UKGBC announces participants in new Wellbeing Lab for retail

The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has today announced the participants in the second year of its Wellbeing Lab programme.

The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has today announced the participants in the second year of its Wellbeing Lab programme. The Lab this year focuses on retail property and provides seven months’ of knowledge exchange and hands-on collaborative learning to help understand the business case for retail spaces that support the health and wellbeing of shoppers and retail workers.

The Wellbeing Lab for Retail, which is sponsored by Forbo Flooring UK and Hoare Lea, follows the successful completion of UKGBC’s first ever Wellbeing Lab, which focused on offices. The Lab process involves a range of teams from across disciplines working together to address wellbeing challenges in a specific sector.

Participants in UKGBC’s Wellbeing Lab for Retail include:

  • BuroHappold
  • Carbon Credentials
  • CETEC
  • The Crown Estate
  • Ellandi
  • EVORA
  • Forbo Flooring UK
  • Haskoll
  • Hoare Lea
  • La Salle Investment Management
  • JLL
  • John Lewis Partnership
  • Liverpool ONE
  • Marks and Spencer
  • Northern Rail
  • StudioDS
  • Workman

Each organisation will bring a live project to the lab, in the form of retail property they are working on, or one that they occupy. UKGBC will support each of the organisations as they measure and monitor key indicators in that building – including indoor environmental data; the experience of shoppers and store staff; and the economic impact on employers.

Lab participants will receive expert guidance on the data gathering and interrogation process to identify areas for improvement. The group will meet regularly for the duration of the programme to discuss their findings, progress and pitfalls in implementing key health and wellbeing interventions in their buildings.

The Lab will culminate with a showcase event, to provide the group with the opportunity to share their experiences, which will then be made available for the wider industry to learn from. This will help address one of the most common demands from the industry for more ‘real life’ evidence on the link between building design and commercial benefits.

John Alker, Campaign and Policy Director at UKGBC, said:

“I am very pleased that we have been able to bring together such a diverse range of participants from across the retail property sector to take part in this exciting project. It demonstrates the growing interest in wellbeing-centred design and the benefits it can bring.

“However, it’s vital that we turn interest into decisive action. The Lab will help companies quantify the benefits of healthy shopping and working environments, which can support the business case for developing and occupying more sustainable, healthy retail spaces. It will also provide useful and applicable knowledge for us to share with others.”

Mark Bauer, Environment Specialist at Forbo Flooring UK, said:

“We are delighted to have been invited to sponsor the Wellbeing Lab for retail which builds on our participation in the inaugural Wellbeing Lab for offices. We recognise the excellent learning opportunity these Labs present to both participants and other interested parties who can assimilate the learnings and experiences and then apply them to their own spaces in order to create a healthier environment”.

James Ford, Partner at Hoare Lea, said:

“We are delighted that the Wellbeing Lab programme has chosen retail spaces as its focus this year.  Hoare Lea are proud to have contributed to pioneering advancements in sustainable retail development.  We are pleased to support this collaboration to further enhance the value of retail spaces and celebrate people-centred design”

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