Penguin Random House UK
You’ll find colleagues from Rights, Technology, HR, Facilities, Publishing Operations, Contracts, Sales,
Cornerstone Publishing, Ebury Publishing, and Vintage Publishing at our Vauxhall Bridge Road office.
Getting here
The nearest stations are Pimlico (underground), Vauxhall (underground and overground), and Victoria (underground and overground). Vauxhall and Victoria have step free access, Pimlico does not. You can also find further information on accessible travel at tfl.gov.uk.
The following buses stop close to our office: 2, 36, 185, 436, 87, 88, 360, C10.
The front entrance of the Vauxhall Bridge Road office includes two steps. Facilities can provide a ramp to access this door (width – 1.6m), which can be requested in advance. Use the intercom to speak with reception.
There is step-free access to the building from the rear entrance (width – 1.2 m) on Causton Street. If you need to use this entrance, first contact security via the intercom at the front of the building on Vauxhall Bridge Road.
There are two public parking bays next to The Swan pub on Causton Street which offer 4 hours paid parking. Please note- these can often get busy.
Vauxhall Bridge Road is very busy and it is not possible to wait outside. The pick-up and drop-off point for anyone travelling to the building by car is located on Causton Street.
Please note- parking sign information was true at the time of photography, but you should check online for the latest details.
The back entrance, which is step free, is on Causton Street. A key code is required to use this entrance and visitors should speak to reception using the intercom at the front door first, before moving to this entrance to enter the building (if they would prefer not to or cannot use the mobile ramp at the front door).
Cyclists can use the bike park entrance to access bike spaces. They will need to log their bike with security first to get details of how to access and to collect a bike ID tag.
From the inside, press the ‘push to exit’ button to release the door.
The side entrance, which is step free, is on Causton Street. A key code is required to use this entrance.
Cyclists can have access bike spaces via this entrance. They will need to log their bike with security first to get details of how to access and to collect a bike ID tag.
From the inside, both the gate and the shutter have sensors for automatic opening.
Within the shower facilities are lockers. Information sheets on the basement explain how the lockers can be used.
When you arrive
The reception desk is at two heights (1m and 0.75m) to enable wheelchair users to use. Visitors should sign in here. A hearing loop is available at reception and there is a mobile unit for meeting rooms.
Once signed in, visitors can go through the electronic gates (width – 0.9m) and move straight ahead to the lifts or turn right to reach the canteen. The staircase from reception leads to all floors.
New colleagues will be given a Facilities tour, starting at reception, on their first day. You can request a priority lift badge here too.
The bank of lifts is just beyond reception. There is sign displayed that shows the locations of different teams. Press the call button outside the lift and once inside click the the floor you wish to visit. The left-hand lift goes to all floors. The right-hand lift does not go to the lower ground floor. The lifts are 1.45m (depth) by 1.1m (width) and lift doors are 0.9m wide. Lifts can accommodate up to 630kg.
When you come out the lift, signs show you where different divisions (the publishing houses and central functions) sit on the floor. Security passes are needed to go through the double doors (width – 1.7m) which are manually operated. If you are a wheelchair user, or cannot pull the door open, please speak to reception on arrival.
If for any reason you cannot wait in line for the lifts and need priority access, request a priority lift badge at reception.
Next to the lifts is the central staircase which goes to all floors. There is also a back staircase which goes from each floor to the basement area.
The basement houses a wellbeing room, recording room, massage room, showers and toilets, and kitchen. There is level access to all facilities.
Information about each facility can be found in ‘other building facilities’.
Example floor layout
Each floor contains a shared seating area that can be used for any colleagues or visitors. People choose to meet, work, or eat here as they please.
Each floor contains many meeting rooms, usually allocated to a nearby team. These are either bookable on the screen panels outside each of the doors, or via our meeting room booking system. They all have seating and a table, but differ in their capacity or the technology available.
Each floor contains a kitchen that has a sink, coffee machine, fridge, kettle, glassware, recycling, food, and regular waste bins, free hot drink supplies, a cold drinks tap, and boiled water tap.
There are outside seating spaces with tables and chairs on floors 1, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8.
Cupboards with a coat hanger symbol are free to use cloakrooms.
Restaurant and coffee bar
The restaurant is located in the same space as the coffee bar. The restaurant is open Tuesday-Thursday for breakfast (8.00-10.00) and Monday-Thursday for lunch (12.00-14.30) for all colleagues and visitors. The weekly menus are available on our intranet, Roost and posted in lifts on noticeboards on the ground floor. There are microwaves and water taps to use. It can be noisy when busy, so you are welcome to take your food away to a quieter spot to eat, so long as cutlery and crockery are returned to any of the kitchen areas.
The coffee bar is on the ground floor, to the right of reception. There are no steps in the coffee bar and it is on one level. It is open 8.00-18.00 (Monday-Thursday) and 8.00-15.00 (Friday). It serves hot drinks and snacks to all colleagues and visitors.
Toilet and showers
There are gender neutral and wheelchair accessible toilets on the ground floor at the back of the building. Follow the long corridor from reception to reach these.
There are also gender neutral and wheelchair accessible facilities in the basement in the wellbeing area, and on the ground floor.
There are gender neutral facilities on the 8th floor. All other floors have male/female bathrooms, and ambulant facilities.
Female and gender neutral bathrooms contain free period products.
The main shower facilities are located in the basement and can be accessed directly from the cycle store area. One entrance from the cycle store is level. There are 3 individual shower cubicles (level access) and an accessible shower which is step-free.
There are also shower facilities on level 8.
There is an accessible shower in the basement.
The door is 0.88m wide, and the accessible shower contains a moveable shower chair (height: 0.5m, max load: 100kg). There is an emergency cord in the shower.
The accessible shower also contains a toilet and sink – both with grab rails and an emergency cord.
Other building facilities
There are plenty of regularly refreshed free books which colleagues can take from the corridor on the ground floor between the restaurant and lifts.
There is also a wellness library on the 3rd floor next to where the HR team sit, where you can borrow books related to health and wellbeing.
Colleague voted Penguin Reads books are available from the walled shelving unit inside the restaurant. Soon a library curated by the colleague inclusion networks will be installed here too.
The first aid room is located on the ground floor at the back of the building.
If you need first aid, dial 8401 from a nearby phone, select option 2, and give your location and contact number.
The first aid room is not locked (unless occupied) and contains first aid supplies, a chair, single bed, fridge and a phone.
The room can be used by parents who need to pump breast milk, although anything stored in the fridge is done so at the users’ own responsibility.
People can use this room securely to take medication (e.g. insulin shots) and the room is lockable from the inside if people need privacy.
The reflection room is located the basement and can be used at any time for reflection, prayer, or meditation. There are yoga mats in the room anyone is free to use. The walls are mirrored and the lighting is soft.
There is ample bike storage in the basement, with direct access to the lockers and shower facilities.
Access to the basement is via Causton Street. Your contact can book a space through Facilities who can issue an ID tag to attach to your bike.
The Tech Support Hub is on 7th Floor.
Here colleagues can help with hardware and software questions, or you can raise a ticket through the online Support Hub.