Bristol playtime is restored thanks to 300+ strong Landmark volunteer group

340 employees from across Landmark recently joined forces with Splash Projects and Learning Partnership West (LPW) to breathe new life into adventure playgrounds in two of Bristol’s most deprived neighbourhoods.  St Pauls and Southmead Adventure Playgrounds are situated in some of the city’s most densely urbanised areas, and much of the playground equipment was old, worn-out and in desperate need of replacement.

To get the job done, our 300+ strong team of Landmarkers took to work over two cold wet days in November on repairing the grounds, as well as restoring and installing new play equipment, creating fun and safe environments for children and families to play.

Julia Lovell, Landmark’s HR Director, shared her experiences from the day:

“When the coach arrived at the playground site in St Pauls we were greeted by the teams from Splash and LPW who briefed us on what we needed to achieve over two days.

“We were put into teams to focus on each section and joined forces to dig, paint, build and refurbish the existing facilities.  My team of twelve were responsible for installing a new clatter bridge, platform and a slide.  Although it was hard work there was a fantastic atmosphere of camaraderie, and while it might have been a bit slippery and muddy underfoot, it was great to see that the weather didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits.” 

Landmark’s Commercial Director Greg Bryce, was at the Southmead site, and his team was challenged to renovate the outdoor classrooms and create a new picnic area:

“The whole team was energised by the lively atmosphere, spurred on by working on a real life social project. It’s been incredibly rewarding to know that every single one of us played a vital role in providing a safe environment  for children to get outdoors, keep fit, develop their social skills and let their imaginations run wild. We’re proud that the two adventure parks will continue to provide a source of creative development to local families well into the future.”

The handover was completed on the evening of Thursday, 27^th November with Landmark’s CEO Mark Milner, along with Ashley Ward Councillors Rob Telford & Gus Hoyt, Nicola Burcham (CEO LPW), and Colin Robertson (Project Director, Splash Projects).

Mark Milner, CEO of Landmark commented: “We wanted to help LPW completely renovate and provide new activities at the St Pauls and Southmead sites. Our staff travelled from across the country to make this happen; from London, Brighton, Reading, Godalming, Exeter, the North East and North West. They were all given time off from their day jobs to put on their overalls and get stuck in, from painting and cleaning through to general repairs. It really was a fantastic effort from all involved.”

Landmark revolutionises Phase 1 environmental assessments with Envirocheck Analysis mobile app

·         New mobile app for Apple and Android devices enables full digitisation of Phase 1 environmental site assessments

·         Remote access to current maps, aerial photography and potential environmental risks now available whilst conducting a physical site walkover

·         Geo-locating technology can pinpoint specific site features and take accurate measurements

·         Synchronises information from site walkover back to the office, so no need to write- up notes

We are pleased to confirm the official launch of Envirocheck Analysis mobile app: a brand new mobile app for Apple and Android devices that enables environmental consultants and other land and property professionals to access digital mapping and environmental data whilst undertaking site walkovers for Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessments.

Consultants can digitally analyse current and historical maps, aerial photography and environmental data on their PCs using Envirocheck Analysis,  and now using the free-to-download mobile app they can view these complete workings (including mapping, photography, user-drawn features and environmental data analysis) whilst out onsite. 

Using built-in GPS and geo-locating technology, precise measurements are also recorded by the app, providing accurate reporting of key site features. The ability to synchronise this new information back to Envirocheck Analysis in the office, including digital notes, photos and videos captured on the mobile app, removes the need to manually collate and type up notes and is a real time-saver. 

One of the first clients to use the Envirocheck Analysis mobile app is Land Quality Management's Paul Nathanail, he comments: “In property transactions time is money. The Envirocheck Analysis mobile app represents a step-change in the way site walkover information is captured and transmitted back to the office. Interpretation and reporting can begin as soon as the visit is finished. Decisions can be made quicker; deals will happen and not be stalled.”

