A Clean Look at the Market

10 June 2016 | Updated 01 January 1970

The British Cleaning Council has published a survey examining changes in the UK cleaning industry over a six-year period up to 2014.

The BBC study looks in detail at a number of key industry areas, e.g. employment, wages, demographics and company turn over.

The Council was asked to collect the UK data by the European Federation of Cleaning Industries (EFCI) and the figures will be added to the latter’s statistics over the next few months to provide a Europe wide picture.

The full report is 16 pages and contains many statistical tables and detailed information across facilities services, cleaning and landscape services and makes a comparison with economic performance in the UK as a whole, e.g. total UK turnover in 2014 was £3.6 trillion and the ‘services to buildings and landscape activities’ sector turnover was £23 billion, or 0.64% of UK total.

Further breakdown by industry reveals that 49% of the sector’s turnover was from the ‘combined facilities support activities’ industry, while ‘cleaning activities’ make up just over a third of the sector turnover.

The report also highlights that the UK cleaning industry relies on migrant labour more heavily than over economic sectors with 24% of workers having a non-UK nationality, compared with the average of 18% across other industries.

“Up until 2012, gathering statistics like this was usually done by the now defunct Asset Skills Sector Council, using government funding but that’s no longer an option, so this survey shows that the BCC can step up to the plate when asked and fulfill these important functions on behalf of the UK cleaning industry,” declared Simon Hollingbery, Chairman, BCC.

There is also detailed information about the market leaders with Interserve, OCS Group and MITIE being the three biggest players in the UK.

Picture: The BCC survey shows that among other findings that the UK cleaning industry relies more heavily on migrant labour than other commercial sectors

Article written by Cathryn Ellis | Published 10 June 2016