2023 Dee Richards Pride Award Winners!
Following the recent announcement of our Dee Richards Pride Champion Award winner Nick Jeywright we are now delighted to feature our Pride Award Winners for 2023!
Nominated by their respective Contract Managers these recipients of our annual Pride Awards have shown wonderful dedication to their role whilst truly epitomizing the we clean company ethos!
Karen Rutter
We are immensely proud of our longstanding association with The West Brom Building Society and this contract more than most has encapsulated the ‘partnership approach’ required to deliver a seamless professional cleaning service!
This was particularly evident back in 2009 when we clean transferred via TUPE all the in house cleaning staff from the West Brom into our own organisation and one of those transferring staff at the time was Karen Rutter who has now completed a staggering 21 years plus service at the West Brom Building Society Shrewsbury branch.
At the end of December 2023 Paul Concannon Director and Jane Shields Contract Manager were on hand to present a very special Pride Award to Karen as she had taken the decision to finally hang up her duster for the very last time and move into a well-earned retirement!
Karen has been exemplary throughout her longstanding cleaning career and has always displayed a great passion and genuine pride in maintaining high standards within this busy branch and the presentation of a Dee Richards Pride award to Karen on her last working day was certainly a fitting end to her time with both we clean and the West Brom!
Patrick Garrick
Patrick is a highly valued member of our team at St Francis RC Primary School and Contract Manager Maureen immediately saw his potential from the day he joined the we clean, commenting:
“Patrick is loyal, courteous, respectful, helpful and a real joy to work with. He goes above and beyond with his duties and is always there ready to help the other members of team – hence he was the obvious choice to be promoted to the role of Location Manager when the position became available just over 6 months ago”!
“Patrick is very popular with all the teachers and the building manager on site. He is willing to help the clients with any work they ask him to do. He never complains and the one thing I know about Patrick is that he will always have a smile on his face!”
Althea Gordon
Up next is Althea Gordon (or Rosie as she is affectionately known amongst her work colleagues), who carries out her cleaning role in the lofty heights of RSM’s brand new, innovative office space in 103 Colmore Row. Rosie is the Location Manager for this Grade A Commercial Office space and is a credit to we clean.
Debbie Rhodes Contract Manager commented:
“Rosie will cover for me at very short notice and wherever she goes the clients ask for her to stay, testament to both her personality and the service she provides. Rosie shows compassion when needed and takes pride in every job she does. For me Rosie is a huge asset to the Birmingham City Centre operation and is well respected in many buildings”.
Rosie is also very much appreciated by our main client contact, Lisa Nash, Office Manager for RSM Birmingham who was delighted to hear of Althea’s award:
“Rosie is fantastic, nothing is ever too much trouble and she has an excellent eye to detail. We love having her as part of the RSM Team and she is always very polite, working with a smile and generally improving the office atmosphere!”
Nicole Fitzgerald
We head to the East Midlands for our next Pride Award Winner – Nicole Fitzgerald!
Nicole was nominated by Charlene Bowen, East Midlands Contract Manager for her continuous reliability and hard work. Her desire and effectiveness to do the job right is truly outstanding!
Nicole predominantly operates within Nottingham City Centre working within the managed office space of Alan House looking after tenanted clients Watermans and DBC Training whilst also providing valuable cleaning support to RSM Nottingham based in City Gate East.
Nicole was one of the first people employed by Charlene almost 10 years ago and Charlene looks back fondly on Nicole’s career and development with our organisation:
“Nicole is always willing to go the extra mile and is very much liked by the clients in all the buildings in which she works. Each client has expressed how much they appreciate her commitment and reliability which has helped me no end over the past 10 years”!
“What made this award even more special was presenting it to Nicole with Tom Roden who is the Alan House Building Manager. Tom was over the moon and quite emotional seeing Nicole pick up this award which was so pleasing to see as often the cleaning staff can be forgotten but it was clear that Tom as the client genuinely cares for and appreciates Nicole”.
