Support Spaces

This section provides information about those spaces required to support a healthy working environment under the following headings:

• General Support Spaces
• Spaces for the Observance of Religious Duties
• Other Specific Areas

General Support Spaces

There are no definitive space allocations for support spaces and any allocation should, therefore, be based on individual operational requirements.

Traditional support spaces include:

• Meeting, conference, consultative and training facilities
• In-house libraries, registries, mail rooms and secure areas
• Areas for special equipment
• Interview and visiting officers rooms
• Storage
• Amenities such as toilets, washrooms, showers (including facilities for people with a disability), cafeterias, kitchens, tearooms, first aid and recreation areas
• Public areas such as waiting and reception, counters and information display areas
• Special-purpose spaces specific to the agency function.

"New" support spaces may include:

• Small rooms/booths for concentrated work, or intensive telephoning or confidential calls
• Open areas available for informal discussions - open lounges
• Quiet areas
• Centralised resource areas - may be part of circulation
• Touch-down areas for occasional or short-term use
• Specialist areas for specific work or presentations ie Audio Visual areas
• Free plan areas for breaking out and relaxing
• Project team areas for brainstorming and cross-functional teams
• Variety of meeting spaces

As can be seen in Workplace Points of View - Density Benchmarking a redistribution of support spaces has been evident in contemporary workplaces, and the percentage of space occupied may be as high as 50% of the total floor area.

The impact is very positive as it provides:

• staff with choices - the opportunity to identify a particular space as being more appropriate for a certain task.
• the opportunity for people to escape from the disruptions that sometimes accompany open plan environment.

Disability access standards also apply to support spaces - see Design for Access and Mobility.

Support spaces should be designed as multi-purpose rooms where possible, eg. interview/meeting/visiting officer's room or conference/training room. This avoids duplicating and under-utilising space. Using standard room sizes for support spaces (for example, office type A = meeting room) allows rooms to be changed easily and economically to suit a variety of functions which increases an agency's ability to respond to organisational change.

Joint facilities should be used where possible in multi-tenanted buildings, and infrequent large conferences can be held at a venue hired specifically for the occasion.

The cost of providing storage in office space is high, particularly in the central area of Sydney. In contrast, secondary storage, such as warehouse space, is likely to cost about one third less for the same area. It is, therefore important that agencies only retain essential records and stores within their offices and establish an active records archive/disposal plan.

The following table provides a guide to space allocations for some common support spaces while the allocations for others are subject to individual functional requirements:

Spaces for Observance of Religious Duties

The NSW Government is committed to valuing the culturally diverse nature of the public sector work force. As a result, when planning for new or additional office accommodation, agencies should give special consideration to the need for employees to observe religious duties while at work. Two matters may require special consideration:

• The provision of a "retreat space" for prayer and contemplative activity.
• Suitable facilities for religious ablutions.

Retreat Space

A retreat space is a room identified for use for prayer, meditation or contemplative activity. This space can also be used by staff for small meetings, interviews, quiet reading or activities of a similar nature when it is not required for religious observance. For further information on layout and design considerations agencies should refer to the NSW Public Sector Personnel Handbook (Chapter 5 Section 5-5).

Ablution Facilities

The Islamic religion requires Muslims to wash themselves in a prescribed way before prayers several times a day, and to adhere to prescribed standards of personal cleanliness. In ordinary workplace toilet and shower facilities, meeting all of these requirements may be difficult. In workplaces where the needs of Muslim employees need to be met, consideration to special ablution facilities should be given. Ideally a lockable cubicle for private ablutions should be provided. A shower cubicle is perfectly adequate in this respect, provided that it also contains a medium-sized hand basin.

Another aspect of necessary facilities for religious ablutions relates to toilet facilities. In Muslim countries a bidet is a universal appliance to assist in meeting Muslim ablution requirements. In Australian conditions a bidet is not usually a practical possibility. However, a flexible hose connected to the water inlet of the cistern is an adequate alternative, which can be supplied at a modest cost and can greatly minimise inconvenience to Muslim employees in meeting their obligations. Facilities should also be provided to allow washing of the feet, together with paper towels for drying, and coat hooks.

Other Specific Areas

Information on other specific areas and support spaces is provided in the section 'Space types' of these guidelines.

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