BBC Radio Northampton Visit BICSc

Recently BICSc were asked if they would be interested in appearing on BBC Radio Northampton’s breakfast show to discuss the importance of the cleaning sector and to shed light on the work operatives do on a daily basis. As we are always grateful for the opportunity to raise the profile of BICSc and the cleaning sector as a whole, we were pleased to welcome Tom Percival, their brilliant breakfast reporter, who paid us a visit at our Training Suite early on a dark, wet and cold November morning.

We spoke to Tom about the reputation of the cleaning industry and how we try to combat the perceived negative image of it.

Our Chief Operating Officer, Neil Spencer-Cook, added some insight into this particular issue. He spoke about how cleaning is far more than just picking up a mop and bucket, with cleaning science and skills training making a huge difference in making someone an effective cleaning operative. Neil also spoke about how there are other opportunities in the cleaning sector, with chances to move higher up within the cleaning industry always available.

Tom then set his sights on our Head of Technical Services, Denise Hanson, speaking about her 40-year career in the industry, starting at the beginning as a 17-year-old when she moved to London to take on an apprenticeship in hotel and housekeeping.

Denise spoke about the importance of employers training their cleaning operatives which helps to ensure they have some self-worth.

#TheMopOff

We then set up a quick challenge for Tom to try and out-mop Denise. We split an area of floor in two and poured some coffee on each side. The challenge was for who could mop the area clean the quickest. Denise won – obviously! But Tom displayed a good effort. He admitted that the task was far more tiring than he presumed and praised Denise for how effortless she made it look. This is why training is key!

Finally, Tom spoke with Kelsey Hargreaves, our assistant technical specialist. And after Kelsey had finished ‘accurately commentating’ on Tom’s effort during the mopping challenge, they moved on to discuss her career and why she chose the cleaning industry to work. Kelsey highlighted the issues the industry faces in appealing to young people about a career in cleaning and why we, as an industry, need to change our public perception.

We’d like to thank BBC Radio Northampton and in particular Tom Percival for doing this piece with us. If you would like to listen to this broadcast, please visit the BBC Sounds website or app and navigate to the local radio section and find Northampton. We were live on the Annabel Amos show on 21^st November. We appear from 1:24:00 onwards.

Please note that the show will only be available for 28 days after the broadcast.

Membership | Training | Standards

BICSc is the largest independent, professional, and educational body within the cleaning industry providing training and education, setting standards and procedures for cleaning. BICSc membership now stands at over 50,000 individual and corporate members in the UK and Internationally.

We are a membership organisation that strives to bring recognition of the vital role cleaning operatives play in everyone’s day-to-day life.

Whether you’re shopping, travelling, working, holidaying or recuperating, every one of these scenarios has cleaning staff striving to ensure that the environment is not only clean but also safe.

Founded over 60 years ago, BICSc key objective is to promote the value and professionalism of the cleaning industry, providing training in the key skills required to enhance a cleaning operative’s core role whilst keeping them safe and encouraging them to work in a more effective and efficient manner.

With a range of both practical and theoretical qualifications available, BICSc has something to help further the career of every cleaning professional from entry level, through to supervisor level, and up to an employer with your own business tendering for cleaning contracts.