Sussex company wins cleaning contract for The Beacon in Eastbourne

Uniclean becomes the first SME to be chosen by the shopping centre for its three-year cleaning contract

A family-run Sussex company has won a three-year contract to undertake cleaning duties at The Beacon in Eastbourne.  

The centre’s 20-strong team of cleaners, who keep the centre in tip-top condition, have transferred across to Uniclean. There are no redundancies.  

This is the first time that centre owner Legal & General has chosen a local firm for this vital work. The cleaning team all live in the Eastbourne area and are well-known to regular shoppers.  

Brighton-based Uniclean beat stiff competition from 10 other companies who tendered for the work. The new contract, which started in July, represents significant growth for the company and Legal & General will become its largest client. Former cleaning provider Churchill Services has also agreed a new technology partnership with Uniclean to use its facilities management platform Mo:dus to help grow and scale the business. 

All employees working at the centre are on permanent contracts and paid the real Living Wage, with employment benefits including access to counselling and mental health support, sick pay and death in service.  

Legal & General recently published The Marmot Review for Industry with Sir Michael Marmot. The report sets out how businesses can drive improvements in health equity. 

The Review demonstrates the clear links between the built environment and health, wellbeing, and happiness. It provides a roadmap for the role of industry in levelling up across the country and sets out ways that businesses can improve people’s lives by reducing health inequality. One of these is to promote the health of employees through pay and benefits, hours and job security and conditions of work. 

The Beacon’s Director James Roberts said: “We are delighted to award the three-year cleaning contract for The Beacon to Uniclean. There was stiff competition from national and local companies, but Uniclean’s submission was really impressive. 

“It is great that we have been able to award the contract to a Sussex-based business so that we can help their growth and invest back into the local economy at the same time. We have collaborated with Uniclean to ensure that the right employment conditions are awarded to the team with new procedures in place to emphasise our commitment to a cleaner, safer environment for our customers.”  

Mark Tyson, Head of Property Operations for Legal & General’s Real Assets business, added: “We want to deliver positive and more inclusive outcomes for the communities we operate in. This contract provides an opportunity for us to help scale a regional business whilst introducing enhanced benefits and employment conditions for front-line workers who are critical to the operation of our investments.” 

Uniclean has been supporting Sussex businesses since the 1960s. Managing director James Ingram said: “This contract is a game changer for our company. We are thrilled to be working with the team at The Beacon and can’t wait to get started.”