Higher life satisfaction among people working in a garden office, says new report

Interesting new research from the What Works Centre for Wellbeing ("an independent collaborating centre that develops and shares robust and accessible wellbeing evidence to improve decision-making" it says on the tin). 

The study - 'Subjective wellbeing in different occupations in UK 2012-20221' - analysed UK data 2012-2022 to explore how wellbeing varies between occupations, the effect of salary on wellbeing, and the effects of the pandemic. Unsurprisingly it found a positive relationship between annual salary and  ife satisfaction, and that people register higher life satisfaction and lower anxiety levels when their job is permanent, regardless of occupation type. 

Most releavant for shedworkers is that Dr Simona Tenaglia, senior analyst at the What Works Centre for Wellbeing and the author of the study, says: "The highest levels of life satisfaction are present for those who work at the same grounds or building as home, followed by those who work in their own homes. If we look at life satisfaction by places where work is mainly carried out and by occupations, the highest values for all occupations are those for work carried out in the same ground or building as home." 

Additionally, this report explores the extent of loneliness at work in the UK and how changes since the Covid-19 pandemic – including the shift towards more home and hybrid working – may have affected this. It's usually a given that working from home increases loneliness ratings but Tenaglia writes: "There is no simple link between homeworking and loneliness at work; contact with colleagues on its own isn’t enough to prevent loneliness and home workers were not lonelier than those working onsite. Also, changes in working location during the Covid-19 restrictions led to improved relationships for many."

Image courtesy Malvern Garden Buildings

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Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master: garden offices and studios to fit any size garden. Top quality contemporary or traditional buildings.

 

Garden office offer: 5% off a SMART Ultra model

There are several winter offers going on at the moment by garden office suppliers. Our eye was caught by this one from SMART, 5% off their ULTRA models all this month. Lasts until the end of February so if you're in the market to start shedworking, this is definitely one to look into. Click the link for full information.

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SMART designs and manufactures industry leading garden rooms from our very own Suffolk factory and installed all over mainland UK

Garden office sliding doors

Sliding doors have become increasingly popular in houses where a kitchen/dining room leads out into the back garden area. But now they're also flavour of the month when it comes to garden offices. There's an excellent selection of examples at the Keller Minimal Windows site. Here's a snippet of what they have to say on the subject:

The ultra-slim 21mm sightlines embraces far reaching views of the gardens connecting the building to nature. Concealed slick base tracks provide seamless transitions to the outdoors with flush threshold detailing.  Sliding the doors open creates an immersive experience and flexible space. High security slim sliding glass doors also provide sound insulation up to 39dB while working or having a meeting to keep you focus. The slim sliding glass doors have 1.1 W/(m²K) thermal performance to keep the internal spaces in the best temperature level anytime.

Well worth a browse.  

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Malvern Garden Buildings offer a premium collection of garden buildings, displayed at 11 UK showsites.

 

Garden hypnotherapy room

Here's a Garden Affairs 4.2m x 2.4m Prima model in use as a permanent space for her hypnotherapy practice in Corsham. It's a two-room garden to sit at the back of the garden, with separate access is available for clients of Vicky who runs the business. It's a solid timber building, finished with 44mm thick walls, roof and floor insulation, durable EPDM rubber roof, a lavatory, with internal access and full-length narrow, vented windows. Here's what Vicky says about it:

"Before the garden room, I practised my hypnotherapy in my living room and online. I also used to travel to my client’s houses. It wasn’t ideal in the living room as I had photos of the children in there and I had to keep tidying the house every time I saw a client! I do still sometimes see clients online as this works well, but now I’ll be able to conduct the online sessions in the garden room.

 "I loved the idea of a garden room as it meant that I would have a confidential space separate from the house to see clients. As I have two children it was essential to separate my business from the house and for providing a more professional space for clients. I wanted to have somewhere where I had access to it all week. I had looked into renting a space in town but there wasn’t much availability and the rooms I did find were expensive. Renting a therapy room also meant that I would need to have allotted time to see clients, which is tricky when just starting up a business and not knowing when clients would be available or how much demand there would be. By having my own space in the garden room, I can offer more flexibility in terms of times and days, and even see clients after school hours as they won’t need to come in the house.

"I also liked the idea that when I wasn’t using the garden room for hypnotherapy, it could still be enjoyed by my family and friends. It’s a nice quiet space where any of us can relax when we need some time alone, or in the summer we can open up the doors and enjoy socialising in it with friends and family. We also felt that it will add value to our house in the future if we did ever sell, and it could even serve as an extra bedroom if we had friends or family staying over and couldn’t all fit in the house."

"The garden room is therefore a key selling point for my hypnotherapy business, as it’s so cosy, inviting, and warm and clients can be put at ease knowing that it’s a confidential and safe space. They can use my back gate to enter so they don’t need to come near my house, and I’ve put up blinds and curtains so no one can see in. I even had a toilet and sink fitted, so clients don’t need to worry about that either!

"I think the other main benefit is the flexibility it affords me. I can be flexible about when I see clients which is great and allows me to see a larger range of people. I even let my husband use it sometimes as he works from home a lot! And when I’m not using it, my children enjoy relaxing in here with a book or doing their homework in peace. 

"I love how peaceful, cosy, comfortable and relaxing it is. I love being able to provide such a warm and friendly environment for my clients which is all part of the experience, and I love that I’m not answerable to other people in terms of planning ahead and having to book a space in town."

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Monday posts are sponsored by Garden Spaces, contemporary living spaces offering premium quality, bespoke buildings without the hefty price tag

 

Friday Finery: Kew Summerhouse

Another entry in the Friday Finery folder, this time chosen to coincide with our recent increased coverage of glasshouses/greenhouses as potential garden office spaces. It's the Kew Summerhouse from Malvern Garden Buildings, the design of which is a homage to botanist and former director of the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, Joseph Hooker. This octagonal model, made from our old friend Western Red Cedar, is inspired by the Temperate House at Kew and features floor-to-ceiling Georgian-style windows and double doors.

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Friday posts are sponsored by Warwick Buildings, manufacturers of outstanding quality timber buildings. Click here for more information.

Win a fully-stocked pub shed

 

The steady rise in pub shed numbers was turbocharged by the lockdowns and they're very much flavour of the year. For those of you who haven't yet got your own back garden pub, Great British Chefs is running a competition in collaboration with snacks specialist Serious Pig, beermakers Thornbridge Brewery and  Power Sheds to give one lucky winner a fully-stocked pub shed worth more than £,1790. 

The prizewinner gets a Power Pub Shed, 12 cases of of Thornbridge beer, 144 Serious Pig snacks, six Thornbridge glasses and various bits and bobs of Thornbridge merchandise including beer mats. To enter (it's very easy) go here.

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Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master: garden offices and studios to fit any size garden. Top quality contemporary or traditional buildings.

The Poet Laureate Has Gone to His Shed: Series 3

Poet Laureate Simon Armitage's excellent BBC Radio 4 series The Poet Laureate Has Gone to His Shed returns this week. The first invitee, on Sunday, is actor Sir Ian McKellen and later episodes feature comedian Lucy Beaumont and poet Pam Ayres. You can hear a preview of the series here.

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SMART designs and manufactures industry leading garden rooms from our very own Suffolk factory and installed all over mainland UK