How a Revamped Office Garden Could Benefit Your Business
If you want to ensure your employees are happy and productive at work, it’s time to turn your attention to your outdoor space.
If you’re a company with a garden space that’s looking a little worse for wear, why not create an outdoor haven for your employees? Numerous studies have proven that time outside is essential for good mental and physical health, and giving your staff somewhere to go outside of their working environment will help them refresh and ‘reset’ during breaks and lunch hours.
With a little imagination and some reclaimed materials, you will be able to create an office garden that keeps your team happy and content all year round.
Getting outside
We spend around 95% time of our time inside, which is actually no good for our wellbeing at all.
Spending time in the fresh air can reduce stress, lower blood pressure and boost the immune system. And as you know, a healthier and happier workforce means higher productivity and better results.
Companies in the US have already started to invest in outdoor workspaces, so it could be time for UK businesses to follow suit. Whether you’re creating a commercial garden that will be solely yours or you’ll be sharing your space with other teams, you’ll soon find that the landscape will become a popular meeting place for workers who appreciate the benefits of being outside, even if it’s only for a few minutes a day.
Designing your garden
Try to create some zones in your outdoor space. You should start with an accessible, paved area with tables and chairs that will allow staff to take their laptops outside to work. Of course, life shouldn’t be all work and no play – so develop an area that can equally be used for relaxing and socialising with colleagues. Things like jumbo puzzle games, football tables and giant chess sets are great for adding interest to the space and encouraging important team building exercises, which is essential for great workplace relationships. A space for dining is a good idea too, as this will be a great place to host business lunches and functions.
Savvy investments
Understandably, you are going to want to keep the cost of creating your workplace garden as low as possible to keep unnecessary overheads at aby. Using reclaimed materials in your outside space may help you to save money, and many of these goods will have much more character than mass-produced modern products. Perhaps more importantly, using reclaimed products will help to boost your company’s green credentials, as you’ve kept these materials out of landfill.
If you don’t want to pay for a gardener to maintain your grass all year round, then opt for a one-off investment in an artificial lawn. It will stay green all year round, will stand up to heavy use, and will never need to be mowed!
Using your new outdoor space
So how can you make use of your new outdoor haven all year? Well, taking meetings outside is a great way to get a daily dose of nature without having to sacrifice any time spent on your work.
Having your own commercial garden will allow you to give back to the community, too. You could offer your outdoor space to local charities to use for events, or put on a weekly yoga or exercise class for your staff. If the weather isn’t playing ball – as is often the case in Britain! – then make sure you have plenty of sheltered areas to keep dry and warm. Oh, and invest in some robust patio heaters for those chillier days too!
A space for you all to enjoy
Now that you can see how easy it is to create an outdoor haven for your staff, there’s really no reason not to invest in your corporate landscape. Not only will developing an outdoor space leave you all feeling happier and healthier, you’ll see productivity increase thanks to the time you all spend outside every day. Whether your revamped outdoor space is big or small, it will serve your team well for many years to come.