Successful EXOR renewal and SSIP accreditation

AFLA Ltd has successfully renewed our EXOR accreditation, and with this, we have also passed the SSIP (Safety Schemes in Procurement) assessment.  You can now search for us on the SSIP Portal.

Alex Fraser has recently completed and passed the CITB Construction Skills Managerial & Professional (MAP) level Health, Safety & Environment Test.

Beautiful landscapes in the Winter

Sharpness Canal

We have been so lucky to have patches of beautiful weather this winter, unlike so many parts of the country further north.  We have been exploring our local countryside and witnessed some beautiful wildlife, dramatic scenery and fabulous weather.

Starlings coming in to roost

The rainbow ends in the sand bank

Exhibiting at the Care & Dementia Show, November 2015

We had a very successful and enjoyable 2 days at the NEC, exhibiting at the Care & Dementia Show.  Thank you to everyone who came to talk to us about our elderly care and dementia landscapes.  It was fabulous to be able to showcase some of our numerous landscape schemes that are specifically for the care sector.

We look forward to working with you in the future.

Planning granted - Sovereign Housing

We have just had planning granted for one of our Sovereign Housing landscape schemes in Burghfield Common, Reading.

Care & Dementia Show, 3-4 November 2015

The Care and Dementia show have just announced the programme for the International Dementia Conference at the NEC.
http://www.careshow.co.uk/Content/International-Dementia-Conference/17/

Come and find us at I24 during your time at the conference.

www.afla.co.uk

We have moved!

AFLA has moved office!  We are now located in the heart of the old city.  Our new contact details are:
Studio 3, 2nd floor
11 St Nicholas Street
Bristol  BS1 1UE

Telephone:  01179250844
Email:  info@afla.co.uk

The fabulous skyline of the old city from our new office ...

Care and Dementia show, Birmingham November 2015

AFLA Ltd will be exhibiting at the Care and Dementia show in November.  Come and find us on stand I24:
http://www.careshow.co.uk/Exhibitor/Afla-Limited

We will be showcasing a variety of our exciting and interesting elderly care and dementia landscape schemes.

Dates for your diary - 3 and 4 November
Where?  - NEC, Birmingham

Top compliance accreditation for AFLA Ltd

AFLA Ltd  is pleased to announce that they have successfully achieved exor accreditation, demonstrating their ability to meet the rigorous pre-qualification requirements within the private and public sectors.

The Bristol based firm recently received accreditation from exor, whose standards are recognised as being amongst the highest in their industry.  

Established in 1997 to supply an efficient, outsourced supply chain service, exor understands that the management of risk is a central issue in the procuring of goods and services, adopting a thorough and robust approach to independently check and validate supplier information. Only suppliers and contractors that can attain and maintain these high standards will gain admission to the approved exor supplier database.

John Kinge, Technical Director of exor said, “Organisations need to be able to ensure that their supply partners are reliable, financially stable and compliant with all relevant legislation. A third party accreditation scheme can be an efficient way in which to manage complex compliance issues such as these.

With robust supplier management in place, the company at the top of the supply chain will have the confidence they need to outsource vital services, which removes the hassle of verification and gives piece of mind that they are adhering to regulation and industry best practice.”

Accreditation is a process in which certification of competency, viability and compliance with legal requirements and current codes of practice is presented.

The exor accreditation scheme assesses, reviews and audits suppliers’ procedures and documentation; suppliers can then be included on a database which demonstrates they have met the highest standards in the market place in procurement risk management. 

SuDS training

Alex completed a SuDS course with CIRIA last week.  New legislation may come into force later in the year which makes SuDS compulsory for new developments.  There are positive cost, amenity, wildlife, water quality and maintenance benefits from the SuDS approach to draining.
http://www.susdrain.org/

Springtime - starlings roosting on the Somerset Levels

A sure sign that spring is almost here.  We went to the RSPB site on the Somerset Levels to catch a glimpse of the starlings roosting, before they disperse for the summer.  We were very lucky indeed.  A beautiful sight. 

http://www.rspb.org.uk/discoverandenjoynature/seenature/reserves/guide/h/hamwall/starling_roost.aspx

Sovereign Housing

New appointments:  We have just started work on a couple of housing estates for Sovereign Housing in Lambourn and Burghfield Common.

Beautiful spring flowers in January

The beautiful winter sunshine and mild weather has brought out some glorious primroses.  We spotted these last week, whilst talking a walk through the historic Anros Vale cemetery in south Bristol.

Exciting prospects for 2015

Happy New Year to all our clients, colleagues and friends.  Here's to a prosperous year ahead.

For AFLA, our year will be one of many exciting activities and opportunities, some of these include: 

• Alex will be attending the Designing SuDS course in Manchester in March
• We will be exhibiting at the Care Show in Birmingham 3-4 November 2015.  http://www.careshow.co.uk/birmingham/ 
• Alex will be completing his Level 2 angling coaching this winter which will allow him to become more involved with coaching and in particular with the Leonard Cheshire Disability Home
• We are collaborating on a Landscape Design competition which is always very enjoyable and stimulating

Sovereign Housing

We have just finished out first piece of landscape design work for Sovereign Housing, for a project based near Basingstoke.

Fishing coaching - Life is not just about work

Alex became a qualified Level 1 angling coach with the Pike Anglers Club of Great Britain in February 2014.  Since then, he has volunteered at a couple of coaching days in Coventry and Farringdon. 

He is also volunteering with Leonard Cheshire Disability and is working with disabled anglers.  This is giving him a very good insight into disabled access at the waterside.  The soft toy pike, named "Gherkin" by a keen child angler, is a brilliant teaching aid
. 

AFLA website updates

We have just finished updating our website with fabulous projects that we have been involved with in the past few months.  Check out our website to find out more:  www.afla.co.uk

Here are some of the projects we've been working on ...

 Bexhill Care Home

Claremont Special School

Fitzwarren Court



Hall Grange wilderness garden



Nutfield House

On site at a care home project near Swindon

Work is progressing nicely at a care home project near Swindon.  In a corner of the site is a forgotten pond, which we are turning into the focal point by making accessible paths and this little bridge over a pinch point.  The bridge acts as a nice eye catcher and provides a good view point directly into the water. We are aiming for a rustic appearance with sweet chestnut rails around the pond, wildflower planting and a resin bound gravel path.

Landscape design proposals prepared for planning

We have prepared landscape design proposals for a planning application for a new brain injury unit at Frenchay Hospital, Bristol.  The landscape design is for a calm, secure garden with an accessible footpath circuit, a variety of seating opportunities and stimulating planting.  We are also including a multi-paved footpath to help with rehabilitation.

Successful renewal of our Exor accreditation

We are pleased to announce that once again we have successfully achieved the renewal of our exor accreditation, demonstrating their ability to meet the rigorous pre-qualification requirements within the private and public sectors.