Mark Burnard, Senior Product Manager at Landmark Information Group, adds: “With Envirocheck Analysis and the new mobile app, we’re taking the environmental site assessment process from being a paper-based task to a fully digital process.  The app provides users with mapping, data, information-capture tools and unsurpassable connectivity immediately at their fingertips.  It digitises the entire data collection and analysis process for Phase 1 environmental site assessments, removing the need to manually write-up notes, measure site details or rekey data on returning to the office.  Now, all site walkover notes are instantly ‘synced’ back to the Envirocheck Analysis desktop, streamlining the reporting process for all involved.”

Concludes Mark Burnard: “The launch of the Envirocheck Analysis mobile app is an important step forward in delivering a truly mobile environmental analysis solution.  By having access to data, map layers and notes in one place, consultants can now complete a site walkover with just a smartphone in their hand.  It’s a huge time-saver, delivers enhanced accuracy and ultimately will help provide time, cost and efficiency savings for both our current customers and new ones too.”

For more information on Envirocheck Analysis and the Envirocheck Analysis mobile app, visit www.envirocheckanalysis.co.uk, telephone 0844 844 9952 or email customerservice@envirocheck.co.uk.   

Charitable Agility

A blog from Jonathan Eversett, Senior Systems Analyst at Landmark Information Group:

"The company I work for is big on Corporate Social Responsibility, so over two days last week everyone at Landmark Information Group had the opportunity to do a day’s work for a charity to improve two playgrounds in Bristol. 

In order to make sure we could still have a business operating over the course of the build, we were divided into four groups i.e. one group for each site for each day, where a group consisted of roughly 75 people, and each site had eight different activities. Our organisers engaged a company called Splash Projects who specialise in running team building events and the design for the parks had been done with a great deal of input from the children who use them.

Ok, so what does this have to do with Agile? Well, like many things in life, it’s there if you look for it.

Team sizes ranged from four to thirteen people from Landmark, so not always the optimum Scrum team size, and one member of the Splash team with a member of staff from the charity on-hand all day too, so in agile terms we ended up with pretty good representations of Scrum in most teams. Landmark employees became the Development Team, as we were responsible for the creation of the product; the Splash guys billed themselves as Project Managers and they certainly do have those skills, however looking at how they worked with us then it is clear to me that they were the teams’ Scrum Masters. The staff members from the charity were our Product Owners and the children who has designed the new play park and who turned up after school to check on our progress and help clear up, were our stakeholders.

The “Scrum Masters” had the plans (i.e. the Sprint Goal), which they shared with us, and explained the priorities attached to the various tasks to ensure that the job would be completed on time, with the most important work being done first. The Sprint Goal was to complete the slide section which meant completing the bridge which connected a raised platform to the main walkway, finishing the platform and attaching the slide. 

In addition to these high level goals we had to ensure that we implemented specific business rules too, for example when adding railings to the platform we had to ensure they were between 25-89mm apart with a gap at the bottom of 25mm. I was in two minds whether this role was Scrum Master or Product Owner and I finally decided that the guys from Splash were fulfilling the Scrum Master role for two reasons. Firstly, they were ensuring that we followed the process, which in this case was the plan for the slide and to ensure that we met an acceptable definition of Done, but secondly, and crucially, they told us what we needed to do but did not tell us how we should do it. Although advice was given when requested.

Our Development Team were made of women and men from different offices so although we knew each other, few of us had worked closely together but good collaboration and communication would play a key part in the success of the project. Plenty of the team had experience of these kind of DIY projects and these multi-skilled developers were able to turn their hands to a wide variety of tasks. 

Those with slightly more limited skills were able to contribute by picking up new skills and ensuring that the batteries for the drills were kept charged up or bringing the building materials to the build site thereby ensuring the site was kept tidy and that a smooth flow of work could be maintained. As a team we collaborated very effectively to ensure we met our goal but we also had to collaborate with other teams on the site as some of the tools had to be shared across teams and success was judged on the overall site not on any one project.

For me, the most rewarding aspect of the day was that we were allowed to own the problem we were tackling. We had plenty of guidance and coaching from our “Scrum Master” in terms of ensuring we met of Definition of Done, and fulfilled all the necessary requirements. We were told that the old slide needed to be demolished to make space, and we that needed to keep the metal sheet to re-use on the new one BUT our self-organising team had to work out how to reinstall the slide against the new platform which had a different height and orientation to the old one. 

