Office Refurbishment in London: The Complete Guide

Moving office in London is expensive, disruptive, and often unnecessary. An office refurbishment lets you keep the location your team and clients know while rebuilding the office around how you work now. This guide explains what a London office refurbishment involves, what it costs, and how to run one without stopping the business.

Refurbish or relocate

The first decision is whether your current building can give you what you need. An office refurbishment wins when the location works, the lease has life left in it, and the space is big enough once redesigned. Relocation wins when you need a different size or area, or when the building itself blocks the workplace you want.

The economics favour staying put more often than businesses expect. A move carries rent overlap, dilapidations on the old space, a fit out of the new one, and the hidden cost of downtime. A refurbishment concentrates spend on the workspace itself. We compare the two options in detail in our office refurbishment vs office relocation article.

What a London office refurbishment can include

Refurbishment scales to the job. At the lighter end it refreshes finishes, lighting, and furniture. At the fuller end it strips the floor back and rebuilds the layout, services, and design from scratch. 

• Layout changes: opening up cellular space, adding meeting rooms, or rebalancing desks against collaboration areas for hybrid working.
• New finishes throughout: flooring, decoration, ceilings, and joinery that lift the feel of the space.
• Lighting and acoustics: layered lighting for screen work and calls, with acoustic treatment that keeps open plan workable.
• Reception and client-facing areas: the spaces that carry your brand hardest, rebuilt to earn it.
• Furniture: workstations, meeting furniture, and breakout settings chosen for the new layout rather than inherited from the old one.

Refurbishing while the business runs

Few London businesses can move out for an office refurbishment, and few need to. Contractors experienced in occupied buildings phase the works area by area, section off live zones, and shift noisy trades to evenings and weekends. Building management adds its own rules in multi-tenant buildings, from lift bookings to permitted hours, and a contractor who knows the drill keeps those constraints off your desk. 

Some businesses can make alternative arrangements for their employees, allowing the site to be cleared while continuing to operate. This avoids the need for a phased approach, helping to prevent unnecessary extensions to the project programme and completion timeline. 

Rap Interiors has refurbished offices across the capital this way, including projects for Vestey Holdings, Grosvenor Systems, and Hudl in Islington, along with a reception refurbishment for ASN and a corporate refurbishment for WE Soda completed in 2025.

We Soda

WE Soda appointed Rap Interiors for a second project to design and deliver their ground floor office refurbishment, including a welcoming reception, modern meeting rooms, breakout areas, and a high-end boardroom. The project successfully combined corporate functionality with premium, on-brand design to create a modern workspace supporting the client’s London operations.

What a London office refurbishment costs

The cost of an office refurbishment is driven by how much of the space is being changed. A cosmetic refresh sits well below a full strip-out and rebuild, and the same floor can carry a wide range of budgets depending on specification. As a reference point, full fit out costs in the UK run from around 55 to 120 pounds per square foot in 2026, with refurbishments typically below the equivalent fit out because the shell and some services remain. Our cost guide breaks the figures down by specification, and a measured survey turns them into a quote for your space.

How an office refurbishment project runs

1. Survey and brief: what stays, what goes, and what the new office has to achieve.
2. Design: a layout and scheme that rework the space, tested against how your team works.
3. Costing and programme: a detailed quote with a phasing plan that keeps the business running.
4. The works: a project manager runs the site, the phasing, and coordination with the landlord and building management.
5. Handover: Client hand over and sign-off at completion.

Frequently asked questions

How much does an office refurbishment cost in London?

It depends on scope, from a light refresh to a full strip-out and rebuild. Refurbishments usually cost less than an equivalent fit out because the shell and some services remain. A measured survey and a defined scope produce a reliable quote, which a good contractor provides before you commit.

Can we stay in the office during a refurbishment?

In most cases, yes. Contractors phase the works, section off live areas, and run noisy trades out of hours. It is worth bearing in mind that the programme will take  longer with this approach than an empty-building project, but the business keeps trading throughout.

How long does an office refurbishment take?

A light refurbishment of a smaller office can complete in a few weeks. A full office refurbishment of a larger floor, phased around a working team, can run longer anything lasting from two months and longer.. The programme comes out of the survey and scope, so you know the timeline before works start.

Do we need landlord consent to refurbish?

For works beyond decoration, usually yes. Most leases require a licence for alterations covering layout and services changes. Your contractor should prepare supporting documentation for the application and build the approval time into the programme.

Ready to Start Your London Office Refurbishment?

Do you want to transform your office without moving an inch?

Rap Interiors has more than 30 years’ experience refurbishing offices across London and the South East, from receptions to full workplace transformations, with the business running throughout. From design to build, we cover every aspect of the project.

To book a consultation, please call 0333 600 1234, email refurb@rapinteriors.co.uk or fill out the enquiry form below.