Norman’s role within The Gingerbread Centre (Rothesay Court):
Norman’s job involves maintenance, including fire, water and health and safety checks. Norman is IOSH qualified (to manage safety) and has carried out various forms of training, including a City and Guilds in Health and Safety, Legionella Awareness & Responsible person, Pat Testing, Fire Warden training, First Aid training and much more.
A normal day for Norman begins with checks of the whole building. Fire doors and exits are kept clear at all times allowing for quick evacuation. These checks are carried out inside and outside the building to ensure the surrounding area is safe. Afterwards, in the office, Norman checks the repairs log making sure that any damaged/broken items are repaired.
As the Fire Warden / Marshall, Norman checks fire extinguishers, tests the fire alarms, PAT tests and carries out reports on the safety measures put in place in case of an emergency. Therefore, Norman has a direct impact upon the community, making sure that the residents and staff are safe.
Items are PAT tested by Norman as each new resident moves in, this allows for safe use of electrical equipment and reduces that chance of an emergency involving fire. These safety measures invoke a further sense of community as residents and staff a-like are able to feel safe while on the premises.
Norman gave an insight into the effort and work put in after a resident moves out. After this occurs, each flat is assessed for any damaged items. These will then be repaired or replaced. Electrical checks are then carried out making sure that any possible hazards are dealt with accordingly. The average turnaround for a flat is about 3 days. This allows for enough time for the flats to be cleaned, assessed and repaired.
The water safety of Rothesay Court is also under Norman’s responsibility, following the HSE guide for L8 regulations. No water should be left standing in pipes for more than 7 days due to a risk of legionella. Water is flushed (as necessary) so that it reaches the temperature of the whole building as flats can be left empty for days (e.g. when waiting for safety checks to be done or for a new resident to move in). Monthly water checks are also carried out and tested at the sentinel points, to ensure that the hot water is over 50 degrees and that cold water is below 20 (within a given time frame).
Norman’s maintenance role includes supervision for another member of staff and he will delegate work as it comes up for gardening, maintenance and some Health & Safety tasks. He also covers the maintenance work at our other site, Catherine Court when necessary.
Overall, Norman is an integral part of the community and his hard work and effort (shown through his 25,000 steps a day whilst at work) means that residents and staff are able to live and work in a safe and welcoming environment. Norman also helps residents to fit safety gates in their flats, build babies cots and hang pictures to help make flats homely. Norman believes the best parts of his job is watching families leave happy, and the sense of community the centre has.