IN THE WORKPLACE Coming to a Unit near You!
Caroline Purdom, of ISS Defence introduces the RAF Super Catering, Retail and Leisure Contract
M
any of you will have heard about the arrival of Catering Retail and Leisure (CRL)
and Pay as you Dine (PAYD) and wondered what it is all about. In simple terms, the RAF is bringing together all catering, retail and leisure services under one single contract on fifteen Stations – Super CRL.
ISS Facilities Services – Defence, a Danish company with considerable experience in the catering, cleaning, property management, security and office support industry, has been selected to deliver this contract. Roll out across all fifteen sites started on 1 Jun 11 (RAF Leuchars actually began on 10th May). It is a huge task and one that has kept the ISS team very busy!
Staffing So what will happen? Most importantly, over 1,000 civil servants and 500 Aramark and Compass employees will transfer under
TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment) arrangements to join the ISS Team. This is a huge undertaking and our ISS HR Team has been on the road for many months conducting personal interviews.
They will be joined by some 480 RAF Trade Group 19 Chefs and Caterers who will be fully embedded into a single management and operational team on each Station.
Noticeable changes By the time you read this, you may have already noticed new uniforms and some more subtle changes. Business will carry on pretty much as it has done in the Messes, shops, bars and coffee shops although we hope that the ISS touch will be quite evident. There is lots of change on the horizon and the key to this CRL contract is the investment into the social infrastructure on each Station to improve the quality of life for Service personnel and their families.
Shops play an important role in many Station communities and by working in partnership with SPAR, we will be giving them a major facelift to improve their attractiveness. This will not just be limited to new fridges, fancy display counters and a coat of paint. More fundamentally, the range of goods on offer will be refocused towards families’ ‘top-up’ needs with more fresh produce being made available.
On visiting many Stations, we found there is some great local produce being stocked and we are working with SPAR to ensure such lines continue to be available in store. SPAR has received much criticism in the past but are using this CRL contract as a springboard to bring about much needed change. Pricing will be in-line with their national pricing structure and they will be using promotions to bring the very best deals into the RAF’s Shops.
Richard Bennett, SPAR Retail Director, said: “SPAR is very excited to work with ISS. We are two great brands working together to provide an excellent convenience offer to RAF sites. We are looking forward to the opportunity the new contract brings by demonstrating SPAR’s innovation in
36 Envoy Summer 2011
convenience – for example, with the plans to develop the airport terminal SPAR store at RAF Brize Norton. We very much look forward to working with ISS and bringing all the benefits of the SPAR brand to RAF personnel and their families.”
Elsewhere on Stations, we are working on the success of existing coffee shops and our new Cafe Bar Lounges to create great meeting places that welcome everyone. We believe by establishing the right ambience, these venues can cater for the whole community – people will choose to meet their friends for coffee in the morning; grab a quick bite for lunch; take the children out for a teatime treat after school; enjoy a freshly prepared meal in the early evening or have a drink with colleagues later on.
On the back of gaming and amusement machines, we will bring free wi-fi into many of these areas and our CRL Communication Managers will help existing committees and groups to develop a complementary event programme so these facilities are an integral part of the Station community.
All of this activity will lead to the introduction of PAYD (Pay As You Dine) enabling the food charge to be switched off and serving personnel to pay just for the food they consume. This will be rolled out on a station by station basis over the next year at which point, ISS will be able to offer everyone genuine choice backed by our Customer Charter – Efficient service, Personal service, Professional service and Fair service.
We are very much looking forward to seeing you through our doors and listening to your feedback on all we are doing.
The fifteen Super CRL Stations are: Boscombe Down, Boulmer, Brize Norton, Coningsby, Digby, Honington, Leeming, Leuchars, Linton-on-Ouse, Lossiemouth, Marham, Northolt, St Mawgan, Waddington and Wittering. To find out more then please take a look at our website:
www.ISS-RAFCRL.co.uk
www.raf-ff.org.uk
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