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The year in review


David Garcia, Chair of the British Cleaning Council (BCC), reflects on a year that has been a platform for success in 2026.


As I look back over the past 12 months, I am pleased to report that 2025 was a good year for the BCC. We’ve had a number of notable successes and have achieved good progress in several key areas.


The London edition of the Cleaning Show in


March, which the BCC co-produces, was a huge success, with an extra 2,000 square meters of exhibition space due to demand from exhibitors and visitor numbers up to 8,000. It’s encouraging to see the industry’s flagship event doing so well.


The BCC launched two major initiatives at the show. We published our annual research report, which is packed with essential facts and figures about the cleaning, hygiene and waste sector.


This year’s report showed that the value of the cleaning, hygiene and waste industry had jumped by more than 10% in 12 months to reach a record-breaking figure of nearly £66.9bn. The document also reported that 1.49m staff were employed in the sector. The industry figures marked a strong recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic.


We also launched the UK Cleaning Career Development Zone at the show. This exciting development brings together information about training and career development opportunities from across the industry into one place for the first time, where they can be easily accessed online, for free.


The publicity around it promoted cleaning industry careers, with the strapline ‘The Sky’s the Limit’ and a picture of a rocket. We have continued to update the website and promote it throughout the year.


In April, we were delighted to accept the Independent Washroom Services Association (IWSA) as the BCC’s latest member. The synergy between the BCC and the nationwide, non-profit making trade association for independent providers of washroom services will strengthen both our organisations.


In May, we received an extremely encouraging response to our campaign to lobby the Government to adopt the proposals made in the report Embedding Effective Hygiene


24 | TOMORROW'S CLEANING for a Resilient UK.


In a letter, Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office Abena Oppong-Asare MP said the Government recognised “the vital role that the cleaning and hygiene sector plays in ensuring public health and mitigating key risks, both in its routine work and during public health emergencies.”


In June, I was honoured to be elected BCC Chair, replacing Delia Cannings, who did a fabulous job during her two-year tenure. I made unity my key theme. I believe the industry needs to work together more closely if we are to make our voice heard louder.


Over the summer, the first apprentices passed the Level 2 Cleaning Hygiene Operative apprenticeship. This initiative has got off to a great start since it was launched last year.


In September, we attended the British Institute of Cleaning Science (BICSc) Awards, a fantastic event which celebrates the talent in the cleaning and hygiene industry.


In October, we launched our Strategic Framework for Achieving Cleanliness and Hygiene in Public Environments, which provides a framework of systematic guidance on how to develop cleaning and hygiene policies for public spaces aimed at preventing the spread of infectious disease, and which complements World Health Organization handwashing guidelines. We’ve shared the framework with MPs and the press.


Our lobbying work continued with a productive meeting with William Cook of the UK Health Security Agency. In November, we pulled together the results of a survey of BCC members which will determine our strategy going forward. You’ll see the results of this work in due course.


So, we go into the new year in a strong position, with a good platform on which to achieve even more in 2026.


www.britishcleaningcouncil.org x.com/TomoCleaning


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