Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 18th April 2024 Issue no. 1110

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Fosse Shopping Park reappoints Regent Samsic

Leicester retail destination Fosse Shopping Park has reappointed Regent Samsic to provide its cleaning and security services. The two-year term cleaning and security contract, with a one-year extension option, also includes maintenance and park presentation services for the 37-acre site.

Adjoining the M1 motorway, the shopping park homes many major retail brands including Marks & Spencer, Next, BHS and Curry's in 40 stores drawing around 12 million visitors yearly. All shops and food outlets, together with a communal eating area, are situated on the ground floor making access easier for shoppers. Free parking for over 2,500 cars helps makes this one of the most popular and successful retail parks in the country.

Ten housekeeping personnel from Regent's cleaning division, overseen by three team leaders and one manager, are working throughout the week in the food court, toilets and circulation areas in addition to providing two daily spot cleaning shifts. Enhancing customer experiences is a key goal for the Regent housekeeping team ensuring that visitors can fully enjoy their time in a clean, healthy and safe environment.

The management team consistently reviews efficiency levels, bringing on board innovative ideas and ways to ensure maximum productivity of the housekeeping team. For example in the food court during busy periods, trolleys are used to store used cutlery and are emptied every half an hour, therefore reducing the time the operatives spend away from the food court taking away the contents. Also earpieces are worn to ensure that the teams are in constant contact and can deal with spillages and any emergencies quickly and effectively.

A Regent maintenance team operating Monday-Friday with 24/7 callout employs two technical personnel and a supervisor working day-to-day requirements, backed up by selected and approved service partners for any specialist work to mains power, gas and related. The tasks carried out can be anything from high level repairs, painting to electrical testing, although the tasks are not exhaustive and the maintenance team pride themselves on carrying out any tasks that they can.

Regent also manages the park presentation team, with three operatives plus a supervisor 363 days per year, seven days a week, on a rolling shift. Tasked with various jobs in all weathers, ranging from ensuring the external areas are safe, clean, tidy and free of litter to clearing drainage, repairing surfaces and other maintenance duties.

"Training our teams is a vital part of the Regent culture and several courses have been completed by the team on site including, NVQ level 2 in Customer Service, Fire Awareness, NVQ in occupational Health & Safety, Prevention & Control of Infection, First Aid and more," says Regent joint managing director Jonathan King.

"The team operating at Fosse Park has fully integrated into the park's culture and we are proud of the longstanding working partnership that Regent and Fosse Shopping Park now enjoy."

The success of the contract is down largely to the excellent attitude of the Regent team, constantly striving to go beyond the everyday norm. With the team seen as one close working service unit - not as different teams with several different roles, integration of tasks where viable is encouraged to make sure the client's service delivery and expectations are exceeded.

"Choosing the right bundled soft services provider that fits into our culture and ethos is extremely important to me and the welfare of Fosse Shopping Park," says the park's Centre Manager Adrian Young.

"Our aim is always to provide a shopping experience that is highly enjoyable, clean, safe and secure from the moment anyone walks in to the moment they leave. Regent has the flexibility, can-do mentality and insight to fully understand and buy in to my vision for the present and future of the park.

"Regent also understands that best value and not just best price are keys to achieving a high level of service delivery.

"Whilst productivity and efficiency levels are maximised, it has not compromised any part of the service for price, but delivered a bundled soft services solution that is both affordable and most importantly deliverable. The strong site management team provides a defined point of contact that allows for clear lines of communication. Our proactive maintenance schedules, with the use of the latest technological innovations to identify training needs or areas of improvement, ensure that Regent consistently not just delivers but goes beyond best practice.

"I think one of the obvious benefits of working in a successful long standing partnership agreement with Regent is that our relationship is not based as simply client and service provider, but is a fully interactive and transparent partnership working as one holistic team for the common good of Fosse Shopping Park."

Incumbent service provider at the Park since 2010, Regent Samsic tells us that its round-the-clock security operations constitute CCTV monitoring, patrolling common areas and park perimeter security, in addition to supporting in-store security personnel involving a total of nine Regent Security officers, two supervisors and a manager. There are also periodic joint undercover operations with the stores on site to control shoplifting, which is having a significant effect on reducing crime and theft. Out of hours security is firmly backed up by Regent Security mobile patrols. Working very closely with the police liaison officer and the local police force, the security team is regularly updated on any suspicious personnel operating in the area.

Proactively monitoring the Fosse Shopping Park from the on-site CCTV control room, the Regent Security team is in constant contact to follow up any issues quickly and effectively around the park, along with direct radio contact with the stores to assist if necessary. For Regent It is not just about being seen as security officers, but integrating with the public, offering helpful assistance when needed and acting as ambassadors for the client.

www.regentcleaning.com / www.regentsecurity.co.uk

7th November 2013