Mention Health and Safety and most people will roll their eyes and maybe stifle a yawn. The stringent red tape has made it a subject to be feared and dreaded, especially for small businesses. We all worry that one missing bit of paper or trail of information will leave us exposed to the perils of a blame culture. And there are those out there feeding our fear in order to sell failsafe solutions.

Fear aside, it is, a vital part of a business’s duty of care, especially to their employees. Most health and safety procedures are down to common sense, and showing people the safest way to perform their job role is just sensible practise. And helping the workforce consider others around them as they get on with their work should be all part of the training.

Recently, I’ve been updating our policies and procedures and trying to tie them all together in one practical Health and Safety Guide. And, to be honest, I have been tempted by these offers of instant fixes and ‘cover-your-arse’ solutions! But I am glad I have really given our working practices serious thought and consideration. It feels like I now have documentation and procedures that really reflect the work we do, and the complex nature of working at over 50 different sites.

Next step, formal training courses for all Supervisor level staff, refreshers in some case. Then we will apply for our CHAS Registration as proof to others that we have done things properly and take the health and safety of our team and those around them seriously, that we don’t just pay it lip service and take the simplest option!
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We are proud to announce that the first Green Mopper of the Month award has gone to our lovely Chris.

Chris has shown such a great attitude in all the time he has been part of the Green Mop team. He’s a student by day, and a super Green Mopper by night, leading teams of cleaners at several sites. He is always helpful and flexible and mucks in for the good of the team. He also thinks about the work we’re doing and often has great ideas, like reducing bins to reduce the waste at some of our office sites.

Chris takes great pride in his work, and his scores from standards inspections on sites he looks after have got better and better.

So a big big thanks to Chris for his continued hard work and enthusiasm.

We have lots of great Green Moppers out and about working hard, and they’re all appreciated. We have some contenders for the August award already…
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Our reward and incentive scheme for our hard working Green Moppers is now in place.

Regular site inspections mean that we can now reward those who exceed our expectations.

All Green Moppers work hard, but we think it’s good to reward achievements. So we will be making an Employee of the Month award from now on! They will win a gift voucher which can be redeemed at any of the places listed in this link.

It’s not much, but we value our Green Moppers and we know how hard they all work. We just like them to know they’re appreciated!
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I was reading the Sunday Times magazine this weekend. There was a really good article in there by Christina Robert, but as Murdoch has now put up a pay wall, I can’t just link to it from here! So just thought I’d summarise some of the excellent points made.

Christina mentions in the article that choosing to detox her cleaning at home was “the easiest lifestyle change I ever made”. She made the green cleaning choice because there is a consensus that the chemicals we have been using to clean with for the past 30 years have polluted water systems and been linked to an increase in asthma, allergies, super-bugs, auto-immune disorders and skin sensitivities. The build up of industrial chemicals inside us is like a toxic overload and is referred to as our “body burden”, a burden that our great-grandparents’ bodies never knew.

With trial and error, along the way Christina learnt that “water is the most effective cleaning agent we have”. Cleaning should really be all about removing, not about destroying. Regular cleaning and sensibly hygiene mean that “unless you’re preparing for surgery, a little soap and water is all you need”. Antibacterial chemicals destroy ALL bacteria, good and bad, just as antibiotics do.

Our new online brochure is now available. It details the comprehensive range of washroom services that we can now supply to our customers.

Our range of washroom services includes:

• Feminine hygiene services
• Washroom odour control
• Nappy disposal services
• Hand washing & drying

For more information, please click here.

It’s not my favourite pass time, but for our business, cold contacting other businesses actually works.

I try not to be annoying; if someone is happy with the standard of cleaning in their workplace, or they’re not interested, I thank them nicely and leave them alone! Because we all know how irritating it is when people don’t listen to a polite “no thank you”.

The simple fact is that many people are not happy with the cleaning standards offered by their current provider. I know in almost every office I’ve ever worked in we’ve all sat and moaned about the cleaners! So when Green Mop calls and offers a better service, people are often pleased to hear from us! Green, reliable, local, friendly, value for money… What’s not to like!

I saw the report in the paper about the drain cleaner causing these awful injuries after it exploded. I was shocked to see that it was from a ‘green’ product.

I’d never heard of the brand, and have tried to research what was in the product, but funnily enough they’ve removed it from their website!

There are claims that the drain cleaner must have been mixed with other chemicals alreading in the drain. It just shows what great care is needed when using and mixing cleaning chemicals.

It’s the sort of thing that is taught on the NVQ course that our lead cleaners do, and pass on. Even though we only ever use non toxic cleaning products, you never know what has been used before you.

I volunteered to give my sister’s oven a clean yesterday, as she didn’t have a clue (worried about breaking a nail no doubt!). So I turned up with my trusty soda crystals and a couple of copper scourers. “Is that it?!”, she said. I let her know that HOT HOT water would do most of the work. Left the racks to soak in boiling hot water and soda crystals whilst I had a cuppa and a natter. Then let copper scourers do the work. She felt suitably embarrassed by how easy it was!

Quick blog note to point out our shiny new home page. Take a look here please! Whaddya reckon blog-watchers?

Once upon a time, well about 3 years ago, there was a slightly wheezy IT nerd looking grumpy. “I don’t want to commute anymore”, the IT nerd sulked. “I’d rather be a cleaner”, they said to emphasize just how bad commuting was.

So that’s what I did.. It started with a trickle of customers, like Ruben in Hove, and Avril in Brighton. I soon needed Ceri’s help, then before long there was a team of Green Moppers with their rucksacks of green goodies, keeping peoples’ homes clean, and toxin free! In that time, we have also taken on more and more commercial customers. And it is this area that we now find consumes our time.

So it is with sadness that today is the last day that we look after our wonderful, loyal regular domestic customers. A lovely Hove based company has agreed to keep our customers clean and green into the future. So it should all be a seamless change for them.

So a new era dawns for Green Mop. Our focus is now on our Commercial Customers. We continue to do one off residential cleaning for landlords, letting agents, property managers etc.

A huge thanks to the domestic customers who have been a big part in making our little green, ethical company a success story in these hard times. Sniff. Sob..