Office decommissioning is the process of clearing every desk, cabinet and cable out of a leased office and putting the space back into the condition your landlord expects. It’s often called making good. If you’re staring down an end-of-lease date, wondering what to do with an office full of furniture nobody wants and a schedule of dilapidations you haven’t read properly, you’re not alone. Booking office furniture & clearance services early is usually what separates a smooth handback from a drawn-out dispute over your deposit. This guide walks through exactly what the process looks like, what it costs, and what your office decommissioning timeline should realistically look like.
Key Facts: What Does Office Decommissioning Really Cost and Take?
- Office decommissioning covers everything from furniture and IT removal to making good work like patching walls, replacing carpet tiles and stripping cabling back to the base build.
- Full office decommissioning projects, including making good, are usually priced by the square foot, typically between £15 and £40 depending on how much reinstatement the lease requires.
- A small to mid-size office of around 5,000 sq ft usually takes 1 to 3 weeks from site survey to final handback, longer if the schedule of dilapidations calls for a full strip-out.
- Almost every commercial lease includes a reinstatement or dilapidations clause, so decommissioning is usually not optional if you want your deposit back in full.
- A licensed provider separates what is reused, recycled or donated from what genuinely needs to go to landfill, rather than skipping everything into one load.
What Is Office Decommissioning?
Office decommissioning goes further than a typical clear-out. It means stripping a commercial space of furniture, IT equipment, partitioning and cabling, then repairing or redecorating whatever the original fit-out changed, so the office reads as workable and empty for the next tenant. For a business, it’s one of the most direct wasted office space solutions available: instead of leaving unused desks and old servers sitting in a unit you’re still paying rent on, decommissioning clears the deadweight and gets the deposit process moving. It sits under the wider umbrella of commercial waste clearance services, but with an added layer most general clearances don’t touch: bringing the space back to the standard your lease actually specifies.
How Does the Office Decommissioning Process Work, Step by Step?
Most office decommissioning solutions follow the same three stages, though the scale of each depends on how much your lease requires you to reinstate.
Step 1: What Happens During the Site Survey and Quote?
An office decommissioning service typically starts with a site walkthrough, checking the schedule of dilapidations if you have one and noting what needs to be removed versus what needs to be rebuilt or redecorated. This is where the real scope gets set, so it’s worth doing before you give notice on the lease, not after. You’ll usually walk away with a fixed quote rather than an hourly estimate, which matters once the clock is running on your notice period.
Step 2: How Is Furniture and Asset Removal Handled?
Desks, chairs, filing cabinets, partitioning and IT equipment come out first. A licensed team sorts everything as it comes out, separating reusable furniture from scrap metal, sending cabling for recycling, and flagging anything holding company data for secure destruction rather than binning it with the rest. This stage is usually the fastest part of the job since it’s physical removal rather than reinstatement work.
Step 3: What Does “Making Good” Involve?
This is the part people underestimate. Making good typically means patching or repainting walls where partitioning came down, replacing damaged carpet tiles, removing branded signage, and restoring ceiling tiles or lighting that a fit-out altered. Some leases only need a light touch-up; others require the space returned close to shell-and-core condition. Your original schedule of dilapidations, or a chartered surveyor’s report, is what actually settles what “good” means for your specific lease.
How Much Does Office Decommissioning Cost in the UK?
Cost depends heavily on scope. A straight furniture and equipment clearance is priced very differently from a full strip-out with making good included. For clearance-only jobs, pricing usually follows the same volume-based model as a standard commercial job, from around £85 for a single item up to several hundred pounds for a full office’s worth of furniture and IT equipment. Once making good is added, whether that’s redecorating, carpet replacement or cabling removal, most providers price it by the square foot, typically between £15 and £40 depending on how much reinstatement the lease demands. In practice, that can mean anywhere from a few thousand pounds for a small office needing light touch-ups, to well over £20,000 for a larger floor requiring a full strip-out. Our office clearance pricing guide breaks down what drives the final number in more detail, though a site survey is really the only way to get a fixed quote for your specific lease.
Office Decommissioning vs Standard Office Clearance: What’s the Difference?
It’s easy to assume decommissioning is just office clearance with a different name, but the two aren’t the same job. A standard office clearance removes unwanted furniture and waste; decommissioning adds the making good and lease-compliance side on top. That gap is actually bigger than the differences between house and office clearance that most people already understand: a house clearance has no landlord standard to meet, and even a general office clearance usually stops once the furniture is out the door.
| Criteria | Office Decommissioning | Standard Office Clearance |
| Scope | Furniture removal plus making good, redecoration and lease reinstatement | Furniture, equipment and general waste removal only |
| Trigger | Usually tied to a lease end date and dilapidations clause | Can happen any time, e.g. a refurbishment or downsizing |
| Documentation | Often needs a schedule of dilapidations or surveyor’s report | Rarely needs formal documentation |
| Typical Cost | Priced by square foot once making good is included | Priced by volume or van load |
| Timeline | 1 to 3+ weeks depending on reinstatement scope | Usually completed in a single visit or a few days |
What Happens to Your Old Office Furniture?
Office furniture decommissioning doesn’t mean everything goes straight to landfill. Desks, chairs and cabinets in reasonable condition are usually reused or donated first, filing cabinets and metal frames go for scrap recycling, and only what’s genuinely unusable ends up as waste. Our furniture and office clearance service sorts each category on site rather than skipping it all into one load, which also keeps a decommissioning job compliant with your duty of care obligations as a business. IT equipment gets handled separately again: anything holding company data is flagged for secure destruction before it’s recycled, not just removed alongside the desks.
Whether you’re weeks from a lease end or just starting to plan ahead, the earlier you book a site survey, the more control you have over cost and timeline. We Clear Junk has grown from a single London truck in 2006 to a 15-truck fleet, and our office decommissioning services cover the full job, from fit-out and decommissioning waste removal through to furniture and equipment clearance, so you’re not coordinating multiple contractors against a single deadline. Book a site survey and we’ll give you a fixed quote based on what your lease actually requires, not a guess.
FAQ: What Do You Need to Know Before Booking an Office Decommissioning?
What is office decommissioning?
Office decommissioning is the process of removing furniture and equipment from a leased office and restoring the space to the condition your lease requires, commonly called making good.
How long does office decommissioning take?
A small to mid-size office usually takes 1 to 3 weeks from the initial site survey to final handback, though a full strip-out on a larger floor can take longer.
Do I need office decommissioning for a small office move?
Even a small move can need it if your lease has a reinstatement clause, though the scope is usually lighter, often just furniture removal and minor touch-ups rather than a full strip-out.
What does “making good” include?
Making good typically covers patching or repainting walls, replacing damaged carpet tiles, removing signage, and restoring anything a fit-out changed. Exactly what’s required depends on your schedule of dilapidations.
Is office decommissioning required by my lease?
Most commercial leases include a dilapidations or reinstatement clause, so decommissioning is usually contractual rather than optional if you want your deposit returned in full. Check your lease or ask your surveyor to confirm what applies to you.
Experienced Entrepreneur with a strong history of working in the Waste Logistics industry. Darren has led We Clear Junk’s operations since 2006, overseeing a 15-truck fleet across London.
