Hi Olly another busy week the trouble is landscaping is a job that every one's mate down the pub thinks they can do When your showing the bodge ups you find high lights the different quality of work man ship with professionals Thanks again Have a good week
Amazing videos guys so enjoying the weekly instalments! I think you might need to look into the regs on the soak away as I don’t believe it’s correct. Loving the quality of your work and it’s amazing the business you’re creating!
@ that’s brilliant I know when I was looking into for one of my projects it had to be so many meters away from the house and the soakaway calculations was crazy 😂
Personally I would not put a soak away under a patio with the settlement etc but that’s just me and how I would do it. Again amazing work and love everything you guys do 👍
I've just spent the past month watching all of these episodes back to back and now im finally caught up! 🙌🏾 I'm no where near your size of company however I understand all the struggles, especially competing with other landscapers charging half the price and cutting corners. My accountant has recommended the APL so I may look at joining in the new year 💯
Great video Olly. Deciding which kit to buy and which to hire is so difficult. Skid-steer loaders seem to be that surplus item so often. Industry bodies are essential - Red Tractor, ACL and others. Committee work can be a drag, but without young people like yourself the bodies will fail to be effective. Btw, i am sure you don't chuck landscape material down and chuck hardcore in? 😀
Hi Olly, Interesting to see how other companies are faring in the current market, especially when trying to grow. I run a construction company just south of you with a similar clientele, so I can relate to a lot of what you’re saying. The whole industry is absolutely rife with poor workmanship across every sector, and a big part of the problem is the lack of accountability for the work being done. Joining an approved body does seem like a step in the right direction to regulate the industry and could help differentiate yourself from the competition. That said, it won’t stop subpar work entirely as the real issue lies in the workforce itself. There’s so little being done to bring competent workers into the industry, and a lot of the current workforce only learns what they’re exposed to on the job. A good way forward would be to make proper guidance and resources easily accessible, ensuring work meets the right standards. If this kind of information was widely available and jobs were properly documented and signed off, it could make a real difference. The challenge with something like contractor licensing is that so much of the UK relies on unqualified labour. It’s a tricky balance to strike, but improving education and accountability seems like the way to go. On a side note, I noticed the soakaway you installed in one of your recent jobs. I just wanted to flag that it’s really important for it to be at least 5m away from the property to comply with Building Regulations. The proximity, especially in clay soil, could lead to drainage issues or even structural problems over time. It also needs to be sized correctly based on roof area and rainfall, with a proper percolation test to ensure it’s fit for purpose. I only mention this to help protect you from potential liability issues that could arise if something goes wrong.
@@Palo-jm7xc Hi Pete, thanks for engaging and I completely agree with all you’ve said. They’re deep rooted systemic issues that really need an aggressive overhaul. This would benefit everyone involved and really elevate the career potential and public perception of trades people. Standards and licensing I do think would be key for those doing the work but also those specifying it. Thanks for your point on the soak away, but when the overall picture was painted to a local planning officer and the site complexities explained they were happy for it to go there. The size was specified based on the meterage of the roof captured by this down pipe and percolation tests are always carried out. We deal with clay frequently so understand the limitations and considerations, sounds like you do too which is great. But that is also part of the issue, some officers would say it’s fine and not be bothered in the slightest, others would object strongly. We also often find this with tree officers regarding TPO’s - very inconsistent and varies hugely from council to council. This again shows why consistent and national standards are important, so contractors can safely navigate the system rather than fear and resent it.
@@OllyGregson I completely agree. There’s no standard approach that works for every site, and the existing standards can be easily interpreted differently depending on opinion or the specific site or officer. This is one of the complexities that makes implementing consistent regulations so challenging. I believe there’s a real need for a standard that encourages customers to involve the right people at the planning stage to create the designs and specifications for successful projects. It would take a significant shift to make this happen, but if it were introduced at the customer level or even within colleges to build awareness, it could greatly elevate standards across the industry. Maybe as AI progresses it might help define these standards. Glad to hear you got the soakaway sorted and that everything was above board. I didn’t think for a second you’d do shoddy work, it’s clear you take pride in what you do.
It may be an unregulated industry but concentrate on what you do, and do it to your best abilities, and get into the mind set of what they do is below you. Every industry has the same problem but ultimately there's your clients and their clients. You may miss out on a few jobs but you'll win more.
Absolutely, most trades in the UK are victim to the lack of regulation. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to shift the frustration when it pops up, I’m sure that’s shared with anyone who takes real pride in what they do and how they operate. Luckily we have enough people who see the value in the service we provide to keep us going!
Always so informative! And you have such a great team working for you! 🙂
Thank you!
Hi Olly another busy week the trouble is landscaping is a job that every one's mate down the pub thinks they can do When your showing the bodge ups you find high lights the different quality of work man ship with professionals Thanks again Have a good week
Absolutely, showing what it takes to do things properly and helping to educate potential clients is certainly a goal for my content.
