‘It can be quite therapeutic’: Inside the life of a street cleaner

By Adrian Zorzut, Local Democracy Reporter

It’s a dirty job but someone’s got to do it. The well-known expression is the perfect description of one of the most crucial, but unsung, jobs in London.

But for Kensington and Chelsea’s street cleaning teams, though they have to deal with everything from vomit and the aftermath of nasty car crashes, to oil spills and graffiti, it’s far from a thankless task.

Alan Gray, 43, who has been covering Kensington and Chelsea for the utility company SUEZ for 20 years, said their hard work doesn’t go unnoticed.

“You do get a lot of people thanking you,” he said. “From residents to visitors, because they can see the effort you’re putting in to try to keep the borough clean and make it a better place to live in.”

While the more grim aspects of the job, such as clearing up the contents of someone’s stomach after a heavy night out, may not sound appealing, there is a certain satisfaction that comes with the job.

Mr Gray said: “It’s quite fulfilling but when you get a dirty pavement and start to clean the dirty away, it can be quite therapeutic.”

Alan, who is SUEZ’s contract manager for Kensington and Chelsea council, says his crew has been called out to car accidents and crime scenes where they’ve had to remove blood and other remains away.

And working around drunk people late at night can lead to occasional verbal abuse. “Some incidents are not particularly nice to clean up sometimes, especially if there has been a road incident,” Mr Gray admitted.

The dedicated team of eight work eight-hour shifts to cover most hours of the day. Day shifters work 5am to 1pm while those on night shift kick off at midnight and go through till 8am.

In terms of the cleaning process, he said engine oil is one of the hardest things to clean up, and it often spills during a crash.

Alan said: “It was a few years ago, we had quite the oil stain and what happens with an oil spill is that you need to pour gravel over it get rid of it.

“Oil leaves staining and it can be a laborious job cleaning it off. It’s quite a long process, too.”

He said graffiti on pavements was “the worst” because the paint can sometimes seep into the concrete and leave a shadow after cleaning.

The seasoned operator also praised the council’s £865,000 year-long blitz to tidy up streets in the borough.

Known as the “Grime Busters”, this crew is tasked with going beyond day-to-day cleaning and maintenance.

The Grime Busters drive around in a van loaded with a 250-litre water tank and jet spray, which can be extended 60m, according to Mr Gray. He says the tank can last up to five hours and needs filling once or twice during a shift – depending on the jobs at hand.

Mr Gray thinks it’s a great idea the council is pouring more money into street cleaning and says it’s making his team more productive.

He said: “It’s giving us more resources. We now have two extra street washing vehicles and it’s employing more people. It’s giving four people a job. It means we can make the borough a nicer place to live in.”

Pictured top: SUEZ worker Steve Coggins, 46, cleaning up grime on Exhibition Road in South Kensington (Picture: Adrian Zorzut)