Hot-desking on the horizon as Northampton campus nears completion

A horrible prospect - I worked in an open-plan office during my commercial career. It was OK for writing easy documents but not for hardcore technical work. Add on the stress of having to find a place to sit and the whole job loses some of its appeal (or will staff just work at home). On a more practical note, personal tutees with problems will be hard to accommodate at short notice without a door to close and ensure confidentiality. The whole thing smacks of some Taylorised system that puts neither students nor staff at the heart of the process but rather a spreadsheet driven penny-pinching mentality. A very unfortunate development for academic careers.

I remember being without a designated office space in my early teaching days and how ashamed I felt when students with severe pastoral or mental health problems broke down in tears during meetings in the corridor. Also how inefficient I was as a scholar with nowhere to put heavy dictionaries and textbooks. Very glad I don't have to work under these conditions again.

Has anyone consulted the academics? How can any academic write a paper, a grant, have confidential meetings or conduct distance learning classes in an open plan office? This is not the model for a place of scholarship and learning which is what a University is supposed to be.