April 2013 News

As a direct result of the unprecedented success within the education sector, we have undergone a review of our internal structure. Our education sector clients will benefit from a dedicated team of staff, headed up by Amanda Syverson; all staff employed to work on schools will undergo a CRB check, safeguarding training and regular internal briefings.

We are delighted to announce the recruitment of Angela Beeley as our new Schools Development Manager, returning to Groundlevel after a short return to teaching. Having spent a number of years teaching, Angela is extremely well placed to develop our relationship with school leaders, able to fully understand their requirements and expectations. Joining Groundlevel in May 2013, Angela will be reporting in to Amanda Syverson, HR and Business Development Manager, and the management team will be underpinned by our specialist teams in the grounds, cleaning, window cleaning, reactive, electric and projects departments.

The most recent schools to have joined us in April are Oakwood Primary, and Atherton St Georges for grounds maintenance. We are also delighted that Lowton St Mary’s have expanded their contract with Groundlevel to include total building maintenance as a direct result of the successful delivery of grounds maintenance services to this school. Further, our projects department is busy surveying and quoting for refurbishment works to a number of local schools.

Proud sponsors of Warrington RUFC, Groundlevel are delighted to extend congratulations to the Warrington Under 11’s Lancashire Cup Winners 2013 who are now off to Twickenham on 25th May.

Having progressed through the group stages, the young team defeated Fleetwood 29-0, Manchester 26-0, and Sefton 19-0, before meeting Preston and succeeding 21-0. In a closely fought final, Warrington defeated Waterloo 7-0.

Prestigious Property Management Company, Premier Estates looks to Groundlevel for project works to their City Peak development for the refurbishment of a number of apartments.

Following a successful tender process, Groundlevel secures in excess of £100k of decoration works with valuable client Trinity Estates.

We would like to extend our sincere condolences to the family of Andrew Gee who tragically lost his life in an accident whilst holidaying in Spain. Andrew did some fantastic work on the Groundlevel website and was a friend of the company for a number of years.

Employee Engagement Survey 2013

Since our first survey was conducted in 2012, the business has undergone some major changes and taken strides to improving both as a service provider and an employer. The results of this year's survey reflected the boost in staff morale and also generated some further suggestions for continuous improvement.

Since the 2012 survey, and as a direct result of staff feedback, a number of changes have been made, including the following:-

• Introduction of an appraisal linked bonus scheme, and a review of staff and salary structures
• Social events providing an opportunity for all staff to come together
• Increased training opportunities such as asbestos awareness, first aid, PA1 & PA6, NEBOSH, safeguarding, customer services and more
• Improved communication in the form of regular team meetings, company briefings and monthly newsletters
• New vehicles and equipment have been purchased with a plan to further invest through 2013

It is pleasing to conclude that 77% of staff are satisfied or very satisfied with their working environment compared to 65% in 2012. This suggests that the decision to move our grounds department from their previous location to our head office at Knutsford Road was a positive change for all involved.

88.46% of staff are satisfied or very satisfied with their levels of interaction and communication with their line manager. The same amount of colleagues feel that their line manager is competent in leading and motivating their teams; this is an accolade to our management teams. This compares to 57% in 2012 and demonstrated that our managers are continually striving to develop their relationships with their teams.

In 2012 57% of staff felt that communication was adequate within their teams. The latest survey reports an increase to 88.46% which is extremely pleasing; this result is likely to be a direct result of the introduction of regular newsletters and also increased team meetings across all departments, clearly a huge step in the right direction.

In 2012 only 28.57% of our employees were satisfied with the training and development opportunities available to them. Since then we have become more proactive in encouraging our staff to take advantage of the opportunities to develop and have offered a number of courses including:- safeguarding, first aid, project management, cleaning and hygiene, NEBOSH, asbestos awareness and many more. This has obviously been recognised by the staff with 46.15% now reporting that they are very satisfied in this area.

Team spirit and interaction is important to Groundlevel, and this is reflected in the opinions of those surveyed with no staff being dissatisfied in this area and 92% reporting that they are very satisfied with their relationships with both colleagues and our valuable clients.

There is a lot of positive feedback to take from the 2013 survey, and some fantastic suggestions for further improvement. We are delighted to report that 88.46% of our staff are satisfied or very satisfied with Groundlevel as an employer (compared to 57.14% in 2012). With the engagement of our colleagues, we are confident that we can further improve upon this in the next twelve months.

March 2013 Schools Update - Unprecedented Success for Groundlevel

Due to extraordinary success within the education sector, Groundlevel is proud to announce new contracts with a large number of local schools. Having worked within the education sector for the last few years, Groundlevel has steadily increased its presence in this sector to become a competitive FM provider. Commencing 2013 with a busy portfolio of schools business, this success has far surpassed our expectations and is a fantastic reflection of our dedication to delivering value for money without compromising on quality.

Expanding through our strong reputation for excellence and positive recommendations from existing clients, we are proud to have maintained contracts year-on-year as well as securing new contracts. We are currently offering a diverse spectrum of services to our clients, from grounds maintenance and window cleaning through relief caretaker support to total building maintenance. You can view our schools brochure to read more about the services that we provide.

Working at capacity, we have recently expanded our workforce to accommodate the increasing workloads. We are in the process of further strengthening our platform by revising our management structure to implement a robust structure with a dedicated and highly competent team of professionals, with a key focus on meeting the complex needs of each individual education facility. Our new schools departmental structure will be published on our website in April.

If you would like to apply for our services, we will be delighted to add you to our waiting list. Please contact our customer services department on 01925 269944 or email customerservices@groundlevelservices.co.uk and we will arrange a site visit to discuss your requirements. All service packages are tailored to meet the unique requirements of each client, and we also offer a reactive maintenance service, health and safety consultancy and project management services. 

March 2013 News

Congratulations to all Groundlevel staff within the projects, electrical and reactive departments who have recently undertaken Asbestos Awareness Training; H&S is very important to Groundlevel and we are delighted to support our colleagues in enhancing their awareness in such subjects.

Following our attendance at the Warrington Association of Primary Headteachers conference in January, we are delighted to be engaging with a large number of primary schools in and around the local area. The most recent new contracts come from St Josephs Catholic Primary School in Penketh, and Bradshaw Community Primary School in Grappenhall , both of whom have turned to Groundlevel for grounds maintenance services. We are also delighted to have had the opportunity to present to representatives from schools in Leigh and Bolton at recent events, and are proud to be in talks with a number of schools in these areas to further expand our relationships with the education sector.

As a result of the recent increase in workloads and contracts, we have recruited 6 new staff in March, with 6 more appointed to commence in April. This pattern is expected to continue through the coming months as the business continues to grow. Generating local jobs for local people, we are also committed to recruiting further apprentices in the summer following the success of Lewis Paton and Dan Abram who joined us in summer 2012.

Our projects team continue to work on major reinstatement projects in Warwick and are in the process of mobilising for a substantial conversion project in Lancaster. Additionally, AXA have instructed Groundlevel on the refurbishment of listed building Storey Hall in Lancaster, and restoration works are ongoing at Woodsome Park in Gateacre.

Langtree Contract Award - Major Coup for Groundlevel

Property development and investment company Langtree turns to Groundlevel for Grounds Maintenance services to a number of sites in the North West and Midlands, including their flagship sites. This is a substantial contract award for Groundlevel who are fast becoming a major player in the FM arena.

British Association of Landscape Industries published the announcement of this contract in their news article on 15th March.

You can also see a press release on the Facilities Management Journal website, posted 21st March, and on the FM World contracts digest update on 26th March. Please also view our LinkedIn profile for more information about Groundlevel.