NCC Benevolent Fund launches helpline for mental health and wellbeing
NCC Benevolent Fund launches ground-breaking helpline for mental health and wellbeing The NCC Benevolent Fund, the caravan industry’s dedicated charity, is pleased to announce the launch of its new counselling and information service in partnership with Care first. The service is centred around a helpline which is available, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for counselling support and from 8am – 8pm for general advice and information. The service will allow employees, who work past or present in any sector of the caravan and parks industry, who are facing difficult circumstances, to find the best help and support for their needs. All calls are free and confidential, the helpline is manned by professional counsellors and information specialists. The support on offer ranges from one-off telephone counselling through to referrals for longer term face to face counselling. In addition, the information specialists are trained to deal with a wealth of issues, big and small, such as financial, legal, relationship and housing problems and queries. The helpline is initially running as a trial service, the trial is due to end in December 2020, and if successful, the Fund hopes to roll this out across the industry on a permanent basis. Melanie Day, Benevolent Fund Manager says “We are really excited to trial this new service, with over 15 million work days in the UK lost to mental health issues each year, we know that a free and confidential support service will ensure that our workforce are fit for life and for work. Our ambition is that with the right support we can help colleagues across the industry to thrive” The Fund has limited space on the trial but is keen for companies to register their interest to take advantage of the service during the trial period. The service is free (to both employer and employee), all that the Fund asks is that you promote the service to your employees. It’s easy to join just visit www.nccbenevolentfund.org.uk/helpline or email info@nccbf.org.uk
Time flies as Richard clocks up 20 years’ service with Salop Leisure
Service foreman Richard Morris has clocked up 20 years’ service to award-winning caravan and motorhome company Salop Leisure in Shrewsbury. He says he can’t believe how fast the 20 years have flown by and is looking forward to continuing to work for the Emstrey-based leisure business. “ Salop Leisure is a good employer that has looked after me since I joined the company and, more than anything else, they provide job security, ” said Richard, who was 24 when he moved from a Cannock business to become a service engineer. The company was based at Meole Brace in Shrewsbury at the time and he became the fourth member of the service team, which had a four-bay workshop. Fast forward 20 years and the business now has 14 staff and a modern, 15-bay workshop where Richard and his workmates service and repair touring caravans and motorhomes. Richard is proud to have been part of Salop Leisure’s successful growth story and says part of his job satisfaction is that no two days are the same. As for the biggest change in his job over the last 20 years, she said: “The introduction of digital technology within the industry which shows that we are moving with the times.” www.salopleisure.co.uk
Don’t let your legionella prevention stagnate
While static caravans may be a great idea, static water is definitely not. David Randlesome of Swiftclean, the duct cleaning and legionella risk experts, explains how essential it is to achieve and maintain compliance with the Approved Code of Conduct for legionella control also known as ACoP L8. Every caravan park, whether aimed at permanent residents or holiday makers, must be aware of the inherent dangers of Legionella bacteria, which initially causes a flu-like illness but can develop into a form of Pneumonia. This illness is known as Legionnaire’s Disease. For the fit, healthy adult, Legionnaire’s Disease is severely debilitating. For the elderly, the very young and anyone with an underlying health condition, it can prove fatal – and sometimes does. Every site must, of course, have a clean and healthy water supply to every van or central facility, but, while some other water associated problems can be easily seen and identified, Legionella cannot. Each site owner or manager has a legal duty to protect residents, staff and visitors from Legionella. UK legislation concerning Legionella prevention is contained in the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 1989; Section 3(2) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974; and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (MHSWR). As a site owner or manager, you must appoint what is known as a Responsible Person. This named individual is responsible in law for ensuring that your organisation does everything possible to comply with the Approved Code of Practice for Legionnaires’ disease: The control of Legionella bacteria in water systems (L8). This is issued by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) and is legally enforceable. You are required to have a current Legionella risk assessment document, which must be accurate and up to date. This means that if you have had any alterations to the people involved in the site management or water systems since the last assessment, perhaps with the addition or removal of a van – or even a single tap – you must have a new risk assessment. If you do not know how to conduct a risk assessment, or are not sure if you have one, you should call a specialist to help you. If you are a newly appointed Responsible Person and your predecessor conducted the last risk assessment, you must carry out a new risk assessment to acknowledge the changes in responsibility and reporting. If there is a Legionella outbreak on a site for which you are responsible, you can be prosecuted. If convicted, your organisation may face limitless fines imposed by the court. Any individuals held responsible may face a custodial sentence, especially if there has