Cynthia Brako
Contract Manager Robb Paton presented Cynthia Brako with her Pride Award at Salts Healthcare Richard Street facility. An immensely enthusiastic individual, Cynthia is bubbly, polite, reliable and very hard working.
Recognised as the longest established family run business in Birmingham Salts Healthcare has gone from strength to strength over the past 5 years or so and their operations have dramatically increased during this time. Cynthia has been very much at the fulcrum of these ever-evolving operational demands proving to be a steady constant, carrying out her full time daily cleaning duties with a smile on her face and offering her support when cover or additional cleaning hours are required.
Michael Fishwick
Michael joined we clean way back in 2007 after being interviewed at the time by Directors David and Paul as we began our exciting journey with the world famous Birmingham Hippodrome!
From the outset ‘Mick’ as he is affectionately known by many within the Theatre showed himself to be a real character, a genuine gem who carries out his daily duties within the auditorium with a beaming smile on his face!
Michael is fully deserving of his Pride Award as he is always arrives early to start his shift and is typically one of the last to leave, he never thinks twice about going above and beyond or doing that little bit extra to meet the required standards and has a passion and desire to do the job right!
Director Paul Concannon took particular pleasure in awarding Michael with his Pride Award, commenting:
“Mick has shown tremendous loyalty to both we clean and the Birmingham Hippodrome over so many years displaying unwavering reliability at all times, he is a genuine team player and has that desire to go the extra mile! As a madly passionate Blues supporter, he is never shy in giving me some banter whenever I visit site but we are immensely proud to have him in our team and he is very deserving of this Dee Richards Pride Award! Well done Mick”!
Sarah Smith and Lee Cox
Our relationship with West Bromwich Albion Football Club as their preferred ‘Cleaning Partner’ kicked off back in 2018 and it has been a thoroughly rewarding period for the company to be associated with this world-renowned footballing institution!
By its very nature, the demands of a bustling football stadium and busy training ground fluctuate greatly, with matchdays and conferencing events creating vast footfall. As a result a robust cleaning service is required, and as part of that we rely greatly on hard working Cleaning Operatives who possess great resilience and desire in what can be described as a diverse cleaning role!
Lee Cox and Sarah Smith have epitomised this consistently over a number of years, coping with the demands that a matchday or pre-season deep clean requires or delivering great attention to detail in Training Ground Physio, Medical & Treatment Room facilities as well as comprehensive gymnasium facility.
Both Lee and Sarah are conscientious by nature and are always happy to either cover or put in extra hours to generate the best outcome for both we clean and WBA FC. In addition both Lee and Sarah work within one of our local educational contracts Elm Tree School where again they shown outstanding levels of service!
Jane Shields Contract Manager commented:
“I cannot thank Lee and Sarah enough they have provided me with wonderful support over the past 12 months particularly – nothing is ever too much trouble and as a ‘duo’ they really do go that extra mile. Our client contact at the Albion Chris Harris is always feeding back so positively to me on the work Lee and Sarah do around the Hawthorns on a daily basis! They very much deserve this recognition”!
Leigh Parcey
Last but very much not least is Leigh Parcey, our Pride Winner from our prestigious HORIBA MIRA Contract in Nuneaton.
Karen Lord, Site Manager and Jean Green, Assistant Manager nominated Leigh for his dedication, proactivity and constant hard work to ensure our service standards on this contract are exemplary!
Despite the fact that Leigh was moving onto pastures new in early 2024 his exit was a very amicable one and both Karen and Jean wanted to recognise the contribution of Leigh to this business during his time with we clean:
“We nominated Leigh Parcey for his exceptional dedication and hard work which never went unnoticed. His commitment to go above, and beyond, was truly commendable, and he had a significant impact upon our team. His outstanding performance and willingness to take on additional responsibility was commendable and he consistently delivered exceptional results, showing a remarkable level of dedication and passion for his work. His positive approach and consistent effort have significantly contributed to the success of the team”.
Leigh is a very deserving recipient of a Dee Richard’s Pride Award and everyone associated with we clean wishes him all the very best for the future!