On several occasions we had to adapt the plan in the light of the real world situation such as digging a hole to ensure the large slide still fitted. Even when digging the hole we initially expected earth and stones but immediately hit some previously forgotten rubber matting placed years before and long since overgrown so we had to work out the most efficient way of removing it – it turns out that shovels won’t work but secateurs do a great job!

So, we had a Goal and a Backlog of requirements, a Development Team, a Scrum Master and Product Owner and a whole load of eager stakeholders - plus two days to do something genuinely worthwhile. 

While I can’t say this is the perfect metaphor for Agile we had all the elements for a successful collaboration to deliver a meaningful project and above all the team took the opportunity to own the build and adapt the plan to the conditions on the ground in a truly agile fashion. All in all it was a great day!"

Flood Defence Spending: BBC Radio Five Live

In advance of the Flood Defence Expo (4-5 December, London Excel), Mary Dhonau, chief executive of the Know Your Flood Risk campaign was invited as a guest on to BBC Radio Five Live's Breakfast show to discuss today's news regarding a £2.3bn investment in flood defences.

In an interview with Adam Parsons, Mary Dhonau discusses what the £2.3bn investment will mean for certain regions of the UK, which has been announced by the Treasury as part of the 2014 National Infrastructure Plan.

The full interview can be listened to using the BBC Five Live 'listen again' feature, during the next four weeks: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04sv04v - (click to 01:49:00)

Mary Dhonau OBE

For more details regarding the Treasury's announcement, click here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-30282701

For more details regarding the Know Your Flood Risk Campaign, or to access a free Flood Resilience Guide, visit: http://www.knowyourfloodrisk.co.uk/

What Is It Like To Flood?

On the 4th and 5^th of December, the Flood Defence & Prevention Expo presents a range of solutions to widespread flooding problems from many of the UK’s leading flood prevention companies and experts.  The two day-event, which is taking place at the Excel Centre in London, is also hosting an extensive seminar and workshop programme to highlight new, cost-effective ways to help prevent and manage floods.

Mary Dhonau OBE, Chief Executive of the ‘Know Your Flood Risk’ campaign – which is supported by Landmark Information Group – will be speaking at the event.   During the Flood Defence Expo, Mary will be discussing what it's like to flood, how to plan, prepare and mitigate for it. 

Mary has been flooded herself on many occasions and has extensive experience in supporting and advising the victims of flooding during their recovery.

Mary Dhonau OBE

Explains Mary: “Being flooded is an appalling experience! The presentation will describe what individuals who do flood have to go through and will go on to give examples of how to plan, prepare, mitigate and become resilient to being flooded. I will also be urging everyone to download a copy of Know Your Flood Risk’s free Guide to Flood Resilience, which is the best guide of its type in the country for providing practical, hands-on advice to identifying your risk, through to putting measures in place to resist and overcome future floods from impacting your lives.”

Mary has represented the ‘voice of the flood victim’ for many years and is affectionately known as `Mary Queen of Floods`. She was awarded an OBE for services to the environment in the Queen`s Birthday Honours list in 2009.

In addition to her role as Chief Executive of Know Your Flood Risk, Mary also chairs the Flood Protection Group for the Property Care Association, and is a member of the Regional Flood and Coastal committee for Anglian Northern.   She also runs a consultancy (MD Associates) specialising in raising awareness of flood risk, how to militate against it and recover from it.

Mary’s presentation takes place on Thursday 4 December @ 14:00 in Seminar Hall Three.

To find out more about the Flood Defence Expo or to book tickets to attend, visit http://www.flooddefenceexpo.co.uk/.

Information Management: Taking on the Ebola Outbreak

Back in 2012, Landmark launched a partnership with the charity, MapAction, which maps life-saving information about disaster situations so aid agencies can target relief efforts effectively.

The partnership continues today and as well as being a nominated charity, members of the Landmark team volunteer their services when their specialist help is needed.  For almost a decade, Darren Connaghan, a GIS specialist at Argyll Environmental Ltd, which is part of Landmark Information Group, has played an active role with MapAction and has been deployed to support field teams in locations such as Kenya, