Tingdene Homes Unveils New User-Friendly Website
One of the market leading manufacturers in residential park homes and holiday lodges, Tingdene Homes, has unveiled its new website in conjunction with their 50th anniversary. In partnership with Fluid Ideas, their new website features a refreshed branding and design approach. Tingdene’s website embraces their core values of knowledge, innovation and customer focus at its forefront. Tingdene’s new website offers a user-friendly and personalised visitor experience, showcasing their passion for customer care. The website proudly supports residential and holiday park owners through the launch of their innovative park finder tool. The new park finder tool promotes residential and holiday parks throughout the UK and provides a helpful easy-to-use tool to help customers find their dream park. The new addition of the park finder tool firmly reinforces their role as market leaders and trendsetters throughout the industry. If you want to feature your park on Tingdene’s new website then you can simply go to the trade area and submit your park with the click of a button. Tingdene’s new website proudly showcases their stunning range of modular construction, residential park homes and holiday lodges across the site. You can browse and discover their design specifications and quality features that help make Tingdene stand-out from the crowd. Test out their interactive tool and take a 360˚ tour to help you discover your dream residential park home or holiday lodge directly from the comforts of your own home. Tingdene’s new website design provides every visitor, whether you’re looking to buy a home, are currently in the buying process or are already customers, with outstanding care and support. Their website features help and advice for home buyers and park owners. You can also find an extensive range of support and guidance, such as FAQs, without having to pick up the phone. Their website is regularly updated showcasing the latest news and events in the modular construction, park homes and holiday lodges world – so you’ll never miss out on up-to-date industry info! If you’re unsure about making the jump from traditional living, then you can also take a look through their online portfolio on modular construction. Here you can discover the extensive and flexible bespoke design options to suit you. Tingdene are also proud to present their heritage over the past 50 years. Their new website helps you to discover the Tingdene difference. You can explore the brand’s history, meet the team and even take a virtual tour of their manufacturing facility. With Tingdene’s inventive new website you can get the full visitor experience straight from your home!
How UK Agricultural Finance Can Help You
UK Agricultural Finance was founded to provide much needed business finance to rural communities across England, Scotland and Wales. The company recently secured institutional funding to expand its loan book by £150m to meet the demand from farmers for short and medium-term capital, after many of the banks cut their specialist lending teams during and post the financial crisis. Rural finance requires specialist knowledge and a lender willing to offer traditional face to face underwriting. UK Agricultural Finance’s team knows rural property and rural businesses, the many challenges they face, but most importantly their appeal. They also understand business lending against agricultural land where a ‘one size fits all’ doesn’t work. The company prides itself on working with the leading experts in agricultural valuation, security and restructuring to ensure swift informed and fair decisions. UK Agricultural Finance’s works with farmers up and down the country providing loans to assist: • Diversification, to build new businesses • Purchasing new farmland when additional acreage or a unique property opportunity may come available and often at short notice • Property finance to develop, renovate or repair property for capital appreciation and income generation • Renewable energy projects can be a great source of additional income and add real value to under-utilised land on a farm, or even turn waste products into revenue • Livestock finance to expand their livestock holdings • Recovery and Restructuring is needed when financial pressure is acute, and a facility can provide a window to take control and rationally plan • Tenant farmers with a right to buy their land • Generational transfer to help farming families who are looking to transfer their farm to the next generation achieve this Their loans range from £100,000 to £10m, with terms from one to seven years and a maximum LTV of 65%. UK Agricultural Finance recently joined a select group of alternative finance firms on NatWest’s Capital Connections panel, becoming the 10th lender and first industry specialist on the panel. UK Agricultural Finance is an enthusiastic supporter of farm diversification and is experienced in working with brokers and providing farmers access to capital to diversify, sustain, grow and improve their businesses. If you have any enquiries, please feel free to contact the team on 01732 252 399 or info@ukagriculutralfinance.com
Waterside Holiday Park to upgrade its collection of Signature homes
