Design & Build•Design Services•Furniture•Project Management

Future-Proofing the 21st Century Newsroom offices at Channel 4

Channel 4 News, London

Designing a Flexible, Future-Ready Newsroom for Channel 4 News.

Since the last major review of the Channel 4 News workspace in 2017, the demands of broadcast journalism have shifted. The brief for East On was to create a 21st-century newsroom that balances high-tech equipment requirements with the need for absolute privacy when handling sensitive material. By introducing flexible hotdesking and acoustic pods, the redesign ensures the environment is as agile as the news cycle itself.

Working with East On’s Head of Design, the project focused on making every square inch of the floor “work twice as hard.” Through multifunctional office spaces, innovative fold-down seating, and a refresh of the iconic Channel 4 colour palette, the team now has a high-spec, collaborative hub. This transformation successfully resolves key layout pinch points while providing the privacy and flexibility essential for world-class reporting.

We caught up recently with Stephen Donoghue, our client at Channel 4 News, to discuss their recent Newsroom upgrade…

Could you tell us more about the background to this project?

The whole team felt that we needed to relook the workspace, we had multiple requirements, largely driven by the need to repurpose the digital space. This is a 21st century news operation and we needed to reflect that. What then came out of those discussions was the realisation that we needed to be flexible in our use of space and that wherever possible, we had to make all the areas work twice as hard.

How long was it since you’d last looked at the overall office design?

We hadn’t really considered this floor since 2017 and so much has changed since then, not least design trends.

Now that we are keen for the team to be working together in person, we have of course introduced hotdesking, in common with many businesses, and that’s here to stay. But at the same time, developments in media technology mean that we have more and more equipment needing to be sited on desks so our space requirements are expanding on that front too.

So, all in all, major changes in the 8 years since we last looked at the workspace.

BEFORE

AFTER

This is a 21st century news operation and we needed to reflect that... we had to make all the areas work twice as hard.

Were there any other solutions that you were looking for?

As a news channel, we have a specific need for privacy. Our team are often handling sensitive material and could be dealing with vulnerable contributors, so we needed to ensure that we could enhance this aspect of the service.

On a “softer” note, we needed to combine design changes too within a defined Channel 4 colour palette; the carpets across the walkways were in definite need of a refresh.

How did you work with the East On team to fulfil your brief?

The key starting point for us was working with Fernanda, East On’s Head of Design, to find out what the staff needed. From those discussions, we picked up on the privacy needs but also the way that technology was potentially limiting us for space. It became very clear that we needed multifunctionality across the space.
For example, we had a colleague returning to work but only in the building for 3 days per fortnight; this meant that their office could be purposely designed as a functional meeting area when not in use as a traditional office.

This led us to look at other meeting room requirements so that we had space for collaborative areas of varying sizes. These discussions with the East On team were vital to firming a workable plan.

BEFORE

AFTER

What solutions did Fernanda and the team come up with?

Installation of privacy pods was one of the key solutions from the design team; not widely available in 2017, these immediately gave us the facility for confidential calls in acoustically sound, purpose-built booths.

Individual office spaces were redesigned in our colour palette and created to convert into considered meeting areas and our key meeting room became truly multifunctional with fold-down chairs built into the walls to enable maximum occupancy. I have to admit that there was quite a bit of scepticism about the fold-down chairs, but they have worked a treat!

Fernanda’s design came together exactly as we had envisaged and we have a functional space that ties in with our overall visual look and feel.

What’s next for the newsroom?

We’ve managed the key pinch points and we’re really pleased with the outcome; the next part of the project will be the overall layout – watch this space!

BEFORE

AFTER

Fernanda Scholz, takes us inside our latest project at Channel4 News...

Hi Fernanda, tell us how you approached this project for Channel4 News

Fernanda: this was very much a workspace opportunity as opposed to a studio project. We were looking to enhance the existing workspace and add as much functionality as possible, so it was very much about clever design and “stretching” the brand palette.

How did you add in functionality?

We certainly appreciated the value of client feedback here because the team helped us to understand how much their needs had changed in around 10 years. That then helped me design convertible rooms because we definitely couldn’t create any more floorspace!

The highlight for me is the multifunctional meeting room which can accommodate theatre style seating but also switches to an open area with flip-up seats built into the wall. We’ve used this folding seat solution elsewhere in the wider building and we’ve made something that sounds utilitarian feel cool by using the current trend for slatted wood with a pop of the brand colour.

Were there other innovations?

Wherever we could, we designed offices that could also function as proper meeting rooms – not people perched on a random ledge but fully designed to have a dual purpose. We were fortunate that the current fitout allowed for large individual offices that lent themselves to meeting rooms.

And in common with current trends, we also planned in small privacy pods that again have a multiple set of uses across the newsroom.

How do you feel when you look at the finished scheme?

I know I shouldn’t be surprised – but when a design looks like my CGI renders, I am always surprisingly pleased and this scheme is no exception! I really hope Stephen and the team enjoy working here…

Future-Proofing the 21st Century Newsroom offices at Channel 4

Designing a Flexible, Future-Ready Newsroom for Channel 4 News.

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