Is Contract Cleaning Worth the Money?

Like most service providers, we make contact with potential customers on a daily basis. We regularly find that those who have opted for in-house cleaning, have decided that contracting cleaning is not worth the money, without really looking into the benefits.

In our experience, there are 3 common reasons why companies are reluctant to take the leap from in-house, to contract cleaning:

1. Contract cleaning is too expensive

If you currently have more than 2 hours of cleaning per day, then you might be surprised to find that  contract cleaning could be a cost-effective solution  for you. When comparing costs, it is worth considering that an in-house cleaner will require  you  to pay for sick cover, holiday cover, maternity leave and National Insurance. Over time, all of these add up.

Outsourcing to a contract cleaning provider will result in no more last-minute searches for a cover-cleaner or worse still, having to carry out the cleaning yourself when you have so many other jobs to get on with.

Taking away the hassle of managing staff and dealing with time-consuming personnel issues, has the knock on effect of reducing your costs and enabling your company to run more efficiently. Andy Rapson, the Site Manager at Whiteknights School in Reading , discovered the benefits to contract cleaning and hasn’t looked back:

“I’m often not here at the time of clean but I’ve never felt the need to keep on top of the cleaners because Bernice (Rapid’s Contracts Manager) does that part. If I have got a problem, she sorts it out straight away. We’ve now got the set-up we wanted, and I am delighted with the service.”

A cleaning contractor is likely to benefit from buying chemicals and equipment in bulk. Any good supplier will usually pass these savings onto their customers – another cost and time reduction.

2. I am happy with my cleaner and don’t want to change

If you currently employ a cleaner who is providing a good service, it is very simple for the cleaning company to take over as employer. At Rapid, we are always keen to hire cleaners who have been recommended to us and in certain circumstances, the current TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment) law will require us to do just that.

This law also states that the cleaning staff must be hired under the same pay and terms and conditions. We have written a detailed explanation of TUPE and how it affects your business, here .

3. I don’t want to be tied into a contract

There are a lot of initial overheads involved in taking on a new site: investment in equipment; training; advertising of staff; time etc. Yes there will be a contract but this has its advantages to you as the customer – a promise of what the cleaning company will commit to providing, written down and signed by both parties.

In this industry, contracts tend to have a duration of between 1 and 3 years, sometimes longer; ours is a 12-month term. You should find that any decent cleaning provider will have an exit clause for poor performance, protecting you as the customer. At Rapid, we work on a 14-day improvement notice if you are unhappy with our performance.

Making a change to the familiar is always a daunting prospect but hopefully this has helped you to better understand the advantages to contract cleaning and the benefits that this service could make to you and your organisation.