am delighted the BBP has been able to deliver this.”

Neil Pennell, Head of Design, Innovation and Product Solutions, Landsec, “As one of the UK’s leading commercial property companies, our properties undergo a huge number of fit-outs each year, so this Toolkit will prove a valuable source of best practice that we can freely share with our customers, helping them to sustainably fit out their space and improve the occupier experience for their staff.  And as a company that’s also reaping the benefits of our own recent responsible HQ fit-out, we’re delighted we can pass on our knowledge and leadership in creating great workplaces via this Toolkit for the benefit of the wider industry.”