Sharing one room between very young kittens and a working day can succeed well in a flat, because the kittens get steady human presence and the office worker hears immediately if anything is wrong. The risks are specific to the overlap: sleep shattered by calls and keyboard noise, tempting cables at chewing height, and socialization that becomes constant low-level disturbance instead of calm, chosen contact. Structure the room so work and kitten care each have protected corners and protected times.
Zone the room for work, rest, and litter
Give the kittens a bed and hiding spot as far from the desk chair wheels and door swing as the room allows, and keep that corner the quiet end where nobody takes calls on speaker. Place food and water away from the litter tray, with the tray in the least trafficked corner, because kittens in a single room learn clean habits fastest when toilet and dining areas never blur. Expect the chair base, pedal bins, and trailing chargers to be investigated daily, so lift cables into trunking or behind the desk, remove small desk items that can be batted off and chewed, and check the floor before every roll of the chair.
Socialize in deliberate short sessions
Presence during work is not the same as socialization. Between calls and tasks, run brief, positive handling sessions: a few minutes of gentle holding, paw and ear touching, and play that ends before the kittens get frantic, then let them retreat to sleep. Play recorded household sounds at low volume during calm moments, voices, doorbells, and gentle appliance noise, so flat life becomes ordinary background rather than a series of frights. Invite an occasional calm visitor to meet them in the room, seated, letting the kittens approach, instead of passing them around a room full of strangers.
Protect sleep during the working day
Kittens in an office hear every call as an event, so build white-noise cover with a radio at low volume and close the door on loud calls where you can. Put a simple sign or message agreement in place for anyone else in the flat: sleeping kittens in the office are not woken for cuddles. When a meeting runs long, the essentials still need covering, litter scooping, fresh water, and meals at kitten intervals rather than office intervals, which is where a second household member checking in on schedule keeps the day honest. Give the kittens a predictable response to office sounds rather than silence you cannot guarantee. Let the printer, call voices, and chair movements happen at normal volume while the kittens eat and play, so those noises fuse with good experiences instead of only interrupting sleep. What you protect is the depth of rest, not total quiet: a covered bed or box inside the room gives them a dark retreat where sound is muffled, and kittens who choose that retreat are telling you the open room has become too much for now.
Health and escape details in a one-room setup
Wash hands between handling work deliveries, keyboards shared with others, and the kittens, and keep cleaning sprays, screen wipes, and desk snacks stored closed, since kittens mouth everything at floor level. Note weights and appetite in the room each morning, because a quiet kitten can hide behind office busyness for a whole day. A kitten who stops eating, has persistent loose stool, or sneezes through several days needs a vet visit booked around work, not after it. In KinsLe, Family Sharing lets you share the kittens' profiles with relatives you select.