Why Nursing Rooms Are Important in Designing Inclusive Workspaces

Inclusion starts with the spaces we build

We talk about inclusion a lot at work. It shows up in policies, benefits decks, and carefully worded values statements. But long before any of that is read, people experience inclusion physically — in the spaces they move through every day.

A workplace quietly answers a few unspoken questions the moment you walk in:

• Was someone like me considered when this place was designed?

• Is there room here for my life outside my job?

• Do I have to adapt myself to the space — or does the space adapt to me?

Nursing rooms sit right at the intersection of those questions. They’re not flashy. They don’t make it into the office tour highlight reel. But they send a clear signal about care, respect, and belonging — especially in moments when someone is navigating a big transition back into work.

Seen this way, they stop being a “compliance feature” and start becoming part of a broader design mindset: building workplaces around people, not just around desks, meeting rooms, and square footage. A truly human-centered workplace doesn’t only make room for meetings and collaboration—it also makes room for care, privacy, and the very normal realities of life that don’t stay at home when we come to work.

The role of nursing rooms in employee well-being and retention

Most retention conversations focus on things you can put in a spreadsheet — pay bands, promotions, bonuses, benefits. Those matter. But day-to-day experience tends to carry more emotional weight than most policies ever will.

The return-to-work moment

For new parents, coming back to work is often less about logistics and more about trust. Trust that the workplace can accommodate a very real, very human need without making it awkward, stressful, or isolating.

A thoughtfully designed nursing space can change the tone of that entire transition. Instead of feeling like they’re “fitting themselves into” the office, employees feel like the office made room for them.

The ripple effect

Supportive spaces don’t just affect the people who use them. They shape how the whole team sees the organization.

• Colleagues notice when care-focused spaces are treated as standard, not special.

• Managers see fewer disruptions around scheduling and accommodation.

• Teams pick up on the idea that life stages aren’t something you have to quietly work around.

Over time, that shows up as loyalty, trust, and a stronger sense of belonging — things that don’t always show up neatly in metrics, but tend to stick around much longer than incentives alone.

Nursing rooms as part of a broader culture of care and equity

It’s easy to think of nursing rooms as a “parent issue.” In reality, they sit inside a much bigger conversation about how workplaces support people through different phases of life.

More than a single amenity

When a company makes space for caregiving needs, it’s usually also signaling something about flexibility, mental well-being, and how much room there is for being human at work. These rooms quietly reinforce the idea that care isn’t an exception — it’s part of the system.

The equity lens

Caregiving responsibilities often intersect with career progression in ways that aren’t always visible on org charts. Without physical support systems in place, people can start to feel sidelined during key career moments — not because of performance, but because of practical barriers that shouldn’t exist in the first place.

Thoughtfully designed nursing spaces help remove some of that friction. They make it easier for employees to stay present, engaged, and on track, rather than feeling like they’re constantly negotiating between work and life behind the scenes.

What the space says to everyone else

Even for those who never use the room, its presence matters. It tells the broader team that this is a workplace designed for longevity — for people who are expected to grow, change, and stay, not just pass through.

When nursing rooms are treated as normal infrastructure instead of a special accommodation, they become part of a culture that supports participation, leadership, and growth over the long term — not just in theory, but in the physical reality of the office itself.

What a nursing room should include — designing for dignity, not just compliance

There’s a big difference between a room that technically meets the rules and a room that someone actually feels comfortable using. One feels like a box that happens to have a chair in it. The other feels like a space that was designed with a person in mind.

Here’s what truly matters — not just for meeting legal requirements for lactation rooms, but for making the space feel safe, calm, and genuinely usable:

• A private space that’s not a bathroom

This one sounds obvious, but it’s foundational. A nursing room should feel clean, respectful, and separate from hygiene facilities. That separation sends a simple message: this is a space for care, not a workaround.

• Full visual privacy 

Curtains and low screens don’t create real comfort — they create uncertainty. Solid, full-height or near-full-height enclosure gives users the confidence that they’re truly out of sight, not just partially hidden.

• Security with a lockable door

Being able to latch the door from the inside changes the entire experience. It removes the mental tension of “What if someone walks in?” and replaces it with a sense of control, safety, and dignity.

In open-plan offices — or workplaces that weren’t originally designed with a dedicated nursing room — temporary walls with doors can be an effective way to create a true “room-like” space that feels private, dignified, and intentional. Modular wall kits like this U-Shaped Temporary Wall with Swing Door or this Mounted L-Shaped Temporary Wall with Swing Door don’t just include a latchable door; they also offer a clean, finished look, unlike flimsy partitions or curtains that can feel like a makeshift workaround rather than a thoughtful design choice.