been a fatality. Therefore, it is essential to be proactive with your Legionella prevention. Caravan sites, by their very nature, present some particular challenges for Legionella prevention. One of the most important things to consider in Legionella prevention is long pipe runs for cold water and, of course, every caravan site will have these in abundance, in order to provide running water to each van. Localised hot water does not present so much of a problem for caravans, provided it is kept at a minimum temperature of 60°C. Legionella does not favour hot or cold water, it breeds in warm or tepid water. The long runs of cold water pipe which connect each van should be a major concern. There are two main scenarios which increase the risk; firstly, if a van is left unoccupied for any length of time so that water sits in the pipework without moving; and secondly, if cold water pipes absorb heat from the ground due to solar gain – usually in spring and summer. If water outlets are not in regular use, the water behind them will remain static. The general rule of thumb is that if toilets, taps or showers are not used for a week, they should be flushed through by flushing the toilet or running the tap or shower for long enough to flush the pipework through. This might seem like a waste of water, especially throughout the low season in a holiday caravan park, but it is essential to prevent Legionella outbreaks. In the mid or high season, this is even more important as the static water in an unoccupied van may well become warmer, providing the perfect breeding ground for Legionella. As well as vans themselves, all water outlets in communal toilet or shower blocks must also be flushed through, so if you have additional features such as camping facilities or a central clubhouse or café, the same principles must be applied to these. Solar gain is a real hazard as it helps to create the ideal conditions for Legionella to breed. Your water pipes should run deep enough below the ground to be insulated from the effects of solar gain. If you have central facilities which rely on water tanks, these must also be carefully maintained and kept free of dirt, debris or vermin, as well as well shaded to be protected from solar gain. It is a good idea, during the low season, to have water tanks drained and cleaned professionally. Ironically, your cleaning teams could be most at risk from Legionella, especially if the flushing routines have been neglected. Legionella can be air-borne in minute droplets and breathed in by the unsuspecting cleaner. When you flush your systems, therefore, you should take care, as far as possible, not to create unnecessary water spray. Flush toilets with the lid down, close shower doors and avoid undue splashing from taps. Once you are ACoP L8 compliant, it is essential to stay that way. Ongoing testing and monitoring for Legionella is relatively simple and your service provider should be able to provide the training that you need. As with so many aspects of good health, prevention is so much better than cure. www.swiftclean.co.uk
Lakeview Manor lodge park and hotel sold
A Devon lodge park and hotel, Lakeview Manor, has been acquired by private equity-backed holiday operator Lakeshore Leisure Group Ltd in a deal brokered by Colliers International. Lakeview Manor, in the Blackdown Hills Area of Natural Beauty, near Honiton, had been on the market for £1.8 million. The purchase price has not been disclosed. The private vendor of Lakeview Manor was represented by two teams in the South West office of global real estate advisor Colliers International: the Caravan Parks team, and the Hotels team. Ed Jefferson, from the Hotels team, said: Lakeview Manor is an excellent wedding venue and hotel in its own right. Coupled with its private fishing lakes and lodge park it attracted significant interest. This instruction was an excellent example of two Colliers departments pooling knowledge for a clients benefit. Ben Jones, director in the Caravan Parks team, said: Lakeview Manor is a fine leisure business, which is operating successfully and offers fantastic scope for expansion. This the second time within a matter of months that weve secured the sale of a holiday lodge park in Devon to Lakeshore Leisure Group, and this very much reflects the strong market for lodge parks in general and their growth opportunities as relative newcomers to the sector, albeit with very experienced senior leadership teams. Last year was our most successful yet in terms of deals for the Caravan Parks team at Colliers International – both in the South West office and nationally – and all the signs are that that this trend will continue. The market for lodge parks showed no signs of being affected by Brexit uncertainty last year, and we are looking forward to a period of greater certainty now that the UKs position is clear. Trading conditions continue to favour lodge park businesses, particularly because of the relative weakness of the pound and the continuing popularity of so-called staycations. It is also notable that lodge parks are successfully extending their appeal to customers by investing in a much-improved offer with premium accommodation and facilities, and by appealing to specialist interests such as fishing breaks. Lakeshore Leisure Group is very much at the vanguard of this as indicated by the improvements made to their sister site Otter Falls since taking ownership in mid-2019. The vendor of Lakeview Manor was represented by solicitors Steele Raymond LLP. Chris Twaits, Partner and Head of Commercial Property at Steele Raymond LLP said: Members of our team have been involved with the Lakeview Manor business from original purchase right through to the sale to Lakeshore Leisure Group, so this has been a particularly satisfying transaction. Lakeview Manor is set in 31 acres of gardens, woodlands and paddocks, and has three fishing lakes. It currently comprises 18 developed holiday lodge pitches, and a 17-bedroom hotel and events venue, and there is planning permission for a further 18 twin-unit holiday lodges.