The Waterside Holiday Group is set to unveil new accommodation for 2020 at its Waterside Holiday Park and Spa as part of a wider investment plan. The group has announced a £750,000 investment to enhance its Signature collection of holiday homes at the Weymouth-based holiday park and this is all part of a broader 2020 investment for the brand which also includes allocating £115,000 in sustainable technologies. With a stylish interior, the well-appointed two and three-bed Signature holiday homes will include a large veranda, a modern fitted kitchen with a full-size fridge freezer, dishwasher and coffee machine and will also feature a central dining area. Every Signature holiday home will include a 42-inch smart television, televisions in each bedroom and an en-suite shower room leading from the master bedroom. Holiday makers will also have the option to upgrade to a Signature holiday home with a private hot tub and all Signature booking will enjoy an early check-in of 1pm. Allen Main, general manager at the Waterside Holiday Group, says: “We are pleased to announce this investment in accommodation ahead of the 2020 season. Work is well underway to bring changes to our 15 Signature holiday homes, and the addition of hot tubs is due to an increase in demand we witnessed this year for hot tub holidays – a 55 per cent increase compared to 2018, and we’re looking forward to hearing how our holidaymakers receive the improvements we are making.” The £115,000 investment in sustainable technologies will see 380 solar panels installed across the roofs of the Waterside Holiday Park and Spa’s leisure complex and reception as well as street lighting replaced with 40-watt long-lasting LED corn lamps at the Group’s Waterside Holiday Park and Spa and Chesil Vista Holiday Park which overlooks Chesil beach in Weymouth. In addition, solar-powered street-lights will be introduced at both of these parks. A 22kW electric car charging point will also be made available at the Chesil Vista Holiday Park. Allen adds: “Benefiting from the staycation boom of recent years, we are responding by making continuous investments during the winter season to provide not only the type of high-quality accommodation and experiences which families seek but to also be at the forefront of making sure our holiday parks are environmentally-friendly for current and future generations to enjoy.” The Waterside Holiday Park and Spa opens for the 2020 season from March 13th to November 2nd. To book a Signature holiday please telephone 01305 833103 or visit www.watersideholidaygroup.co.uk/our-holiday-parks/waterside/accommodation/signature/
Major acquisition for North Devon holiday park group
North Devon based holiday park group, John Fowler Holidays has announced its acquisition of Llanrhidian Holiday Park, one of Wales’ largest parks. The move will make John Fowler one of the principal privately-owned holiday park groups in the country. Llanrhidian Holiday Park, on the Gower Peninsula, an area of outstanding natural beauty, was previously owned by the Richards family for more than 27 years. John Fowler Holidays managing director Martyn Fowler said: “We are delighted to have been able to add Llanrhidian to our business, it forms an important part of our planned expansion. It has been a pleasure to work with a family with a similar ethos to ours during this process and we are looking forward to continuing their excellent work as we take the park forward.” Ollie Fowler head of development for the group, added “We intend to add further parks in exceptional locations in the future but it will be hard to beat the beauty of the Gower Peninsular.” John Fowler now operates 12 holiday parks throughout North Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Wales. The growing company was awarded three major tourism accolades in the last year including best holiday park in Somerset. John Fowler sales director Cathie Higgs said: “Over the past few years we have seen record growth in demand for UK holidays, particularly for luxury accommodation. Expanding into Wales was a natural progression for us in offering outstanding locations for holidays.”
David Bellamy – a champion of green holiday parks
As the sad news of David Bellamy’s death reaches us, we at Caravan Industry & Park Operator take a look at how the environmentalist and botanist laid the foundations for a greener attitude to holidaying in the UK. David Bellamy OBE was a regular face on TV since the late 60s, when he was interviewed after the Torrey Canyon disaster struck – an oil tanker ran aground between Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly and David, then an ecology lecturer at Durham University, was on hand to discuss the impact of the spillage with John Craven. He later said of Torrey Canyon: “Many lessons were learnt and are still being learnt. It was probably the first time that words like environment and conservation were voiced on the media, later to become so commonplace.” David Bellamy Conservation Awards David lent his name to the environmental awards which have been given to holiday parks across the country which have worked hard on the conservation of the natural environment. He said in 2010: “We started the awards in 1997. I went around to goodness knows how many caravan parks trying to get across the importance of natural history and biodiversity – although we didn’t call it ‘biodiversity’ in those days. At the start, we audited 100 of them, assessing their impact on the environment “And I was amazed. There were so many super places. We soon found that people were very proud of their natural surroundings – all the wild flowers, rabbits, squirrels, even dragonflies. They were proud of having them. They were doing my job for me. “I