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The housekeeping team at Harpenden Spire Hospital are "delighted" to have been awarded with a "gold benchmark" for their high standards, representing consistent delivery of a high standard of service as reported by Huw Richards of The Herts Advertiser

They achieved the title as part of the Continuous Advancement Programme (CAP) - an international tier programme which examines operational practicalities, team consistency and individual capabilities.

Earlier this month, Spire Harpenden Hospital was visited by one of the independent CAP Awards experts who carried out a thorough inspection, assessing every aspect of their service delivery, verifying and measuring standards of performance - leading to the gold award.

On receiving the "gold" benchmark, hospitality services manager, Tyrone Shiels commented: “It has been a great joint effort from all departments here at Spire Harpenden, and we couldn’t wait to proudly display our new shiny wall plaque for all to see.

"This program brings great reassurance for teams and staff and most importantly for the public ensuring that our cleaning practices are aligned with current health and safety practices, which is crucial in a Healthcare Environment.”

Sienna Langton, housekeeping cover lead, described the inspection a "rigorous" and "nerve racking".

"It was extremely rewarding in the end, and such an incredible experience," she added.

"I am so proud of our team here at Harpenden for all their hard work, it has been great recognition for everyone."

Spire Healthcare is an independent healthcare group in the United Kingdom, running 38 hospitals and over 50 clinics, medical centres and consulting rooms across England, Wales, and Scotland.

Huw Richards

Having worked with the Cleveland Clinic London from its early days as a building site, it is marvellous to see the EVS Housekeeping team register their third consecutive GOLD CAP Award.

There are many positives to having a new build for a Housekeeping team. Equally, it also presents a number of unique challenges as the team and service are established. To deliver their third GOLD says a great deal for the whole team from the management and every team member.

Well done to you all – The CAP PLATINUM Award the next target?

The catering department at Ipswich School has become the first School to register a CAP Award Programme Platinum for Catering services.

Having achieved the qualifying three consecutive Gold Awards for their service delivery to the pupils and staff at Ipswich School, the team demonstrated their ambition for continuous progression by claiming the first Platinum within the Education sector.

Supported by the excellent pupil feedback and a range of service initiatives, the purpose and drive demonstrated by the team during the unannounced assessment visit was very special.

Many congratulations to all involved within the team and at the School.

Congratulations to the Housekeeping team and their colleagues. Their recently achieved Gold CAP Award is a testament to their commitment to delivering a safe and clean environment for their patients.

Fantastic to see the smiles on their faces – Happy viewing……………

Housekeeping Week is celebrated every second full week in September. This year, it takes place from September 8 to 14. Many are unaware of what it takes to do this job and Housekeepers Week aims to change that. Thousands of businesses come together to highlight the unseen efforts that go into this profession. This has become a way for them to thank, show appreciation, and reward their hard-working staff.

Housekeeping staff are often the unsung heroes. They ensure that facilities are clean, safe, and welcoming for everyone. During this week, the aim is to spotlight these professionals, offering them the appreciation and recognition they deserve. This week is dedicated to celebrating the vital contributions of housekeeping and environmental services professionals in maintaining cleanliness, safety and hygiene across various sectors.

The event features a series of activities, including training sessions, workshops, and awards to honour outstanding housekeeping teams and individuals.

By promoting awareness of the critical role of housekeeping, International Housekeeping Week encourages greater respect for these essential team members and highlights the importance of cleanliness in public health. This celebration is also a platform for advocating for better working conditions and professional development opportunities within the industry.

How will you and the housekeeping team be celebrating this event? It can be just a day of fun activity dedicated to recognising your staff, or a whole week of activity that culminates into a large ceremony where individuals throughout the entire business take a minute to thank the Housekeepers for a job well done.

As we approach this important week, it’s an opportunity to express gratitude to those who work tirelessly behind the scenes to keep our environments safe and clean.

A third successive CAP Platinum Award for the Hospital was the outcome from the latest unannounced assessment visit by the CAP Award Programme (Continuous Advancement Programme for Housekeeping). This is an incredibly inspiring achievement for the Housekeeping team and all involved at the Hospital.

The aim of the assessment visit is to experience the service being received by the patients, staff, visitors, and consultants. The standards of service, the team’s unity, and the supporting infrastructure all impressed in registering a third consecutive year at the PLATINUM CAP AWARD – a programme regarded as the highest measure of quality in, ‘safe best practices’ and service.

Congratulations to all involved – A fantastic achievement and so well deserved.

The role of the housekeeping department in making or breaking a premise’s reputation and / or the customer experience should be apparent to all. But whether housekeeping as an activity gets the right kind of attention and rewards is a question often debated.

The general observation would be that it varies considerably.Does this therefore relate back to the opening comment of how the importance of the housekeeping service is actually seen?It should be seen as a valuable area of investment that underpins the premise’s reputation and customer experience.

The housekeeping team undertakes duties across the premises so are well positioned to add to operational policies and procedures.When the team’s voice is heard, the gains are only positive at both qualitatively and financially.

This is to comment on the first-hand experience within the programme where we regularly evidence the teams’ opinions having been gathered, their work applauded and their achievement’s celebrated. Not surprisingly, the premise’s reputation and the customer experience is enhanced plus staff retention shown to have improved – Simply said, value the housekeeping team and they will give ‘added value’ to the business.

As the Schools break for their well-deserved summer holiday, let’s celebrate some successes.

Ipswich School has been quite simply stunning.This term saw them become the first UK School to achieve the PLATINUM CAP Award.The commitment and dedication brought home that much sought after Platinum Award for their catering services.Via their progression through three consecutive GOLD Awards, the quality of service coupled with astute financial management saw the catering team achieve the PLATINUM Award.

Within the housekeeping / cleaning services, the Creative Education Trust saw their Academies and School build on the previous year’s success and polished their way to further progressive improved cleaning scores across CET Estate – a brilliant achievement at unity and ‘team’.

Not to be outdone, mention must also be made of Battle Abbey School on achieving another UK first in gaining their third consecutive GOLD CAP Award – a first within the Education sector.

So many more to mention from all points of the compass. Suffice to say that common amongst them all though is the drive to improve the pupil experience via the standards of cleanliness, the quality and variety of the food offer coupled with a robust demonstration of ‘value for money’ for the investments being made into these two important services.

Enjoy the summer break and thank you on behalf of everyone who has benefited from your service delivery this year.

Within our roles at the CAP Programme, we are honoured to meet the fantastic and enthusiastic housekeeping and catering teams.The power of the togetherness and drive of these groups is spellbinding to see in action as they deliver their services.

Coupled in unison with the other departments on the premises, it is special – a very, very strong sense of together and belonging.Experiencing this recently at hospitals in Birmingham, Norwich and Reading plus schools in Gorleston and Wellingborough reminds you of the power of ‘team’.

So many quotes on the value of ‘team’ to dwell upon – Just ponder on the words and think of your ‘team’

“Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success." – Henry Ford

“The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.” – Phil Jackson.

My favourite at even better than the ‘three musketeers’ - "No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it. " ~ H.E. Luccock