‘Ultimate Lodge’ provider chooses Kinedo shower cubicles
Award-winning luxury park home and lodge manufacturer Pathfinder Homes is partnering Saniflo – a leading designer and manufacturer of macerators, pumps and shower enclosures – to provide the stunning Kinedo shower cubicles for two Pathfinder Homes lodge models. The Tor features the Kinedo Kinemagic Design 1200 x 800 recess with sliding doors in the main bathroom, plus the Kinedo Kineprime glass 800 x 800 recess with pivot door in the en-suite bedroom. The smaller lodge, the Single Tor, features the larger of the two cubicles which provides a walk-in space designed to suit the whole family. Kinedo shower cubicles are the choice of a growing number of glamping sites, park home sites, holiday lodge sites and upmarket independent house builders, thanks to the hassle-free installation and maintenance of the Kinedo range. Many Kinedo models can be up and running in less than a day providing the essential luxurious and safe showering experience customers expect, while being leak-free to preserve the structural integrity of the lodges. Also, incredibly easy to maintain and clean, the Kinedo shower cubicles remain pristine in appearance, even with heavy use. During the last 60 years, Devon-based Pathfinder Homes has become a leading, pioneering manufacturer of luxurious residential park homes and holiday lodges. The combination of innovative, cutting-edge design and the development of ground-breaking concepts resulted in the company becoming the ‘Ultimate Lodge of the Year’ Award winner three years in a row. Kelly Martyr, Head Designer, specified the Kinedo luxury showers after a demonstration of a cubicle installation by the Saniflo team. As well as enhancing the bathroom the units provide easier maintenance for both customers and cleaning staff and initial installation is quick and efficient. Installer training was also provided on site at the Pathfinder factory in Newton Abbot where the lodges are manufactured. Pathfinder Homes Head Designer, Kelly Martyr, says: “Since the business was established in 1958 we have always been known for our aspirational and architecturally exceptional designs. We pride ourselves on fitting out the units with the finest interior and the Kinedocubicles really meet our needs and those of our customers. The business benefits from swift installation on the production line and on-site the bathrooms are easy to maintain and clean for our customers. The opaque glass internal panels mean that we don’t have any grout or silicone that can end up discoloured and the glass will be highly durable. All the glass panels, including the internal and external panels – and the door – are coated in Cristal Plus to eliminate streaks and limescale, facilitating an easy clean.” Pathfinder Homes combines the best of innovation, inspiration and imagination to create an aspirational holiday home for discerning owners. The new shower cubicles ensure that the bathroom lives up to the same values. For more information about Kinedo shower cubicles please visit www.saniflo.co.uk
Paul Robinson Partnership (UK) LLP
Paul Robinson Partnership (UK) LLP is a RIBA Chartered Practice based in Norfolk, with over 45 years of experience. We offer our clients a multidisciplinary service both in the UK and overseas. We work in all sectors including commercial, community, education, healthcare, industrial, residential, retail, sport, bars and restaurants, holiday hotels and leisure. Whilst Paul Robinson Partnership is a multi-disciplinary Practice, our core expertise has been in the holiday and leisure sector for many years and we consider it imperative to bring these skills to the table on projects of significance from an early aspirational stage. We are able to provide project specific consultation from the initial feasibility and design through to a full contractual and project administrative remit including management of all consultants and external expertise. This is to ensure the client’s interests and requirements are respected and protected, throughout the process. For the great majority of our time in Practice, we have