Following many years of employing small teams (2-3 persons) at each site to conduct the general cleaning of offices I realised the problems around skill level, sickness and holiday cover was proving difficult to manage. As the business grew, the problem had only increased. It was time to seek the services of an outside contractor.
The contractor would need to be able to provide a service initially at one branch, Ciceley Lane which includes offices, toilets and canteens for white and blue collar workers.
The window of time to complete the work could not exceed 1.5hrs per day over 5 days per week commencing at 7:30am each day. This would need to be answered by a number of individuals working as a team under very concise instructions.
From several companies tendering for the business Helping Hands were the only company that emphasised their ability to be flexible in terms of service and growth. Over the years the one contract has developed into three within Lancashire and Greater Manchester, all with their own specific requirements. Retail showrooms, customer contact areas in addition to offices, toilets and canteens. The time to provide the cleaning at my retail premises meant an earlier start 6:00am but to be finished by 8:00am.
In a word Flexibility. The approach by all the staff at Helping Hands, be it contact with head office or the cleaners themselves, the ‘can do’ attitude has and I am sure will continue to exceed my expectations. None more so, if proof were needed, have the changes required to meet Covid demands proved the adaptability.
All businesses have suffered in the pandemic, but the option to have most people working from home was only applicable to a few Ciceley staff members.
Ciceley has built up its business to provide vehicles and or maintenance to front line operators. The transport needs of Northwest Ambulance, Police, local council services along with the online delivery providers such as Sainsbury, Tesco, Argos and Iceland had to be maintained. Social distancing, in a sanitised environment for staff and customers was a priority. Helping Hands invested in the latest equipment to provide such a service from the outset. They also repeated this service ‘out of hours’ at very short notice should a staff member be called upon to self-isolate, ensuring the facility could continue to function with minimal disruption to the customer and safety of staff.
At all times the Helping Hands staff maintain a smile, despite the high level of PPE they have to wear. Great people doing a tremendous job.
Colin Briggs- CEO
Ciceley Mercedes Ltd
