Certified B Corporations, or B Corps, are companies which have been verified to meet the highest standards of social and environmental performance.
You can find office providers, which are B Corp, listed on our website.
With global carbon emissions at an all time high, and economic instability exacerbating inequality, it’s never been more important for organisations to make ethical decisions. One way to do this is to opt for an office with ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) at its core.
If ESG is important to you, choosing a B Corp office will help your organisation demonstrate its commitment to improving your business's operations. In turn, you may find it easier to attract and retain clients and staff and qualify for investment.
Before we explore some of London’s B Corp offices and where to find them, let’s look at what it takes to become a B Corp and why it’s so worthwhile.
How does a business become a B Corp?
B Lab is the non-profit organisation that awards B Corporation certification to for-profit organisations. To become certified, a business must meet a set of high standards around social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability. B Lab’s certification is rigorous, which is why it is so respected.
B Corps must adhere to the following, every three years:
- Pass a risk review and achieve a B Impact Assessment score of 80 or above (multinational corps must meet baseline requirement standards too).
- Legally commit to making its corporate governance structure accountable to all stakeholders, not just shareholders, and gain benefit corporation status, if available.
- In the interests of transparency, agree to let B Lab publish information about its performance on its profile on the B Lab website.
It’s no secret that companies with B Corp status tend to perform better when it comes to attracting and retaining employees, and business growth. B Lab data shows that B Corps have a faster turnover growth than non B corps (27% vs 5%).
B Corps are also more successful when securing equity finance (70% vs 56%).
Which of London’s offices are B Corp certified?
Currently, there are more than 6,000 B Corps in over 80 countries.
London is home to over 500 B Corps, making it the B Corp capital of the world. The UK’s B Corp brands range from food and drinks favourites like Innocent Drinks, to investment firms such as EQ Investors and Beckett Investment Management Group.
B Lab certifies businesses across a range of industries and sectors. In recent years, flexible workspace operators have been pledging their commitment to ESG by becoming B Corp certified, including the following UK and international office firms.
Corp B Offices for rent that we market
1. Work Life
Work Life boasts 11 flexible offices in three major UK cities which are London, Reading and Manchester. Work Life demonstrated its ability to meet the highest standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability in 2020 by becoming a B Corp business.
Like the other office operators on our list, the company is doing a range of things to make its spaces more sustainable and inclusive. Here are just a handful of the strategies They have implemented so far:
- 100% renewable electricity to power buildings
- Social and environmental impact screening for significant suppliers
Their London Offices:
Their Offices in the rest of the UK:
2. Second Home
Known for its architectural intrigues and biophilic design, Second Home is a B Corp with locations in London, Lisbon and Los Angeles, and it provides fellow B Corps with discounted membership rates.
The build environment is responsible for 40% of the world’s carbon emissions; Second Home only retrofits existing buildings with reused materials, as the embodied carbon involved in building anew is much higher.
In terms of its operational carbon, the company only uses renewable energy. One of its most interesting design features is the roof on its Lisbon location, which opens at night to let cool air into the building. Hot and cold water flowing through underfloor piping keeps the offices warmer in winter and cooler in the summer months.
Their Corp B London Offices:
3. BE Offices
BE Offices is one of the latest UK flexible workspace operators to commit to becoming a B Corp (making the pledge official in September 2022).
The company has had a dedicated internal sustainability team in place since 2009, so mitigating the business’ impact on the environment has always been a focus. The team is now broadening its vision to include social impact and governance issues.
“It’s easy for businesses to pay lip service to corporate social responsibility, but the rigorous process of the Business Impact Assessment ensures that certified organisations have truly demonstrated that both people and the planet matter,” said BE Offices’ co-CEO, David Saul, in a press statement.
Their City Of London Offices:
Their Central London Offices
Their offices in the rest of the UK
Find a B Corp office with FreeOfficeFinder
Finding an office that chimes with your business’ own values can be difficult. It is also important to know what credentials to look out for - That’s where we come in.
Free Office Finder can match you with a B Corp office that aligns with your strategic requirements and ESG goals. If there are no available certified B Corp offices in your desired location, we can provide you with offices that – although not B Corp – are making moves to become more socially impactful and environmentally sustainable.
Start your B Corp office search today.
