Accreditations – What they mean

Every night you can find adverts on television for a number of different schemes that claim to help you select a tradesperson you can trust to carry out work for you in a reliable safe and honest fashion. These are all very well when you are looking for someone to change a tap washer, but if you are a Facilities Manager, Housing Association or School Bursar you need rather more concrete assurance about the capabilities of the company you are appointing to manage your repairs and maintenance.

We will focus on three of the accreditation schemes that professional companies can be assessed by to give potential customers a clear understanding of the capability of their chosen provider. You will have seen the logos for each of these on vans and construction sites, but what are they telling you about the company displaying them?

Which? Trusted Traders

Which? Trusted Traders is an endorsement scheme run by the consumer support organisation Which? that recognises reputable traders who successfully pass an assessment process. These include a Credit report which validates the financial health of the business, a thorough review of business and administrative procedures and interviews with the business owners and their customers. About 70% of those who apply to the scheme pass the assessment and are then able to display the Trusted Traders logo.

Constructionline

Constructionline is a Government supported scheme, which collects, assesses and monitors company information linking those purchasing construction services with contractors and suppliers. Organisations like councils, NHS Trusts and Housing Associations all use Constructionline to pre-qualify providers and speed up the tendering process. They work with the PAS91 standardised prequalification questionnaire and Safety Schemes in Procurement (SSIP) certification which demonstrates a company’s adherence to required industry safety standards, giving buyers peace of mind that they are working with an organisation that looks after the welfare of its workforce.

Safe Contractor

This is a way of allowing an organisation to ensure that annual vetting of contractors on its approved list to ensure they are maintaining the standards they accepted when they initially joined the scheme. Used mainly by commercial clients this scheme demonstrates a contractor or supplier’s commitment to sustainable and ethical practices. You may have come across this scheme as CHAS.

Express Property Services are pleased to have passed the assessment process for all the accreditations above. Acquiring and then maintaining the right to display these logos is a valuable way for a contractor to measure themselves and their service to customers. To discuss how we can help your business with any repair or maintenance requirement please get in touch.  

Categorised in: Maintenance contracts, Property maintenance

This post was written by Express Property Services