COVID-19 and our Continued Operations
The term 'unprecedented times' is, unfortunately, something we have all become familiar with recently. Like many other businesses, I never imagined I would find myself writing a statement amid a worldwide pandemic. With so many lives lost to coronavirus (COVID-19), it's an unfortunate time for all of us - especially those who have lost family and friends.
Starfish Construction Group has always been conscious of our role to protect and care, not only our employees but our partners and the wider general public. As a trusted support partner to our customers, this approach and process continues and is even more valuable to them as UK's businesses and the economy continues to face challenges.
The health and safety of our employees, their families and the wider community, is of the utmost importance to us as we move forward. By following the Government and World Health Organisation guidelines, we are continuing to ensure where we can, that we are there to support our customers. Like so many organisations, we took early actions to safeguard our employees, with many people now working from home where possible.
We have a dedicated inter-departmental team which meets remotely to evaluate our ongoing critical infrastructure projects. These meetings cover new tenders, and other developments to coordinate planning activities and continue to guide our employees to keep safe and plan ahead. On the critical sites that we are operational, we have also updated site induction processes and guidance to ensure everyone is fully informed and adhering to social distancing rules. Our pre-COVID-19 Health and Safety site induction approach was robust, although we have updated accordingly now to reflect the current environment we are all operating within.
From survey assessments, through to project design and planning, it has been great to see the team engage with a new way of working during these challenging times. I want to extend this praise to our supply partners, who have worked tirelessly to help us during this time.
Along with our robust company Health and Safety initiatives and processes, we have added further measures for the safety of everyone. These measures are in operation across our' Working from Home' groups, as well as operatives working on the essential sites that continue to need our support.
With the UK now its 7th week (w/c 4th May) of lockdown, I wanted to provide an update on our people and operations. Our teams across Starfish Construction Group continue to do a fantastic job, ranging from administration and accounts to operatives and site managers.
Along with our robust company Health and Safety initiatives and processes, we have added further measures for the safety of everyone. These measures are in operation across our' Working from Home' groups, as well as operatives working on the essential sites that continue to need our support.
By following guidelines, it's encouraging to me that we are an organisation in a position to fulfil client requests, which include technical surveys, roofing and cladding design, project pricing and planning, with the ability to maintain our work on critical projects.
I want to personally thank everyone within the Starfish Construction Group family who have stepped up to the mark, embracing new ways of working and overcoming challenges that we never expected to face. Our thanks also extend to our partners and clients and as they say, 'we are all in this together'.
We continue to remain operational on critical projects across many sectors, including retail, defence and healthcare.
I would also like to add my heartfelt thanks to all frontline NHS and key workers who continue to show their dedication to their professions. I don't think we will ever be able to fully quantify the roles they have played during this challenging time.
As a business, we will continue to follow all the guidance and advice offered by the Government and the health service. As the Government make tentative steps to allow a modicum of changes to our daily lives and work, I hope that you and your families stay safe and I am confident that we will come through this together.
John Jessimer
Managing Director
Starfish Construction Group
