analysis
that training, teamwork and awards can have a reinvigorating effect, there have been rises in cleaning standards across the University. This not only improves perceptions and experiences of the campus, but also helps ensure that buildings achieve their full life-cycle. Several members of the cleaning staff, employed by the University, are beneficiaries of a social outreach programme developed by the department, which has developed links with a specialist local employment agency and with the neighbouring Kirklees College to provide work experience and full-time employment opportunities for people with learning difficulties.
The cleaning and the catering services
have recruited several valued employees as a result of this initiative, and the Campus Support Team has been supervising a project to restore and upgrade the banks of the canal that runs through the heart of the University’s estate. The college students with learning difficulties taking part have experienced teamwork and learned valuable practical skills, while Estates and Facilities staff who have supervised them, have greatly valued an opportunity to share their knowledge and take extra responsibility.
The Estates and Facilities department at the University of Huddersfield has become a sector leader in this form of community outreach and there is a determination to expand it. The benefits
include greater diversity among the team. The outreach programme was one of the many elements included in the submission that earned the AUDE Team of the Year title. These awards really have to be earned, not only by the achievements that underlie them, but also by the sheer detail that must be provided. A university estates department has an enormous range of responsibilities and it had to summarised and reflected by the submission, with an emphasis on the value of teamwork and the transformations that have taken place over the last few years.
The submission was able to provide evidence for a “collaborative, supportive and professional culture, which enables all colleagues to deliver within our fast- paced and values driven environment”. “We believe,” it continued, “that every detail is important, from the first impression of cleanliness when entering the campus, to the award-winning food available and the outstanding buildings that are the physical form of the enabling, diverse and quality environment that is the University of Huddersfield”. The submission claimed that “this is a true team performance”. And there are 266 reasons why.
highereducationestates 9
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