Why data centres matter to the flex office world
(even if you’ve never thought about them)
FEATURES / 28 APRIL 2026
Most people in the flex office world don’t think about data centres - until they have to. Yet behind every seamless call, smart building and scalable workspace sits an infrastructure layer that’s becoming impossible to ignore. Roy Parrish, CEO of Pelham Interiors, brings his frontline perspective to a force quietly reshaping the spaces we work in.
When people talk about the future of the workplace, data centres rarely feature in the conversation.
Flex offices, hybrid working and experience-led environments tend to dominate - and rightly so. Yet behind every video call, cloud-based platform and flexible working model sits an often overlooked part of the built environment that has grown rapidly in recent years: data centres.
From our perspective at Pelham Interiors, data centres have become one of the most interesting and relevant sectors in the UK market, particularly when viewed through a commercial lens familiar to the flex sector - performance, people and long-term value.
So, What Is a Data Centre - and Why Does It Matter?
At their simplest, data centres house the digital infrastructure that allows businesses to operate remotely, securely and at scale. Servers, storage and networks that support modern working all sit within them.
Since Covid, demand for this infrastructure has accelerated. Remote working and cloud-based operations have shifted from optional to essential, making data centres one of the most resilient and actively invested-in asset classes in the UK.
In many ways, flexible working only functions because this infrastructure exists.
From Technical Facilities to Operational Workplaces
What has been striking is how closely the evolution of data centres mirrors changes already seen in the office sector.
Historically, both were treated as purely functional environments - offices focused on desks, data centres on equipment. Today, both are expected to deliver far more.
As data centres grow in scale and complexity, they rely on specialist teams working on-site around the clock. These are no longer anonymous technical spaces, but operational workplaces. As with any workplace, the quality of the internal environment plays a role in performance, safety and retention.
Why Interior Design Now Plays a Bigger Role
From a delivery perspective, interiors in data centres have become central to operational resilience.
Clear layouts, intuitive circulation and robust materials support efficiency and safety in environments where downtime is not an option. At the same time, well-considered support spaces contribute to staff wellbeing and long-term sustainability.
Pelham’s experience across commercial offices, mixed-use developments and specialist environments has shown how transferable these principles have become. Design approaches traditionally associated with workplace projects are now informing sectors once driven almost entirely by technical requirements.
A Shared Direction of Travel
Across the UK, data centres are moving closer to cities and being treated as long-term real estate assets. With that shift comes higher expectations around adaptability, sustainability and performance over time.
The same questions asked of flex and commercial office space - how a building adapts, how it supports its users and how it continues to deliver value - are now being asked of data centres too. Rather than separate worlds, these sectors are increasingly part of the same ecosystem.
Final Thought
Flexible workspaces and data centres may appear very different on the surface, but they are deeply connected. One provides the physical environment for people to work; the other enables the digital infrastructure that makes that work possible.
As the boundaries between sectors continue to blur, insight gained in one increasingly informs success in another. For Pelham Interiors, working across both commercial workplaces and specialist environments allows us to bring that broader understanding to every project - supporting buildings that perform well, adapt over time and meet the evolving demands of modern working.
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Written by
Roy Parrish, CEO, Pelham Interiors