This winter, GP teams have been gritting at NHS Louisa Jordan Hospital on behalf of FES FM, aiding the progress of the COVID-19 vaccination programme.

The UK average temperature in January 2021 was just 2.2°C, the coldest January for ten years with plummeting temperatures accompanied by significant snow falls, bringing the gritters out in full force.

At peak times, around 5,000 people per day attended the hospital NHS Louisa Jordan Hospital to receive their jab, a high proportion of those in the over 80’s and over 70’s categories.

It was critical to keep the site safe for pedestrians and vehicular traffic.

Donny Kemp, operations manager at FES FM, said: “GP Plantscape’s teams were very helpful from the start of the contract, quickly developing a site gritting plan which could be verified with our client (NHS) prior to commencement of the contract. We were also very impressed with the GP dashboard which automatically emails 24 hours in advance of a site visit. This allowed us to update site security daily of any impending visit.

“January 2021 was a very challenging time for ice and snow clearing on a site where the NHS were vaccinating thousands of the public between the ages of 70 and 80 years old. So, as you would expect this service was one of the many high priorities for the NHS Site Management Team.

“Reactively GP never let us down whenever the conditions dictated extra visits and Andrew Bell, operations manager, was always available, helpful and pro-active whenever required.

“Good job and thank you for all your help.”

Ice and falling snow are a challenge every winter, but COVID-19 has impacted the predictability of weather forecasts due to a reduction in meteorological data normally collected by aircraft, making it tougher for the teams to plan.

Andy Bell, exterior operations manager, GP Plantscape, said: “.

“Lying snow and low temperatures created problematic conditions, so we had to be constantly monitoring weather conditions and attending site for multiple visits to ensure it was clear and safe.

“We are pleased to have been part of the effort in the delivery of the vaccine.

“I would like to say thank you to the team, for their hard work over the last few months.

“I think we are all looking forward to spring.”

The NHS Louisa Jordan Hospital is also being used to conduct CT scans.