Sheffield Hallam University awarded for '˜exemplary workplace'

Sheffield Hallam University has been presented with a prestigious workplace award following its successful refurbishment of a prominent city centre building - making it the first academic institution in the country to be recognised in this way.

The University has received the prestigious Leesman+ award for its Bryan Nicholson building, formerly Arundel House, at Furnival Square in Sheffield. This international accreditation recognises exemplary high performing workplaces by examining how buildings are designed and managed in order to support and improve the experience of staff.

Sheffield Hallam bought the former Arundel House in 2013 and transformed it into a modern, dynamic space for around 140 University staff. In addition to sporting an impressive new façade the building boasts areas for collaborative work, quiet work spaces, meeting areas, social spaces and drop-in work areas. The new building has supported the introduction of innovative new working practices, giving staff increased flexibility in how they work and better utilising the space available on city campus.

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The Leesman+ award was presented to the University’s Director of Estates and Facilities, Mark Swales, at the Bryan Nicholson building. He said: “We’ve implemented a number of innovative working practices for the staff who work in this building. This has been embraced by the teams and this is shown by the fantastic achievement of securing the Leesman+ award.

“This refurbishment is just one of the many projects the University is involved in that is helping to contribute to the development of the city centre. Our new Charles Street building opened in 2016 and the restoration of the former Head Post Office – now home to the Sheffield Institute of Arts - has brought an iconic local landmark back to life.”

The Leesman+ accreditation is awarded to those workplaces that achieve a Leesman Lmi workplace effectiveness score of 70 or more on its 100 point scale. To date only 45 buildings have attained this certification. The achievements of this select group are now helping other organisations understand the constituent factors of high performance workplaces.