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About us

COEL is a leading workplace design and fit out business, based in Cambridge and providing specialist office and lab services to businesses across the Oxford-Cambridge Arc, down to London and out to the East of England.

 

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INSPIRING workspaces

We design and build inspiring spaces that challenge conventional thinking, elevate employee experience and transform workplaces into hubs of innovation and collaboration.

Specialising in ultramodern offices and laboratories, we provide a full turnkey service to deliver sustainable and future-proof workspaces, which bring teams together and enhance employee wellbeing at work.

See our projects

Two construction workers, wearing helmets and vests labeled "COEL Inspiring Spaces," discuss blueprints on a glass wall in an office setting.

our story

Our story starts more than 30 years ago, as Cambridge Partitions, a small partitions and drylining company based in Cambridge. In 2,000 COEL (Cambridge Office Environments Limited) was born, and since that date we have grown to a team of over 60 staff, offering fully managed design and fit out services for our clients. 

Growing together

Some of our team were with the company back in the early noughties, and they recall the good old days when we were so small that it was ‘all hands on deck’ to deliver a project to the highest standard for their clients.

We may be a bigger team, working on more complex projects, but at our core, we still know that the secret to success is in building close relationships with our clients and partners, and working together to get the job done.

A woman works on a laptop at a table in a modern office booth, featuring wooden paneling, frosted glass dividers, blue benches, and overhead lighting.

Spreading our wings

We’re proud of our Cambridge roots and the network we have built locally has been the perfect springboard for our geographical expansion, enabling us to go on to support clients spanning from our home in Cambridge, to Oxford in the west, Norwich in the East and London to the south. 

Cambridge
Oxford
East of England
London

modern corporate kitchen with dark cabinetry, light wooden countertops, and blue bar stools under pendant lights
bustling cafe with a long counter, diverse seating, and two women conversing at a booth
Auditorium with tiered wooden seats and colorful cushions, featuring a podium with a microphone and keyboard in the foreground, surrounded by green lighting and overlooking glass offices above.
Modern office partitions with glass walls and black frames, enclosing blue seating areas; features exposed ceilings, overhead lighting, and a planter with green foliage in the foreground.
A round wooden table with chairs sits in front of a wall-mounted TV, surrounded by gray acoustic panels, under a framed abstract art piece and modern light fixture, with indoor plants nearby.
Hanging plants and circular lights adorn a modern office setting above a long wooden table with black chairs, surrounded by greenery, creating a natural, airy ambiance.
Curved mint-green sofas encircle a small round table with white flowers, set in a modern office space with lockers, high stools, and ceiling light fixtures.
Modern office break room with round tables, colorful chairs, and blue barstools at a central island. Wooden cabinets and appliances line one wall, with a flat-screen TV and hanging lights.
Modern office space featuring a long wooden desk with orange dividers and chairs. Curved glass meeting room with sheer curtains, next to a wooden slatted partition. Bright, natural lighting.
Decorative wall with geometric, arrow-shaped cutouts enhances an office space; glass partition door and indoor plants accentuate the modern, minimalist design.
modern corporate kitchen with dark cabinetry, light wooden countertops, and blue bar stools under pendant lights bustling cafe with a long counter, diverse seating, and two women conversing at a booth Auditorium with tiered wooden seats and colorful cushions, featuring a podium with a microphone and keyboard in the foreground, surrounded by green lighting and overlooking glass offices above. Modern office partitions with glass walls and black frames, enclosing blue seating areas; features exposed ceilings, overhead lighting, and a planter with green foliage in the foreground. A round wooden table with chairs sits in front of a wall-mounted TV, surrounded by gray acoustic panels, under a framed abstract art piece and modern light fixture, with indoor plants nearby. Hanging plants and circular lights adorn a modern office setting above a long wooden table with black chairs, surrounded by greenery, creating a natural, airy ambiance. Curved mint-green sofas encircle a small round table with white flowers, set in a modern office space with lockers, high stools, and ceiling light fixtures. Modern office break room with round tables, colorful chairs, and blue barstools at a central island. Wooden cabinets and appliances line one wall, with a flat-screen TV and hanging lights. Modern office space featuring a long wooden desk with orange dividers and chairs. Curved glass meeting room with sheer curtains, next to a wooden slatted partition. Bright, natural lighting. Decorative wall with geometric, arrow-shaped cutouts enhances an office space; glass partition door and indoor plants accentuate the modern, minimalist design.

The team behind
The inspiring spaces

Our specialist teams cover every aspect of the design and build process. Our board and senior leadership team works hard to foster a culture of inclusivity and collaboration, whilst having plenty of fun along the way.

Meet the COEL team

Smiling man in a dark blazer and white shirt, seated with hands clasped on a white table, wearing glasses and a wristwatch, against a plain white background. A smiling man seated at a table, wearing a dark suit and glasses, with hands clasped and a white background.

Alistair Rumbelow

Board  |  CEO
A man in a dark suit and white shirt sits with hands clasped on a white table, in front of a plain white background. A person wearing a black water polo cap and polo shirt holds a yellow-and-black water polo ball labeled “MEGA OFFICIAL EXTRA-GRIP” against a plain white background.

Jerry Overhill

Board  |  Director of Quality Assurance

Smiling person sits at a white table with hands clasped, wearing a dark blazer and white shirt, against a plain light background. A pair of navy blue running shoes is displayed on a white table, with a smiling person in a suit sitting behind them against a plain background.

David Williams

Board  |  Chief Financial Officer

Bald man in a checkered blazer sits with hands clasped on a white surface, against a plain light background. A person smiles, holding a canoe paddle labeled "CANOESPORT Tim Middlehurst Telephone 01932 354530" against a plain background; wearing a red and black jacket and a light-colored cap.

Richard Brent

Board  |  Construction Director
Smiling man sitting with hands clasped, wearing a dark suit and white shirt, against a plain, light background. A person wearing an apron reading "MR. GOOD LOOKIN' IS COOKIN'" holds grilling tools, smiling, at a table, against a plain white background.

Hugh Daniels

Board  |  Commercial Director
Sarah Butler Director of Business Development and marketing here at COEL Sarah Butler Director of Business Development and marketing here at COEL

Sarah Butler

Board  |  Business Development & Marketing Director

SEE ALL TEAM

Three colleagues collaborating around a high meeting table in a modern office space, reviewing documents under pendant lights with a green accent wall in the background

Why us?

We are always learning, with one eye on the future.

By combining proactive problem solving, with a commitment to continuous improvement and giving back, we deliver flexible and inclusive workspaces that support sustainable futures, inspire teams and make working lives better.

Our mission 

To enhance working lives through tailored interior design and fit out services that foster productivity, creativity, and wellbeing.

Our Vision 

To be the leading office and lab, design and fit out provider in Cambridge, Oxford and surrounding regions.

What makes us different?

 

01

We work smart.

We’re always striving for a better way of doing things; working together to create solutions and learning together to continuously improve.

02

We do it all.

We plan, design, build, furnish and maintain your workspace, managing the whole process so you don’t have to get your hands dirty.

 

03

We deliver.

We take pride in our work, delivering high-quality projects, exceeding client expectations and building strong relationships along the way.

 

04

We really care.

We care about doing a good job, and we make time to give back and to reduce the impact of the work we do on the world around us.

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