Designing a Neuroinclusive Workplace: Arup's Birmingham Office at One Centenary Way

After a decade outside Birmingham, Arup returned to the city center with a workplace designed around neuroinclusion. HOK’s interiors team reimagined 68,000+ square feet of speculative shell space as a “living lab” for 900 people—organized around six modes of work, from focus and mindfulness zones to adaptable collaboration neighborhoods with “fuzzy boundaries” that shift as teams evolve. After a decade outside Birmingham, Arup returned to the city center with a workplace designed around neuroinclusion. HOK’s interiors team reimagined 68,000+ square feet of speculative shell space as a “living lab” for 900 people—organized around six modes of work, from focus and mindfulness zones to adaptable collaboration neighborhoods with “fuzzy boundaries” that shift as teams evolve. The project helped boost office attendance by 10%, with employees reporting fewer headaches and less fatigue, and the all-electric building achieved WELL Platinum and BREEAM Excellent while exceeding UK Green Building Council sustainability targets.

Get a sneak peek inside this high-performance office to see how neuroinclusive planning, flexible space typologies, and wellness-forward amenities can translate into measurable results.