How we ensure you get a quality clean | Our training process.
As business owners and employers, we know that you must adhere to a ream of legislation to maintain a safe working environment. All businesses have to adhere to the standards set in place by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Different sectors have their own set of additional legislative and monitoring bodies, for example, those in the Healthcare and Social Care sector have to maintain standards set out by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The hospitality and catering industries have to comply with the Food Standards Agency (FSA) requirements. These are just a few examples, there are many more! All these standards require staff training on your part.
Why does our training process matter to you?
We want to work with you to meet all of the standards that your sector’s monitoring body demands. We want our cleaning operatives to be part of your team, working to support the working rhythms and compliance standards of your business.
When we employ a suitable operative to work at your business premises, we always train them to the highest possible standard. To do this we introduce them to the Colour Coding System. Our Colour Coding System allows us to ensure your workplace is complying with all of the monitoring and legislative bodies.
The Colour Coding System
One of the techniques that we use is The Colour Coding System. This allows separating the different areas of your site into four sections. It means we reduce cross-contamination by using different cleaning equipment and products are used in each section. Equipment used for the red section is not used in the green areas, and so on.
1. Red: High Risk Areas
These areas include places where there is a high risk of dangerous cross-contamination of germs, such as toilets, washroom floors and urinals.
2. Yellow: Medium Risk Areas
Medium risk areas include washbasins, sinks, cabinets and other washroom surfaces. There is a medium risk of contamination at these points.
3. Green: Food Preparation Areas
Since 2006, The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has made it a sign of best practice to use separate cleaning equipment (such as mops, cloths, and sponges) in areas where food is prepared. Included in this category are all areas where food is prepared and served. Areas such as bars, kitchen surfaces, food preparation surfaces and food processing.
4. Blue: Lower Risk Areas
All other areas are classed as lower-risk areas. This can include areas such as office desks, window ledges, hallway carpets, and windows.
Once the operative understands the different sections of your site, we determine how frequently each area needs to be cleaned. For example, red areas and high-traffic areas require more cleaning, whilst low-traffic areas, less. This builds a schedule, allowing the operative a structure to their activities and delivering an outstanding result every time. The schedule is transferred to a checklist sheet like the one seen here and the different tasks for each colour-coded section are written down in detail.
Safety at work
Our management staff undertakes Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) training every couple of years. This training keeps us up to date with all the latest Health and Safety legislation and strategies to ensure staff are able to protect themselves onsite.
All our cleaning operatives, when being inducted to a new site, watch a Health and Safety video to help them look out for themselves and be aware of potential hazards.
Safeguarding training
As employers, we have a safeguarding policy to protect our staff and others. We ensure all operatives employed to work in sectors that include children or vulnerable adults (such as the Education sector or Social Care sector) pass a DBS check before employment commences.
When working in sectors that provide for children or vulnerable adults, such as the Social Care sector or the Education sector, we ensure our staff is aware of what to do if faced with a disclosure or witness activities that cause them concern.
Our monitoring processes
We find that the detailed training that happens at the start of the operative’s journey works as a strong foundation and allows us to maintain a high standard. But we ensure that this continues by following a range of monitoring activities so that any issues can be quickly dealt with. For more information about this area of our practice, please read our article How do we make sure your property is always well cleaned?
We are proud of our highly trained cleaning operatives. Many go on to form close working relationships with the business that they clean, allowing them to hone their skills and really get to understand the industry that the company operates in. This gives them a greater understanding of the standards required. If you need any more information about our high-quality cleaning service, please do not hesitate to get in touch. Our team are looking forward to working with you.