thought the award scheme might run for a couple of seasons – but it has been going ever since.” Holiday parks strived to become members of this prestigious club and those who achieved their awards could proudly state that they were putting nature first in their parks – a huge draw for eco-conscious customers. One recent award included Stonerush Lakes near Looe, which won a gold David Bellamy award for careful management of the lakes, and also of the extensive native hedging which provides habitats and food resources for wildlife. David also highlighted the large areas of high pollen-bearing wild flowers which provide vital foraging for endangered honey bees, butterflies and other pollinators. David wrote many scientific papers and books and was a familiar face on TV as he appeared on both his own shows and as a guest on many more. In later years, David’s controversial views on climate change were criticised and he said there was no scientific proof that global warming was down to human activity. David said that campaigners had exaggerated the effects of CO2. His TV career dwindled following his comments although David continued to work as a conservation champion across the globe. Caravan Industry & Park Operator editor Victoria Galligan said: “David’s enthusiastic, eccentric image and distinctive fluffy beard made him a well-loved, recognisable and approachable person and he will be sadly missed by many who, like me, grew up watching him on TV. He was a real inspiration for viewers to think more carefully about the environment and our impact on it. He wasn’t afraid to shy away from what he believed in – although many disagreed!” David, who died aged 86 yesterday, 12th December 2012, leaves five grown-up children and was a grandad. His wife Rosemary died last year. Photo: Century Books
Truvox Supplies Floorcare Machines To Caravan Parks
Truvox International Ltd is a leading global manufacturer and supplier of commercial and industrial floorcare machines, based in Southampton, England. Meeting the needs of a wide range of markets including healthcare, education, leisure, and facility managers, Truvox works directly and indirectly through a network of dedicated dealers based across the UK and worldwide. Truvox began producing electric polishing machines in the early 1960s, and has continued to innovate, developing a suite of machines designed to streamline cleaning and maintenance of hard and soft floors. These range from vacuums to escalator sweepers and air movers, but Truvox technology leads the market in three main areas: • Scrubber dryers – the Multiwash has long been the most popular model in this range across a variety of sectors. Highly valued for its versatility, it can wash, scrub and dry hard and soft floors in a single pass. In its latest cordless form, the Multiwash 340/Pump Battery provides even greater flexibility. • Single-disc rotaries – the Orbis range is truly comprehensive, with machines for stripping, scrubbing, wet and dry polishing and shampooing. Orbis rotaries are economical, versatile and powerful enough for the toughest floorTruvox Floorcare Machines maintenance demands. • Carpet extraction – These machines can remove the most challenging stains. The Hydromist line-up caters for users’ various priorities, whether that is large area cleaning or upholstery, or spray extraction alone or combined with brushing. • Vacuums – the VTVe, a compact and manoeuvrable tub vacuum and the Valet Battery Upright II which is a cordless upright vacuum are reliable, easy to use and ideal for when customers are present. Also in the range is the Valet BackPack vacuum that is lightweight and ideal for vacuuming in confined areas. Truvox also offers Cimex three-brush technology, the most effective technique for cleaning floors, whether for scrubbing, polishing or restoring carpets through encapsulation of embedded dirt.
Arccan – 15 years as the shade & shelter specialists
We have been designing and supplying quality shade structure for the last fifteen years – we install our structures throughout the UK as well as any location in the World. We now have available forty standard pre-engineered tensile fabric structures in a number of sizes, including hypars, barrelvaults & cones – sails, walkways, entrance canopies, umbrellas (central post and cantilever), single pitch, stand-alone & lean-to, all available in a wide range of fabrics and colours with steel finishes including galvanising, polyester powder coating and epoxy painting We also supply bespoke tensile fabric structures – our design department uses the latest CAD programs to create models for customer approval, we then carry out structural analysis to ensure that they will withstand the worst possible weather conditions and by manufacturing and installing them to exacting standards most models will have a life-expectancy of over 25 years. We now supply retractable awnings, lean-to verandas, retractable pergolas & bioclimatic pergolas with rotating louvred roofs. These structures are manufactured in Italy so have great flair and quality, motorised models have Somfy actuators and all support frames are in aluminium for a long maintenance-free lifespan. New to our range are aluminium framed lean-to and stand-alone shelters with glass and polycarbonate roofs – toughened glass, self-cleaning glass, solid polycarbonate or structured polycarbonate roofs to suit all needs. Key points for the shade structure: All structures are warranted for ten years We install throughout the World We offer an aftercare, maintenance and cleaning service We can supply infra-red heating, LED lighting. Our CAD department is happy to design and engineer any component or structure to customers’ requirement Website – www.arccan.com Twitter – https://twitter.com/arccanshades LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/arccan-shade Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/arccanshades/
