VERDANT’S QUALITY SQUAD PRAISED FOR ‘MAKING A REAL DIFFERENCE’

Llangefni, Anglesey, 11th July 2008 – A  new team assembled by municipal services and recycling firm Verdant has been praised by the Isle of Anglesey County Council for ‘making a real difference’ to public areas on the island.

Initially set up in November last year, Verdant’s Supplementary Quality Improvement Team (SQIT) tackles the ‘deep cleansing’ of communal areas, parks, playgrounds, promenades and beach frontages nominated by local communities

Verdant business manager Andy Dutton said: “The team comprises six men and three vehicles who are asked by the council to ‘deep clean’ areas that need it. We also call it ‘polishing off’, adding the final gloss to our high quality cleansing service. The improvements are really noticeable and the team gets lots of very positive feedback from residents and the local community councils.

“This intensive cleansing activity can involve minor ground clearance, street washing and pressure washing, chewing gum removal, edging pathways, minor cutting back of over-grown vegetation, and so on. It’s generally sprucing up areas that might have been otherwise forgotten and neglected.”

The SQIT work has won praise from Meirion Edwards, Chief Waste Management Officer of Isle of Anglesey County Council, who said: “It’s great to see the team’s efforts making a real difference to improving the island’s streetscapes. Keeping communal areas attractive helps instill civic pride amongst residents and, of course, it’s very important to Anglesey’s appeal as a tourist destination and therefore does make a contribution to our local economy.”

He added: “The transformation of places like the Communal Gardens at Amlwch and The Valley at Cemaes Bay are just some of the examples which are testament to the team’s professionalism and efficiency.”

The council will review a further extension of Verdant’s Quality Improvement Team contract in November.
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About Verdant
Verdant Group Plc (www.verdant-group.co.uk), part of the fast-growing, recycling-led Greenstar UK group (www.greenstar.co.uk), provides high quality, efficient recycling, refuse, cleansing and grounds maintenance services for 24 local authorities in England, Wales and Scotland. It makes over 50 million recycling and refuse collections annually from nearly 800,000 households, and employs over 1,300 staff operating with 500+ vehicles. Hundreds of staff are participating in a government-backed skills and awareness training programme which leads to a recognised vocational qualification. Verdant’s Arun Green Waste Club in West Sussex won Best Partnership Project at the 2007 National Recycling Awards, and Verdant also won the Best Commitment to Health & Safety category of the 2005 National Recycling Awards.

For further media information, contact:

Blair Drummond, Verdant PR consultant – tel (m) 07798 686 217, email blair.drummond@btopenworld.com