Are the Government listening ??
The crisis that hit the NHS over the winter, as it struggled to cope with flu and COVID cases, again highlighted the cleaning and hygiene sector’s vital role in keeping public buildings hygienically clean and making the products needed to stop the spread of infectious diseases.
Our sector’s work is, and will always remain, the first line of defence, stopping the spread of bacteria, viruses or other germs so people don’t become ill in the first place.
Key to this will be leveraging the report produced by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for the Cleaning and Hygiene Industry into the role of cleaning and hygiene during the COVID-19 pandemic. The report made 11 recommendations which, if implemented, will make the nation much more resilient to current common infections and also leave it much better prepared for any future public health emergencies.
The sector is one of the biggest industries in the UK but, despite the bravery and professionalism of staff helping tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, it has largely been overlooked and ignored by Government many believe . Another major priority for the BCC in 2023 will be continuing to highlight our ‘We Clean, We Care’ campaign. The campaign is designed to reflect the pride that our cleaning staff have in the vital, frontline role they perform keeping others safe, well and healthy.
In January, representatives from the cleaning industry met with us and the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) in a roundtable event to discuss the report’s findings and how to take them forward.
We’re also hoping for good news this year about the proposed Apprenticeship Levy-accredited industrywide training programme and apprenticeship.
It has been a lengthy process getting here but we are now in the final stages of getting the proposals agreed. This is a hugely important initiative which, if approved, will ensure significant amounts of Apprenticeship Levy funding currently lost to the cleaning and hygiene industry can instead be invested in training for personnel. It will also help address the baseless narrative held by some in government and outside the sector that our staff are ‘low skilled’, and assist the sector in recruiting badly needed staff.
In 2023, we will again continue to promote the message to Government that the public will be healthier, happier and safer if cleaning and hygiene is recognised as a key frontline service with a vital role in terms of public health.
The time for Government to accept that fact is NOW