A Cleaning Company as Social Initiative

Having joined this site in 2010, not long after moving into the church in Mattison Road, I soon found ‘HOL’ to be an amazing community resource. For newcomers to the area, the site provides an instant network to the local community. I have always been grateful to Liz and Hugh for the hard work they put in to keep this site running. As HOL’s top scrounger, I have furnished several Homelessness accommodation projects including the house on Mattison Road, Martha House in Tottenham, The Annex in Hornsey, The Community House & The Manses in Hackney. There are also countless people that have move-on from these projects with items generously donated here, helping them to turn their new house into a home.

In 2012, we put a call out inviting people to the initial steering committee of the Haringey Migrant Support Centre, now a successful charity providing support to many struggling to make a life in the United Kingdom.

Over the years, I have seen countless requests asking for cleaners and have often thought, how would a social cleaning company work in the area? When I see these requests, I think of the many people (mostly young mothers with children at school) who would love to work a few hours each week providing a few much-needed extra pounds. Then, I see the barriers in front of them. Such as English not being their first language, how would they cope with the bureaucracy of being self-employed, how would this affect their benefits, would they be safe, or would they be taken advantage of?

With the right support, I am sure many people would thrive with a part-time job with flexibility. Many young mothers, would enjoy the side benefits of like getting out of the house, meeting other adults and the self-esteem brought on by earning your own money etc. But there could be other benefits, support with other issues, like benefits, budgeting, accessing advice, education & training, employment support to find other positions etc… 

Where does one start? Would homeowners support such a company? Is there a model already working somewhere else? I am keen to start a conversation with anyone who might be interested in something like this. From my experience, I understand the value of people being involved in such an endeavour, no matter how much time or energy they can give…