Blackfriars Office Space

Those interested in renting office space in Blackfriars may research the district’s etymology, which they will find is not as convoluted as some of its London counterparts.

It sits southwest of St Paul’s Cathedral in the southwestern corner of the City of London and is the site of a medieval Dominican friary, the friars of which wore black cappa, or cloaks.

The friary was founded in the 1220s and was positioned at the top of Shoe Lane (now Holborn Circus) between the River Thames and west of Ludgate Hill. The name Blackfriars was first recorded in 1317.

Over the centuries, the site has hosted important occasions of state, including meetings of Parliament and the Privy Council and state visits. It was here that Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon’s divorce hearing was held. However, as with all other friaries, it was dissolved in 1538 under Henry’s dissolution of the monasteries.

The name stayed, though, and the EC4 district and its neighbours, such as Fleet Street, St Paul’s and Temple, remain key parts of the City of London today.

It is also remembered in establishments such as the Grade II-listed Black Friar pub on Queen Victoria Street, which was built in 1875.

Three bridges, including the pedestrian Millennium Bridge, span the Thames from Blackfriars, and river taxis run from Blackfriars Pier to Bankside on the South Bank.

This part of the Thames is distinctive due to the red pillars that emerge from the river bed along its span. These were part of an 1864 extension of the London Chatham & Dover Railway, a commuter line from Kent. The line became obsolete and eventually deemed unsuitable for modern trains in the 1920s, but it was only removed in 1985. The pillars remained, and just some of them were incorporated into the new bridge, leaving some pillars standing alone.

Office space is located throughout the Blackfriars district, with some examples, along with high-end apartments offering stunning river views, on the Victoria Embankment, which stretches along the north bank of the river west from Blackfriars to Westminster Bridge.

The office space in Blackfriars attracts high-profile occupiers from various sectors, including publishing group Hachette, multinational financial services firm JP Morgan, and multinational consumer packaged goods company Unilever, to name just a few.

In addition to office space that can be occupied through a conventional lease, a growing number of flexible office and workspace options in Blackfriars offer agile alternatives.

These include private serviced offices, managed offices and co-working spaces that can be held on relatively short-term licences and grant the option for extensions.

These business spaces are plug-and-play and ready-to-occupy, and the monthly fees cover rent, utilities, enterprise-grade IT, cleaning and other enhanced services such as reception, business administration and concierge services.

Private serviced offices are fully fitted and furnished and offer lockable space with access to premium communal amenities such as boardrooms, quiet zones, break-out spaces, gyms, cafes and outdoor spaces.

Managed offices offer a higher level of customisation and the fit-out is tenant-led. The offices are pre-fitted however the fit out can include private reception areas, meeting tooms, kitchen, bathrooms and other amenities. The service level pack is also bespoke.

As serviced and managed office licences are flexible by nature, they allow a business to seamlessly move into a larger office suite as needs dictate with many suites and private floors able to satisfy requirements for space for 250 and above desks.

The prime Grade A office buildings in Blackfriars that offer these spaces offer end-of-trip facilities as they are managed in an ESG-considered way. These include bicycle storage areas, showers and changing facilities.

However, clients in the district enjoy excellent public transport services, being in close proximity to Blackfriars, Cannon Street, Mansion House, St Paul’s and Temple stations. The City Thameslink station on Ludgate Hill is also within the locale.