One Canada Square is the centrepiece of the Canary Wharf Estate and the UK’s third tallest building. Across three interconnected floors, the refurbishment draws on the quiet order of American corporate interiors by Philip Johnson and Mies van der Rohe. Long avenues cut through each 60 m × 60 m floorplate, carrying daylight into the depth of the plan and opening views in every direction. Formerly dark inner zones now feel active, social and clearly connected to the city beyond.
- Location
- Canary Wharf, London
- Size
- 90,000 sqft
- Client
- The Office Group (now Fora)
Before and After
Completed in 1991, the 50-storey tower is extraordinary in scale, yet the depth of each floorplate left the centre difficult to use. Traditionally, the perimeter took the light and the views, while the inner zones became secondary. Our brief with The Office Group (now Fora) was to overturn that hierarchy – making the middle work as well as the edge, while creating a premium flexible workspace that could adapt from four-person suites to much larger teams.
We also wanted people to feel directly connected to their surroundings – the City to the west, Reuters Plaza to the south, Stratford to the north and the wider Canary Wharf skyline to the east. Building on our long collaboration with The Office Group (now Fora), the ambition was to keep evolving the balance between shared and private space, giving members a sense of ownership across the entire floor, rather than only within their office.
We organised each floor around linear co-working avenues, stitching all four elevations together and drawing daylight into the core. A dramatic new staircase links the three storeys, encouraging natural circulation between offices, focus areas, social spaces and a gym and wellness studio with views across the Canary Wharf Estate. What were once deep interior zones now feel purposeful and active – a flexible framework that can adapt as tenant needs evolve over time.
“The space we’re taking at One Canada Square is huge; one of the largest workspace offers in our portfolio and a truly premium offer. Bringing The Office Group to one of London’s leading enterprise and innovation hubs is a major milestone for us and we look forward to opening up flexible working styles and environments to more traditional businesses who may not have had the chance before we arrived in the business district.”
Charlie Green, Co-Founder, The Office Group (now Fora)
