30 May Dundas Castle Team- Housekeeping
The next members of the Dundas team to give an insight into their role at the Castle are our incredible housekeeping team. Our head housekeeper, Ferenc, leads a marvellous group who keep the Castle spotless and in immaculate condition every day. With many years of experience in housekeeping and two years maintaining the high Dundas standards, Ferenc has many tips to ensure the Castle is consistently clean and fresh.
How many housekeepers are part of the Dundas team?
“We have a total of nine housekeepers to ensure the Castle is always kept to the highest standards, even during the busiest part of the year where we have a high volume of events at Dundas. We are incredibly proud that we have maintained 100% for cleanliness across the whole Castle in our VisitScotland Quality Assurance Inspection throughout 2018 and 2019. During the height of the season, we can have back to back events which result in our team turning over the main reception rooms, event spaces, and all 17 bedrooms within two hours for a new check-in. We are proud that even with this tight time constraint, we still maintain a Castle of the utmost cleanliness.”
Dundas invested in a new in-house laundry last year, what impact has this had on the housekeeping team?
“The housekeeping team manages all of the laundry from the Castle, Boathouse and Glamping site. By upgrading our in-house facilities, we have the ability to work more efficiently. By investing in some new equipment we are also reducing our environmental impact. The new machines weigh the washing load, calculate and apply the right dosage of cleaning products to ensure we are not using more than we need. Our tumble driers also weigh the load and then dry the sheets to 30% moisture, the ideal level for them then to be ironed.”
What does a typical day at Dundas entail for housekeeping?
“The team arrive at 7am to clean the main reception rooms every morning, even if there is not an event checking in that day. We then brush down all external areas of the Castle, clean the 600 year Auld Keep and ensure everything is spotless in our Pavilion. If there is an event on, we turn around all the bedrooms by 11.30am ready for the guests to arrive. In the afternoon our team splits into two, with one half working through the laundry and another cleaning the Boathouse and Glamping units ready for guests to check-in mid-afternoon. With good teamwork and communication we get through weeks with back to back events while maintaining the cleanliness of the Castle to the highest specifications.”
