We launched our new Clean Streets Team in Midtown this week. Led by Supervisor Edgars, our ‘tangerine tornadoes’ are supplementing the work by Camden & Islington Councils across the Midtown BID footprint.
Pavement sweeping, litter-picking, graffiti removal, sharps removal, daytime flushing and night-time jet washing are just some of the services the team will undertake.
In October, we will launch a daytime janitorial service, offering on-demand spot cleaning to Midtown BID members.
We’re delighted to announce that our Ambassadors can now be found in King’s Road Chelsea, part of The Cadogan Estate.
Originally planned to start back in April, like so many things the launch was put on hold due to the COVID crisis. But with businesses now re-opening, Harley (left) and Shartina, are now busy introducing themselves to the local community.
If you see them, say hello!
Some of our cleaning teams have come back to work today to get Victoria and The Northbank ready for businesses to return.
Using specialist cleaning equipment, our staff have been jet washing the main streets overnight, and from next week more staff will return to do the same during daytime hours.
From mid-June our normal daytime services will begin again, with staff also responsible for the maintenance and replenishment of hand-sanitiser stations provided by and located across the Victoria, Victoria Westminster and Northbank BID footprints.
Following a comprehensive risk assessment of our Welcome, Cleaning and Security Divisions, we are proud to confirm that we are a COVID Secure Employer.
Thank you to all our staff who took part in this process – your views and concerns were welcomed to make sure we keep everyone safe.
Since lockdown began, our Security Patrol Teams in Baker Street, Midtown, Northbank, Victoria and Victoria Westminster have been patrolling as usual, keeping these areas safe and secure for our clients and their Members.
We’ve introduced a number of new initiatives to help keep our teams safe during this time, including additional PPE, hand sanitiser and face masks. New ways of patrolling have been introduced to enable social distancing and even new ways of eating lunch!
We’d like to thank our amazing staff for their dedication and professionalism during these difficult, uncertain and sometimes scary days.
Over the last 18 months, we’ve been busy growing our teams in Victoria and The Northbank, adding street cleaning to our portfolio of services.
We kicked off in Victoria in the Spring of 2017, followed by The Northbank in the Summer of 2018.
Both teams use Flowplant high pressure hot water systems for night-time deep cleaning, and offer daytime Janitorial Services to BID Members in addition to litter-picking across the BID footprint.
We've expanded overseas!
The Welcome People are now in the vibrant city of Belfast, Northern Ireland, bringing the number of destinations where we operate to 22.
After a competitive tender process, we were chosen by local Business Improvement District, Belfast One, to bring smiles to the streets of Belfast early in November.
Our team of Ambassadors - seen here with Managing Director of Belfast One, Clare Maguire - are from left to right, Sarah, Curtis, Jonathan and Shanda.
Look out for them across the City and say hello!
As summer fades into Autumn, we thought we'd spread a little sunshine and share some happy moments from our wonderful teams across the UK.
These are The Welcome People. 108 of the most fantastic, friendly, multi-talented and multi-lingual people you're ever likely to meet.
Look out for them in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Cambridge, Canterbury, Chester, Exeter and coming soon to Belfast!
It was 5 years ago this month that our 'pioneers' first put on their bowler hats and faced the general public in central London. We thought it was time to Celebrate!
The Welcome People launched its unique service 10 months before the London Olympics, offering a friendly, mobile, street-based concierge service to welcome and orientate visitors to the Capital. We launched simultaneously in Oxford Street, Regent Street and Victoria, in our trademark 3 piece suit and bowler hat. We wore different coloured hat ribbons to denote the different areas - Red for Oxford Street, Magenta for Regent Street and Lime Green for Victoria.
While the colours of hat ribbons may change, one thing remains the same - our commitment to great customer service and the warmest of welcomes.
Over the five years, our team has grown a fair bit, from 15 to more than 100 Ambassadors; and we now serve more than 20 locations from Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool in the north to Exeter and Canterbury in the south; along with 9 locations across London.
These guys in the bowler hats (pictured here on Day One) have welcomed more than 7 million visitors since we started. We've also made more than 120,000 visits to local businesses on behalf of our clients, reported more than 90,000 environmental issues to the local authority and have worked hard to improve and enhance the visitor experience of the areas we proudly serve.
As a company we speak close to 40 different languages, but above all else, our team of Ambassadors love meeting and helping people.
Abdel, Mara, Rukije, Tom, Barbara, Barry and Antonio joined us back in September 2011, and are still with us as we celebrate our 5th birthday.
Congratulations to them and Happy Birthday to us!
Sloane Street was developed by Henry Holland for the 1st Earl Cadogan (1728-1807). Charles ‘Sloane’ 1st Earl Cadogan sold the development lease to Henry Holland in 1777. Sloane Street today is home to the world’s leading fashion houses and on a day-to-day basis The Welcome People Ambassadors greet an average 200 visitors. Find out how they impressed the Estate Improvement Manager at The Cadogan Estate.
2016 has got off to a fantastic start with news that, for the second year running, The Welcome People have reached the final of the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence. The VisitEngland Awards for Excellence are firmly established as representing the highest accolade in English tourism and we’re over the moon to have reached the final again, in the category of Tourist Information Provider of the Year.
As Colmore BID neared its second term it became evident that a stronger ‘on the ground’ service and dedicated team to meet and greet visitors was needed. Investigation the options available the Colmore BID team came across The Welcome People Ambassador programme. The smart and professional appearance of The Welcome People’s Ambassadors was seen to set the right tone. Read our full case study here...