been involved in all aspects of holiday and caravan park design. We work with many of the major holiday park businesses on a national basis as well as with independent firms. We are proud to have very long relationships with these various firms and individuals in developing and upgrading the parks, their landscaping and all facilities over the years. We take an holistic approach in our design approach to fully integrate all developments within their surrounds and landscape whilst at the same time integrating all utilities and services together with providing the very latest technology, attractions and ideas within the settings. Our creative and technical approach has ensured much of our work is repeat or based on solid referrals. All of the projects we undertake are overseen by one of our Partners or Associate Partners, meaning we can offer a personal, fully-tailored service and a strong ongoing relationship. Our aim is to ensure a high-quality service is always delivered, whilst providing confidence that we can turn our Clients visions into a reality. The Paul Robinson team has grown to become an exciting collection of experienced, skilled, enthusiastic and talented professionals including architects, architectural technologists, technicians, energy assessors, interior designers and support staff. Each offering a different dynamic and providing the most effective way to deliver a project. Our clients have found our expertise base to be invaluable, and we are able to work on a wide range of projects of varying sizes and constraints. We provide a varied range of specialist design services to deliver a tailored package for every client by drawing on the diversity of each team member’s backgrounds to consider and inform a holistic design approach. Our services include: Architectural Energy Assessments Building Conservation 3D Visualisation Principal Designer (CDM Co-ordination) Interior Design Contract Administration Landscape Design www.paulrobinsonpartnership.co.uk
March 1 celebrated by caravan holiday home owners
Whilst March 1 is St David’s Day, the annual celebration of Wales’ patron saint, to thousands of caravan holiday home and luxury lodge owners across the UK it’s also a day to celebrate. Traditionally, March 1 marks the reopening of caravan holiday home parks after the winter break, sparking to life the new caravan season. It’s the moment many caravanners have been awaiting to return to their beloved holiday homes, which offer a bolt hole or escape to a relaxation. For award-winning caravan and motorhome dealership Salop Leisure, which has sales centres in Shrewsbury, Machynlleth and Stourport-on-Severn, the date signals a surge in business, with first time buyers keen to invest in a holiday home and existing owners looking to upgrade. March 1 is also the day caravan holiday home park owners and managers have been working to, as they busily prepare to welcome back their customers. Many will have been busy over the winter months making improvements and upgrading. Tony Bywater, Salop Leisure’s chairman, said: “All caravan holiday home park owners and managers are extremely excited about March 1. As a company, we have never known so much excitement and enthusiasm from new and existing holiday home owners who can’t wait to return to their caravans for the start of the new season. “Caravan holiday homes are popular because they provide five-star accommodation in the location of the owner’s choice which they can use whenever they wish during the season. “With predictions of staycationing continuing to grow across the UK during 2020, a caravan holiday home represents an excellent investment for couples and their extended families. I predict that 2020 is going to be a tremendous year as demand for holiday homes and staycationing in the UK increases.” Salop Leisure supplies caravan holiday homes and luxury lodges to holiday parks across Mid Wales and the Heart of England. In addition, the company owns nine, five-star caravan holiday home parks across inland and coastal Mid Wales, together with the multi-award-winning Love2Stay luxury holiday resort in Shrewsbury.
