An alluring case for a flexible, shedshaped working future

As many of my readers are parents who work from home in some form or another, here’s a slight diversion from my usual posts – a book review about shedworking! If you’ve ever thought of working from a shed in your garden (or even if you haven’t), this book will have you longing for one.


Shedworking: The alternative workplace revolution claims to be inspirational, and it certainly is that. It’s also alluring. Apart from the beautiful and story-rich photographs, the allure for me lies in the way Johnson combines both physical buildings and work-life theory in his vision of a “shedshaped” future.

In using ‘shedworking’ as a theoretical concept, Alex Johnson engages with social and economic debates to promote the benefits of a flexible working environment on the grounds of increased productivity, better work-life balance and environmentalism. He claims that the future of working is “shedshaped”, that more and more people are going to be turning towards “shoffices” and “shudios” as their workplaces of choice.
The text is peppered with Johnson’s characteristic humour and stories of extraordinary shedworkers. I took great personal delight in his references to the likes of Alice Walker, Jeanette Winterson, and of course, Virginia Woolf. For others, there’s 007 and descriptions of OMD’s immobile lorry office are reminiscent of the original Knight Rider.
Drawing on Woolf, Johnson suggests that it is the thought of “an office of one’s own” that is at the heart of the shedworking appeal: a workspace where people have the flexibility to exercise personal choice over when and how they work, and in how it’s decorated too.
Shedworking also provides pages of information on how to go about buying or even building your own shed (or somewhat grander garden office), with details for suppliers and the legal bits too. It is at once a practical resource, a coffee table delight and a lightly cajoling philosophical debate about our future working lives.

My 10 year old peered curiously over my shoulder while I was reading, and displayed a reasonable level of interest: what was the book about? She laughed in disbelief: “They’re not sheds. You don’t use sheds! Sheds are just for storing things in.” She looked at me, and then smiled. “Oh mum,” she sighed, “you want a shed now, don’t you?”

More details about the book can be found at http://www.shedworking.co.uk/.

Flexible working for fathers

Barack Obama spoke out yesterday about the need for flexible workplace options for both men and women (click here). In the UK, flexible work practices are widely lauded although its policy implementation is widely voluntaristic and individualised.

Mine and other research suggests that flexibility can enhance work-life balance for families (Dermott 2008: 6; Hill et al., 2001 cited in Vandeweyer and Glorieux 2008: 272; Lamb et al 1987: 115). However, much research also suggests that flexible working is not always a positive solution for workers (Moss 1995: xiv; Brandth and Kvande 2002; Christensen and Staines 1990 cited in Vandeweyer and Glorieux 2008: 272; Pollert 1988 cited in Crompton 2006: 5; Lamb et al 1987; O’Brien and Shemilt 2003).

While flexible options, particularly part-time working, are more frequently taken up by women, many fathers use some form of flexible working to help their family's work life balance. This is often through the use of either informal or formal flexi-time arrangements, or through home working.

What are your experiences? Do you work from home? Does your employer offer flexi-time solutions that suit your child care needs?