The firm, which employs more than 600 people in the city, won in the commercial category in the inaugural RICS Social Impact Awards for Northern Ireland and will progress to the UK-wide awards in September.

The redesign, dubbed ‘Project FLEX’, involved a complete reworking of the 50,000 sq ft site at Donegall Quay with a strong emphasis on creating an agile workspace through innovation, collaboration and improving employee wellbeing.

Under the “activity-based approach”, desks across all seven floors became hot desks and stand-up work stations. The firm also reduced its carbon footprint by introducing new technology to allow for seamless working from home and remote meetings, reducing air travel and CO2 emissions.

The new working environment reportedly led to a 30 per cent increase in productivity, and employees have also been encouraged to use the new space to host networking, professional development and charitable events.

Patricia Rogers, head of the Support Services Centre at Allen & Overy in Belfast, said: “Our Belfast site is the first to roll out this new agile design philosophy within the A&O estate. Agile working helps improve wellbeing, productivity and mental health and has given us the flexibility to diversify, grow and adapt with very little disruption to the office environment and people.

“This investment reaffirms our ongoing commitment to employees and demonstrates how businesses can adapt their overall model within the current climate successfully. Our focus on innovation and digital technology in particular has ensured that all staff are able to work safely and effectively from home during COVID-19 whilst delivering for clients globally.”

RICS Social Impact Awards judges said: “A qualified physiotherapist completed a workstation assessment at all desks to help staff understand the importance of the issues with workstations and to highlight any issues that may affect poorly on health.

“During the works local contractors were used and significant collaboration existed throughout the design team but also included A&O appointed staff. A workplace psychologist was engaged to assess how people related to one another and their environment with all such information used to aid in the design of the new office area.”