Amazing videos guys so enjoying the weekly instalments! I think you might need to look into the regs on the soak away as I don’t believe it’s correct.
Loving the quality of your work and it’s amazing the business you’re creating!
@@ShaneJackson Thank you! It was run through and ok’d by a local planning officer, so all good!
@ that’s brilliant I know when I was looking into for one of my projects it had to be so many meters away from the house and the soakaway calculations was crazy 😂
Personally I would not put a soak away under a patio with the settlement etc but that’s just me and how I would do it.
Again amazing work and love everything you guys do 👍
I've just spent the past month watching all of these episodes back to back and now im finally caught up! 🙌🏾
I'm no where near your size of company however I understand all the struggles, especially competing with other landscapers charging half the price and cutting corners. My accountant has recommended the APL so I may look at joining in the new year 💯
Another awesome episode 🤙
Thank you!
The coat in the opening sequence is so nice! Looks super professional 👏🏼
Only the best from www.bigsafety.co.uk
Great week 🤗
Great video Olly. Deciding which kit to buy and which to hire is so difficult. Skid-steer loaders seem to be that surplus item so often. Industry bodies are essential - Red Tractor, ACL and others. Committee work can be a drag, but without young people like yourself the bodies will fail to be effective. Btw, i am sure you don't chuck landscape material down and chuck hardcore in? 😀
Hi Olly,
Interesting to see how other companies are faring in the current market, especially when trying to grow. I run a construction company just south of you with a similar clientele, so I can relate to a lot of what you’re saying. The whole industry is absolutely rife with poor workmanship across every sector, and a big part of the problem is the lack of accountability for the work being done. Joining an approved body does seem like a step in the right direction to regulate the industry and could help differentiate yourself from the competition. That said, it won’t stop subpar work entirely as the real issue lies in the workforce itself.
There’s so little being done to bring competent workers into the industry, and a lot of the current workforce only learns what they’re exposed to on the job. A good way forward would be to make proper guidance and resources easily accessible, ensuring work meets the right standards. If this kind of information was widely available and jobs were properly documented and signed off, it could make a real difference.
The challenge with something like contractor licensing is that so much of the UK relies on unqualified labour. It’s a tricky balance to strike, but improving education and accountability seems like the way to go.
On a side note, I noticed the soakaway you installed in one of your recent jobs. I just wanted to flag that it’s really important for it to be at least 5m away from the property to comply with Building Regulations. The proximity, especially in clay soil, could lead to drainage issues or even structural problems over time. It also needs to be sized correctly based on roof area and rainfall, with a proper percolation test to ensure it’s fit for purpose. I only mention this to help protect you from potential liability issues that could arise if something goes wrong.
@@Palo-jm7xc Hi Pete, thanks for engaging and I completely agree with all you’ve said. They’re deep rooted systemic issues that really need an aggressive overhaul. This would benefit everyone involved and really elevate the career potential and public perception of trades people.
Standards and licensing I do think would be key for those doing the work but also those specifying it. Thanks for your point on the soak away, but when the overall picture was painted to a local planning officer and the site complexities explained they were happy for it to go there. The size was specified based on the meterage of the roof captured by this down pipe and percolation tests are always carried out. We deal with clay frequently so understand the limitations and considerations, sounds like you do too which is great.
But that is also part of the issue, some officers would say it’s fine and not be bothered in the slightest, others would object strongly. We also often find this with tree officers regarding TPO’s - very inconsistent and varies hugely from council to council.
This again shows why consistent and national standards are important, so contractors can safely navigate the system rather than fear and resent it.
@@OllyGregson I completely agree. There’s no standard approach that works for every site, and the existing standards can be easily interpreted differently depending on opinion or the specific site or officer. This is one of the complexities that makes implementing consistent regulations so challenging. I believe there’s a real need for a standard that encourages customers to involve the right people at the planning stage to create the designs and specifications for successful projects.
It would take a significant shift to make this happen, but if it were introduced at the customer level or even within colleges to build awareness, it could greatly elevate standards across the industry. Maybe as AI progresses it might help define these standards.
Glad to hear you got the soakaway sorted and that everything was above board. I didn’t think for a second you’d do shoddy work, it’s clear you take pride in what you do.
It may be an unregulated industry but concentrate on what you do, and do it to your best abilities, and get into the mind set of what they do is below you. Every industry has the same problem but ultimately there's your clients and their clients. You may miss out on a few jobs but you'll win more.
Absolutely, most trades in the UK are victim to the lack of regulation. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to shift the frustration when it pops up, I’m sure that’s shared with anyone who takes real pride in what they do and how they operate. Luckily we have enough people who see the value in the service we provide to keep us going!
Would love to see some merch sometime!!
@@arthurphilip1410 I’m sure it can be arranged! What do you like the look of?
@ massive fan of the quarter zips + the shorts even though it is ‘winter’😆
👊👍