Boiler Shop to become North East’s first ‘living workplace’ as hundreds take part in live experiment at Work Beyond Walls event

This September, the North East is set to host a major event exploring the next workplace revolution, from the place which housed the world’s first purpose-built locomotive factory.

300 people, including leading voices from business, design, HR, property, health, wellbeing and performance, will take part in a live experiment at Newcastle’s Boiler Shop on 9 and 10 September.

Work Beyond Walls is a free, two day ‘living workplace’ – a first for the North East. It is the brainchild of Paul Glaister, Brand Principal at workspace consultancy, Workpattern.

The venue will be transformed into a real working environment, built by up to 20 of the world’s leading workplace brands, where people work, meet, sit, test, debate, and hear from leaders in workplace design and culture. 

Across the two days, the event will look at the full working environment and what people need from work today: the spaces people use, the culture around them, the rapid evolution of technology; and the impact all of this has on wellbeing and performance. A live workplace survey, WorkPulse, reads the room in real time and turns the experience into shared regional evidence.

Paul Glaister said: “The North East has always been creative and ambitious; we punch well above our weight in many ways. Why should we have to go to London to have a conversation about how to make work ‘work’ better for us? That’s why we created Work Beyond Walls – a space to hear the biggest ideas, meet national experts, and influence the future of our working lives. The North East has the people, the ideas and the appetite to lead this conversation here.

“We’re running the event as a not-for-profit because the return we care about is a much bigger picture of workplace culture, performance and wellbeing for the whole region.”

The choice of venue shows the scale of the ambition. Boiler Shop forms part of Stephenson’s Works, opened in 1823 as the world’s first purpose-built locomotive factory. Locomotion No. 1, Rocket and Planet were built there, helping to change how people and goods moved around the world. Two centuries later, Work Beyond Walls will ask whether the same place can help spark a new conversation about how people work.

It is also set to kick-start the next phase of the ‘WorkPulse’ survey, which has already built evidence from more than 2,300 UK workers. The ongoing research project explores work and workplace trends across the UK, to provide a better understanding of work challenges, needs and preferences which inform the future of workplace design and culture.

Philippa Lobb is Design/A&D Consultant at Workpattern. She has played an instrumental role in putting the event together. Philippa commented: “As the idea for the event was emerging, we asked ourselves – what is the problem we need to solve for the community? We soon realised that this is a debate which needs to happen across sectors and with a range of different people. The more that we learn, the more we have the opportunity to enhance wellbeing, productivity and prosperity for people and organisations.

“You can come for a talk, work from the space for a few hours, join a workshop or stay for the whole experience. It’s free, and we’d love people from right across the region to be part of it.”

The event has been backed by a range of major brands including MillerKnoll, EGGER, HAY, Deadgood, and around 20 more; who will create a bespoke “workplace” at Boiler Shop over the two days.

It will also welcome a fantastic line-up of speakers, including Develop North PLC Chief Executive, Michelle Percy; Phil Witcherley, Director of Economic Growth and Innovation at the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority; former Olympic middle-distance runner and founder of workplace performance consultancy EPIKOS, John Mayock; Jenny Johnstone, Senior Director of Places and Workplace Experience at Sage – plus many more.

The programme is built around questions employers are dealing with now: what makes an office worth the journey; how relationships and belonging affect performance; whether spaces support neurodivergent colleagues; how organisations can respond to grief; what sustainable design looks like when it is measured properly; and how investment decisions shape the places in which the region works – and much more.

Bertie van Wyk, Senior Insight Strategist at MillerKnoll, will open the main stage with a challenge to stop designing offices only around tasks and start asking which relationships a building needs to create. Dr Josh Jackman and Dr Joe Kupusarevic of Podium will explore the ‘hidden performance tax’ created when workplaces are designed around occupancy and efficiency rather than sustainable human performance. The wider programme includes Jayne Crampton on neuro-inclusivity; Joanna Knight, Jon Stinson and Dr Dave Warwick on sustainability and measurable progress in the built environment; and Laura Barrett of St Oswald’s Hospice, the event’s officially chosen charity partner, on supporting colleagues through grief. Workshops will cover wellbeing and culture in construction and design, furniture designed for disassembly and reuse, neuro-inclusive design and hands-on creative sessions.

Alongside the event, Workpattern has launched a brand new six-part podcast, Work In Motion, which is hosted by workplace consultant and commentator, Ian Ellison. Instead of telling a polished success story after the event, the series follows Paul and his team while the outcome is still unknown - from the first nervous conversations, to the doors opening at Boiler Shop on 9 September.

The WorkPulse survey, which will play a key role at the event, was created by Workpattern and Audiem, to gather feedback on a large scale about the reality of work across sectors, roles and locations. The next phase of the research will launch at Work Beyond Walls and feed into a major report about the state of work in the North East 2026 and predicted future trends.

Paul continued: “Our research to date found that close to half of people surveyed say that they work flexibly between home and an employer; yet very few fall into the ‘balanced hybrid’ category, with many people remaining anchored to one main setting. What’s clear is that we’re not doing enough to make working environments great, and that’s not a criticism of anyone, it’s about learning and moving things forward. We’re living through changing times, and work needs to keep pace, and recognise that the right workspaces go far beyond walls and empower people to do their best work.”

85% of participants surveyed to date say that their core colleagues are essential or very important, a reminder that work is about far more than just the rooms we’re in.

Work Beyond Walls is free to attend. People can choose one or both days and book individual workshop sessions. Full details and free registration: www.workbeyondwalls.uk