From office removals to complex commercial relocation projects, Bishop’s Move manages business relocations across the UK, delivering every move on time, within budget and with minimal disruption.
Moving your office over Christmas: make the quieter period work for your business
01 Oct 2026
If your business slows down between Christmas and New Year, the quieter period could be an ideal opportunity to relocate. With fewer people using the office, there is more flexibility to move furniture, transfer equipment and prepare your new workspace with less disruption to everyday work.
The same opportunity applies to an office reorganisation, a furniture upgrade or a school move during the holidays. With a carefully coordinated programme, work can take place while the premises are less busy, ready for people to return in January.
The key is to start planning early, bringing together your building access, IT requirements and move schedule.
Why consider a Christmas office move?
For businesses that close or reduce their activity over Christmas, relocating during the break can help protect normal working hours. Staff can finish in one office and return to their new workplace, with the physical move taking place while they are away.
Stuart Philp of Bishop’s Move explains:
“Using the quieter festive period can be a great way to move your business forward. When staff are away and day-to-day activity is reduced, there’s an opportunity to relocate, reconfigure the office or replace furniture with less impact on normal working hours. With the right planning, the aim is for your team to return in January to a workspace that’s ready for them, keeping disruption to their work to a minimum.”
Of course, Christmas is a busy trading period for some organisations. If departments need to remain operational, a phased move may be more suitable, allowing different teams or areas to relocate in sequence.
Start by identifying which activities must continue and build the programme around them.
Agree your timetable before booking the move
Your relocation plan needs to cover the preparation and reopening as well as moving day.
Establish when staff will finish work at the existing office, when the new premises become available and when everything needs to be ready. Include time for unpacking, reconnecting equipment and checking the space before people return.
Before confirming dates, agree:
Which teams need access to equipment or files throughout the move.
When packing can begin without affecting essential work.
Whether the move will happen in one stage or several phases.
When IT engineers and other contractors will be available.
Who will check and sign off the new workspace.
Where possible, leave time between the final delivery and your first working day. This gives everyone involved an opportunity to identify and resolve outstanding issues.
Confirm access at both buildings
Speak to the building managers at your current and new premises early. Holiday arrangements may affect security cover, loading bays, goods lifts and contractor access.
Confirm the permitted working hours, any requirements for protecting floors and communal areas, and whether lifts or loading facilities need to be reserved. Agree who is responsible for arranging any parking permissions and supplying the documentation required by the building.
You will also need a named contact who can open up, answer questions and approve changes during the move, plus a backup if that person becomes unavailable.
Bishop’s Move operates between Christmas and New Year, excluding official UK bank holidays, with out-of-hours moves available by arrangement. Discuss your preferred dates with the team alongside your building’s access requirements.
Give IT its own place in the move plan
Involve your IT team or provider from the outset. Moving equipment and restoring access to business systems need to follow an agreed sequence.
Confirm who will disconnect, pack, transport and reconnect equipment. Check that any new connections or installations will be ready before delivery, and book technical support for the dates you need.
A clear seating plan and consistent labelling will help monitors, docking stations and other equipment reach the correct desks. Your IT provider should also confirm backup arrangements and any precautions required before equipment is disconnected.
Before staff return, allow time to test:
Internet access and Wi-Fi.
Telephone calls and call routing.
Business systems and shared files.
Printers and meeting-room equipment.
Entry passes and building access controls.
Allocate someone to record any issues and coordinate fixes. Testing before reopening helps reduce avoidable interruptions on the first morning back.
Decide what to move, store or reuse
An office relocation is a useful opportunity to review furniture, equipment and stored materials.
Compare your inventory with the new floor plan. Identify what you will continue using, what may need temporary storage and what could be offered for reuse or sent for appropriate recycling.
Making these decisions before packing begins helps avoid moving items that have no place in the new office. It also gives you time to arrange collections and confirm whether donation recipients can accept the furniture available.
Keep confidential records and unwanted IT equipment within your organisation’s agreed security and disposal procedures. Ensure these responsibilities are clear before clearance work starts.
Prepare your staff for the change
A short, practical briefing can make the move easier for everyone.
Before Christmas leave begins, tell staff when desks need to be cleared, how crates should be labelled and which items they should take home. Include instructions for laptops, personal belongings and anything needed while the office is unavailable.
Share the new location, travel information, entry arrangements and seating plan. Give people a clear contact for questions before the move and help when they return.
Review customer and supplier communications too. Consider scheduled deliveries, post arrangements, address listings and any temporary changes to your availability.
Experience of planning around busy periods
Every organisation has a different calendar. Our relocation projects show how a move can be planned around the needs of the people and services involved.
Bringing notonthehighstreet.com together in Richmond
Bishop’s Move relocated 200 notonthehighstreet.com staff from three separate Richmond offices into a single headquarters.
The project included relocating desks, IT equipment, company files and employees’ belongings. Taking place during an important trading season for the retailer, it required detailed planning around the organisation’s requirements.
Coordinating a phased relocation for Anchor Hanover
After receiving an enquiry shortly before Christmas, Bishop’s Move supported Anchor Hanover with an office relocation for 30 staff from Chippenham to London.
The wider project included redistributing furniture to 16 care homes and home offices, followed by responsible recycling and disposal of unwanted items. It demonstrates how an office move, furniture redistribution and clearance can be brought together within a coordinated programme.
Preparing for a school or university move this festive period
School holidays provide an opportunity to schedule relocation work while pupils are away. Planning around the start of term helps establish the deadline for delivery, setting up rooms and completing checks before teaching resumes.
The same principle applies to businesses: identify the quieter window, agree what needs to happen within it and work backwards from the date everyone returns.
Start planning your Christmas relocation
You do not need every detail finalised before speaking to a relocation company. Your current and new locations, approximate staff numbers, preferred dates and any fixed deadlines provide a useful starting point.
A site survey can then help establish the access arrangements, resources and sequence of work required. It is also an opportunity to discuss IT relocation, crate hire, storage and furniture reuse or clearance.
Whether you are moving to new premises or reorganising your existing workspace, Bishop’s Move can help you plan around your business calendar.
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