Verdant Leisure raises over £76,000 for Teenage Cancer Trust
Bespoke holiday park operator Verdant Leisure announced its support of Teenage Cancer Trust in 2018 and over the past two years, employees, holiday home owners and holiday guests across Verdant Leisure parks and Lancaster Head Office have held numerous fundraising events to raise a total of £76,033.69 for the charity. In the past year, Verdant Leisure has worked tirelessly to raise an impressive £38,753.04 for the charity. The 2019 sum exceeds the previous year’s notable total of £37,280.65 for the charity. 2019’s fundraising events and activities saw members of the Verdant team skydive over 10,000 feet, shave their hair and host weekend family fun days. The monies raised will help Teenage Cancer Trust provide care and support for young people aged 13-24 facing cancer in the UK. Facebook vote for charity had clear winner To decide on its Charity of the Year, Verdant Leisure called upon holiday home owners, holiday guests and employees to nominate a charity. The nominated charities were shortlisted and decided by a public Facebook poll, with Teenager Cancer Trust being the overall winner with an outstanding 80% of the vote. Verdant Leisure’s Communications Director, Stacey Hope said: “We are delighted to have raised so much for such a worthy charity! Everyone at Verdant Leisure made a great effort to get involved with fundraising. We are so proud of all the team and have been honoured to support Teenage Cancer Trust over the past two years.” Louise Miles, Regional Manager at Teenage Cancer Trust said: “It has been the most wonderful two-year partnership which has raised an incredible amount of money and awareness for young people with cancer. Teenage Cancer Trust nurses, support teams and special hospital wards help young people cope with some unimaginably hard times. But without companies like Verdant Leisure, these specialist services would simply not be there – and we can’t thank their teams, caravan owners and visitors enough for supporting our charity.”
Create family-inclusive spaces to keep visitors coming back year after year
With more choice than ever before for today’s holiday-goers, standing out from the crowd is essential. There are many ways to achieve this, but upgrading your holiday park’s sports areas to create family-inclusive spaces is one of the best, simplest and most cost-effective. The emphasis here is on family-inclusive – especially when you consider that families are the group that takes the most holidays, according to a report by leading travel experts, ABTA. But what does a family-inclusive space actually look like? To me, it’s a place where the whole family – regardless of age or ability – can come together to equally participate in an activity, sporting or otherwise. But how many sports areas do you know (or have at your park) that truly tick this box? If I asked you to picture your typical sports or play area, most of the parents would probably be sat or stood around the edge, while a few of them push swings and play other supporting roles in their children’s activities. With that said, it’s easy for sports areas to feel like ‘child-only’ zones that are off-limits to adults, but if you break down that barrier, magic can happen. No-longer are adults the spectators, they’re now the participants – enjoying activity side-by-side with their children. That’s when the real interaction occurs. That’s when the real memories are made – the type that will encourage visitors to your park to return time and time again. You’re probably thinking that all sounds great, but how is this achieved? Depending on the condition of your current sports areas, you could go to town and give them a complete overhaul, but there are also some quick, easy and more budget-friendly ways to upgrade what you already have. Target games, which are relatively inexpensive and can be retro-fitted to any spare wall or fence system, can instantly add more life and variety to your sports areas. And because they combine physical skills with mental skills (such as maths, logic and strategic thinking), they’re highly interactive and can be enjoyed as graduated challenges by individuals and groups of all ages and abilities. What’s more, target games are also great for breaking up larger sports areas into smaller zones or ‘pockets’ as we like to call them at Playinnovation™. This, in turn, makes them feel less intimating and encourages the shyer adults and children to enter and enjoy these spaces. Other quick and relatively inexpensive ways to spruce up your sports areas are adding funky, customised line markings and surface graphics, and installing colourful, pop-art inspired basketball hoops, which can turn any grey space into something beautiful and inviting for the whole family. If you’re not looking to upgrade, but are instead starting from scratch, this provides an amazing opportunity to create a purposefully designed, family-inclusive space without the usual limits. To make this even more straight forward to achieve, Playinnovation™ has designed The HEX Court – a genuine multi-use games area which can be tailored to suit every individual park. Consisting of six ‘pods’ – each offering a different sports activity or target game – The HEX Court provides ‘personal pockets’ for children and adults to play, whether they’re on their own, with friends or family, or part of an organised group. In one pod, you might find our patented ‘Street Pool’ target game, then, in the neighbouring pod, a table tennis table or some cool, outdoor gym equipment. Together, these pods create the ultimate fun and family-inclusive space. Upgrading a sports area can often seem like a mammoth task, but hopefully, you can now see that it doesn’t have to be that way. If you stick to three keywords – zones, variety and interactivity – you’ll create sports areas that engage and delight all family members, leading to happier customers that can’t wait to return to your park year-after-year. For more information about Playinnovation™, The HEX Court, and its sports area design services, visit playinnovation.co.uk. Contact Marco via marco.boi@playinnovation.co.uk or phone 0203 409 5303. By Marco Boi, Founder and Director of Playinnovation™