A Successful Holiday Park Innovation Show for 2019 and 2020 Plans
The Holiday Park Innovation Show has closed its doors for another year, but that doesn’t mean it’s over yet… Before we officially say goodbye to the Holiday Park Innovation Show 2019, we thought it was only right that we emphasise our fantastic achievements. We are so proud to have pulled this event off, and are looking forward to making the show even better for next year. Find out some of our biggest achievements, hear some astounding testimonials, and find out what our plans for 2020 are! All this will be disclosed right here, so read on for more… Facts and Figures From the Show We have been blown away with the feedback we received from our show, and have put together some stats from the questionnaires and emails we sent out. Firstly, our leisure, hospitality and tourism shows altogether welcomed 17,890 visitors, which was a massive 27 percent increase from last year! Within the Holiday Park Innovation Show alone, our visitors held job titles which could be best described as: ● Holiday Park Director, CEO or Founder: 33% ● Business Development Manager/Director: 15% ● Campsite Owner: 21% ● Leisure Centre Director: 3% ● Marketing, Advertising, PR and Social Media Managers: 16% ● Operations, Booking Services and Customer Relations: 5% ● Holiday Park Food and Beverage Services: 7% Out of these attendees, 90 percent are hoping to attend the 2020 show. This comes as no surprise when we consider that 70 percent of visitors said meeting exhibitors was the most beneficial element of the event. When it comes to our exhibitors, over 96 percent have said they are happy with the diversity of the visitors, bringing new business opportunities and leads. In fact, directly after the show, 66 percent of exhibitors confirmed they would be doing business with visitors, and 34 percent were in discussion with potential buyers about future business. Due to this, 85 percent of exhibitors have already re-booked for 2020! What Did Our Exhibitors Have to Say? Overall, we had a lot of positive feedback from our exhibitors, and we really wanted to share with you some of these amazing comments: ● Sutton Hospitality – Alex Sutton: “We’ve had a very successful experience, speaking to landowners and farmers. Overall, it’s been a great success for us.” ● Holiday Let Furnishings Ltd – Rachel Conroy, Director: “We decided to increase the size of our stand this year in a better more central location. It has paid off, as there has hardly been a minute of the show that we haven’t had visitors at our stand. The quality of leads has been very promising. We have already reserved our stand for next year! Thank you to the very helpful Prysm team.” ● Fowler Revolution – David Randall, Sales Manager: “Good atmosphere, friendly staff, great footfall!” ● GPT Waste Management – Donna Liebernberg, Waste Solutions: “Lovely show, enjoyed the company of all our visitors.” ● EDSB Fire & Security – M. Solomon: “We found the show extremely rewarding, and met some excellent businesses.” ● Ecoknit Towels – John Balladon, Sales Director: “Well organised, very helpful and friendly staff, busy – plenty of diverse exhibitors.” ● Arleigh International – David Wood, Sales Rep: “Very interesting show, lots to see in a friendly environment.” ● Caravan Park Electrical Service Ltd – Ted Waring, Director: “Very impressed with the organisation and general layout of the show. Already re-booked for 2020!” ● NCC Benevolent – Melanie Day, Manager: “The HPI show provided a great platform to introduce the NCC Benevolent Fund to the industry; we were thrilled to be a charity partner.” Plans For Next Year’s Holiday Park Innovation Show In today’s modern world, the holiday park industry changes every day, so staying up-to-date with the latest consumer trends is ever-important. Due to this, we strive to make each year’s show better than the last, to ensure that our visitors get the necessary tools they require to improve their hospitality offerings. For next year’s show, we are capping the size, so that we can focus on the exhibitors we have, and on making the whole experience as useful as possible. With this in mind, we have a couple of new ideas up our sleeves, which we hope will make the day even more beneficial for our visitors and exhibitors. These include an awards ceremony stage, where we can showcase our amazing nominees, and their products and services, in front of a live audience. We would also like to put an emphasis on our Panel Debates, which proved to be a very popular fixture, by expanding our range of debates across each show. Want to Exhibit Next Year? Want to exhibit at next year’s show, at the NEC, Birmingham on 11th & 12th November? We’d love to welcome you into our community of exhibitors, so don’t hesitate to get in contact with the Holiday Park & Resort Innovation Show Event Director, William Mansfield: ● Email: william.mansfield@prysmgroup.co.uk ● Phone: +44 (0)117 929 6087 Alternatively, if you want to visit, then stay tuned for our FREE tickets, which will be available to apply for very soon!
