Project guidance
Planning an occupied-office repaint
A practice can agree a colour quickly and still have an unresolved programme. Work through the room-release plan first: who leaves, what stays, where the work moves next and who decides that a space can reopen.
Name rooms by the decisions they need
Begin with a floor plan and a list of the spaces involved. Record the use of each room, its fixed furniture and any sensitive contents. Separate client-facing rooms from staff-only areas and identify the shared circulation between them. A person coordinating the practice should approve the sequence and communicate changes to everyone relying on those spaces.
Release the contents as well as the room
Agree who moves files, books, IT equipment and artwork before a room is handed over. Mark furniture that must remain and define the protection required around it. Confirm whether fitted shelves or cupboards are included in the decoration. If a room cannot be cleared as expected, revisit its scope and timing before another phase is affected.
Give preparation its own working window
Discuss filling, sanding and repairs separately from applying the finish. A quieter painting session may be possible outside normal office hours, but noisy activity has different restrictions in Camden and the City. Ask the building manager for any additional conditions, including arrangements for adjoining homes. The preferred hours need to be feasible for every stage involved.
Sources: Camden: noisy building works; City of London: construction noise
Agree one sample record before proceeding
Bring wall and joinery samples together in the room’s installed lighting. Note product, colour and sheen against each component, with one authorised decision-maker for approval. If several floors follow a common scheme, record exceptions clearly. A meeting-room feature wall or retained timber bookcase should not be left to interpretation when the practice is closed.
Define what handover means
The end of a painting session is not automatically the moment a room can be occupied normally. Consider ventilation and the selected products’ requirements, then allow for cleaning and inspection. Decide who receives the room, checks the agreed surfaces and records outstanding items. Keep the finish schedule so later changes to desks or fittings can be discussed against the correct specification.
A Holborn decorating brief
Bring the rooms
into the conversation.
Tell us how the property is used, which surfaces need attention and who will approve the work. For an office, include the hours when rooms are available; for a home, let us know what will remain in place.
Describe the proposed work
Include the Holborn address, the rooms or frontage involved, and any restrictions set by the building manager.