• Comfortable, supportive seating

A nursing room isn’t a quick pit stop. The chair should be stable, cushioned, and positioned so users can sit comfortably for longer periods without feeling rushed or awkward.

• Lighting, ventilation, and access to power

Soft, even lighting helps the space feel calm instead of clinical. Good airflow keeps it comfortable. Reliable power access is essential for pumps, devices, and personal tech — ideally without cords running across the floor like tripwires.

• Functional details that make the space usable

A small surface goes a long way. A shelf or table for bags, pumps, bottles, or personal items turns the room from “empty box” into a working space that actually supports the task at hand.

• A calm atmosphere with some noise discretion

Quiet matters more than people realize. A softer sound environment helps users relax, which can make the experience more comfortable both physically and emotionally. There’s also the practical side — pumps make noise, and a bit of sound buffering helps users feel less self-conscious in an open office setting.

If you have no choice but to set up a nursing room within a noisy, shared area, temporary acoustic dividers like this Operable Wall Folding Room Divider or this Operable Wall Sliding Room Divider can help carve out a noticeably quieter space for it. The best part about these portable partitions is that they’re not only budget-friendly, but also versatile — they can later be repurposed to create focus zones or discreet meeting areas elsewhere in the office.

• Nice-to-haves that elevate the experience

These aren’t required, but they’re deeply appreciated:

• A sink with running water for washing pump parts

• A small fridge for safe milk storage

• Hooks or cubbies for coats and bags

The final test is simple: someone should be able to walk in, use the space, and walk out without ever feeling like they’re “interrupting” the office just by taking care of a basic human need.

Making space in smaller offices without losing what matters

In a small office, every square foot already has a job. Meeting rooms double as brainstorm spaces, phone booths turn into quiet corners, and storage areas slowly become unofficial social hubs. So when the topic of adding a nursing room comes up, the first reaction is often, “We don’t have the space.”

More often than not, what’s really missing isn’t space—it’s flexibility.

Underused corners, oversized break areas, or sections of open-plan floors that don’t quite belong to any one function can often be reimagined with a bit of structure and intention.

This is where modular or temporary wall systems quietly earn their keep. Instead of permanently giving up a meeting room or office, a temporary wall with door like this Mounted Straight Partition Wall with Door or this Mounted L-Shaped Partition Wall with Door can convert a quiet niche or corner within shared areas into a discrete nursing pod. It provides real privacy when it’s needed, but it doesn’t lock the layout into a single use forever.

And here’s where it gets even smarter: when needs shift (and they always do), that same enclosed space can evolve into a wellness room, a focus booth, or a quiet zone. If the office grows or relocates, the modular components can be dismantled and reassembled in the new space. In smaller offices especially, that kind of adaptability isn’t just helpful — it’s essential.

Future-proofing inclusive design

Workplaces don’t sit still for long. Teams grow. Departments reshuffle. A layout that felt perfectly thought-out last year can suddenly feel a little off. Inclusive design works best when it assumes change is inevitable — not something that throws the whole plan off course.

When nursing rooms are designed with flexibility in mind, they’re much easier to carry forward into whatever comes next. A space that can be reconfigured, relocated, or repurposed doesn’t become outdated when needs shift — it simply takes on a new role.

Here, again, temporary walls truly stand out. When walls can be dismantled and reassembled elsewhere on the floor—or even in a new office entirely—the investment carries forward instead of being left behind. It turns what might have been a one-time compliance solution into part of a longer-term workplace strategy.

The result? An office that feels intentional rather than reactive. Instead of tearing things down and starting from scratch every time priorities change, the workspace evolves in layers — adapting to people as their needs shift, without losing what already works.

Inclusion you can see and feel

At the end of the day, nursing rooms are about more than ticking a box or meeting a requirement. They’re about how a workplace chooses to show care in physical, visible ways.

When someone walks past a thoughtfully designed, clearly supported nursing space, it sends a quiet but powerful message: this is a place where real life is expected, not hidden. It reflects an organization that thinks about people not just as roles or headcounts, but as humans moving through different stages of life.

Inclusive design doesn’t have to announce itself. Often, it works best when it’s simply there—built into the layout, easy to use, and treated as a normal part of the workplace. Over time, those small, well-considered spaces add up to something bigger: a culture that feels supportive not because it says it is, but because you can actually see and feel it in the way the office is built.