Still waters run risks – preventing legionella in caravan parks
In a caravan park, the only thing that you really want to be static is the caravans. You certainly don’t want any areas of your domestic water systems to be static, as Gary Nicholls, MD of legionella risk experts Swiftclean, explains. Legionella bacteria, a naturally occurring bacteria found in water courses, thrives in static water, especially in warmer weather, and it can multiply in pipework and water tanks, especially those which are not sufficiently shaded from sunlight and protected from solar heat gain. Keeping your water supply clean and free-flowing is essential to prevent the proliferation of Legionella bacteria and colonisation of the water system. Exposure to this contaminated water (through inhalation of contaminated water droplets) could have the potential to cause Legionnaire’s Disease, a potentially fatal form of pneumonia, with initial ‘flu-like’ symptoms occurring which would become progressively worse in individuals that have a higher susceptibility because of age, illness, immunosuppression, smoking etc. The legal responsibilities of a property manager or owner in respect to legionella risk management and control are spelt out in L8, the Approved Code of Practice and guidance on Legionnaire’s disease (fourth edition), issued by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE). The main focus of the current version of the L8 code is on; risk assessment requirements; responsibilities of the Responsible Person; the control scheme; the review of control measures; and duties and responsibilities of those involved in the supply of water systems. Each organisation should appoint a competent person under the law, known as the Responsible Person, who must understand and carry out your legal obligations in preventing legionella. This Responsible Person has a number of specific responsibilities which help to fulfil the obligations to provide a safe environment under general health & safety law. This applies to employers, landlords and certainly to those overseeing a caravan park of any description. These responsibilities are designed to ensure that suitable precautions are taken to prevent or control the risk of Legionella proliferation and exposure. As part of those responsibilities, you are required to identify and assess any sources of risk; to manage those risks, (which might include cleaning and remedial work); to prevent or control any risks (which might include making sure that tanks are shaded from direct sunlight); and you must keep accurate and detailed records of all the actions that you take to prevent and control the risk of legionella. Accurate record keeping is essential, as it protects the property manager as much as the users of the water system. For this reason, the role of the Responsible Person should also be clearly outlined. The first step towards compliance is an up to date risk assessment, in which you should identify any areas where water can remain static. Installers can be critical in identifying ‘dead legs’ in water systems, which may occur when pipework has been altered to remove a water outlet such as a shower, a sink or even a stand pipe. Water can ‘sit’ in dead ends of pipework, stagnating and providing the ideal conditions for legionella bacteria proliferation; so these dead ends should be removed to enable water to travel through every part of the water system, with no static areas. Dead ends typically occur in properties whose pipework has been changed over the years; so if your site has been reconfigured or vans have been moved, it is essential to ensure that the revised pipework has no dead legs and that water can circulate freely through every part. If you make even minor amends to the pipework, you will need a new risk assessment. Some caravan parks have a built-in legionella risk factor – seasonal occupancy. If you have caravans or park homes which are unoccupied for weeks at a time, the water in their pipework will inevitably be static for long periods, risking the development of legionella bacteria. This will also be the case in year-round occupied homes if a tenant or owner leaves and there is a period of several weeks or more before a new occupant moves in. When letting or selling property to new tenants, it is now vital for the landlord or freeholder to ensure that the water supply is clean and healthy. If a property or water system has been unused for some weeks, the water should be tested for the presence of legionella bacteria and the system thoroughly and safely flushed before use. This means running taps, showers etc. and flushing toilets to ensure a good turnover of water. If you have a camping section adjacent to a caravan park, with communal toilet and shower facilities, don’t forget that these will also need regular flushing and must be covered by the risk assessment. Most importantly, this flushing should be conducted without the generation of spray and preferably should be done before any cleaning teams enter the building. Ironically, they are often the most vulnerable to infection after a period in which water has been static for some time. Legionella control is designed to protect residents, staff and visitors alike. Under the Health and Safety at Work Act and COSHH Regulations there are severe penalties for failing to comply with L8. The Responsible Person can be prosecuted if found to be negligent, and in the case of a death from legionella, this can result in a custodial sentence. The organisation itself can also be prosecuted, and unlimited fines can be imposed, as we have seen in cases of legionella outbreaks in UK hospitals over the years. If you have cold water tanks, these should also form a key part of your risk assessment. In the design and installation of water systems, consideration should be given to shading water tanks and protecting them from the effects of solar gain, and it should be possible to drain them completely if needed. We recommend checking water tanks periodically, at least annually, to make sure that they are free of insects and vermin such as pigeons, squirrels and rats. The structural condition of
