The Voice of Cleaning
Established in 1982, the British Cleaning Council (BCC) is the authoritative, collective voice of UK’s cleaning, hygiene and waste management industries.
The Council’s membership is made up of 20 trade and membership associations which all represent different industry sub-sectors. From contract cleaning to waste management, pest control to housekeeping, chemical suppliers to wheelie-bin washers – the BCC coordinates, campaigns and supports the affairs of the UK’s entire commercial cleaning ecosystem.
Key priorities for the BCC and its membership include raising professional standards, employee health and wellbeing, career development and training, improved quality control and better procurement practices. They are also committed to promoting higher levels of cleaning and hygiene across all environments – commercial, domestic and public.
Co-Producer of The Cleaning Show
Along with Quartz Business Media, the British Cleaning Council also manage the world-renowned Cleaning Show. This flagship industry expo, which alternates annually between the ExCel Centre in London and Manchester, is a showcase for the latest developments and innovations in UK cleaning as well as providing a forum to discuss and debate major issues which impact on the whole sector.
Proceeds from The Cleaning Show are reinvested by the BCC back into the cleaning industry in the form of research, consultation services, campaigns and generating positive publicity for the sector. More information on The Cleaning Show can be found here.
Industry Research
The BCC also conducts research into the cleaning, waste management, landscaping and FM sectors.
Our latest research report cemented the sector’s position as one of the UK’s top ten industries.
Figures show that the cleaning, hygiene and waste industry contributes nearly £72 billion to the UK economy, with steady growth in a sector with tens of thousands of businesses.
The latest employment data available shows that there are 1.51 million workers in the sector, approximately five per cent of the UK workforce, putting the sector firmly in the top ten UK industries for employment.
For a free copy of our report email info@britishcleaningcouncil.org
Lobbying campaign
The BCC was the secretariat for the last All Party Parliamentary Group for the Cleaning and Hygiene Industry, which was dissolved before the 2024 General election, as were all APPGs.
The council continues to work with other sector organisations to lobby the Government in support of the recommendations of the APPG's 2022 report, ‘Embedding Effective Hygiene for a Resilient UK'.
The report contained key recommendations regarding cleaning and hygiene that will ensure the UK is better prepared for any future pandemic and also reduce the impact of current common infections such as flu.
For more information, click here.
For a free copy of the APPG report, please email compsec@britishcleaningcouncil.org
We Clean, We Care
Our campaign for wider recognition for the vital work that cleaning and hygiene staff do is called We Clean, We Care.
The We Clean, We Care slogan was chosen to show the pride and professionalism that the sector’s highly-trained, skilled personnel have in their crucial, frontline role keeping key workers and the public healthy, safe and well.
The logo was launched at the Manchester Cleaning Show in 2022, where free We Clean, We Care badges were offered to attendees. Several thousand have since been issued to industry staff and BCC members.
The logo is available to the wider cleaning and hygiene industry for free for use on websites, in marketing materials and social media. You can find out more about the campaign and download the logo here.
The UK Cleaning Career Development Zone
The UK Cleaning Career Development Zone brings together information about cleaning industry training and development courses in one place for the first time, where they can be easily accessed online.
It features details of courses at frontline, supervisory and management levels and for support roles, submitted by education and training bodies from across the sector, as well as industry case studies, information for employers and useful links.
Industry personnel and potential recruits can easily find the training they need to succeed in their careers on the UK Cleaning Career Development Zone, whether that means moving upwards or sideways into cleaning roles in other sectors such as hospitality, healthcare, education, engineering, manufacturing or local government, to name just a few areas employing industry staff, or into support roles.
The sky's the limit with a career in the cleaning industry.
Visit www.ukcleaning.org.uk
BCC Staff
Our Chair is David Garcia, who has been in the industry for over 50 years and is a well-known and respected figure.
David was previously BCC Deputy Chair for two years, and has replaced previous Chair Delia Cannings.
David was the founder and former Chairman/MD of Polaris (Plastics), one of the UK’s leading providers of refuse sacks, bin liners and ancillary products to the away from home market.
He has been an active member of one of the largest BCC members, the Cleaning and Hygiene Suppliers Association (CHSA), for a number of years and is currently its Treasurer and Vice-President.
David is the driving force behind the CHSA’s hugely successful undergraduate bursary scheme and is also responsible for the annual gala ball, a hugely popular event at which association members generously raise significant funds for charity.
The BCC's Company Secretary is Simon Hollingbery.
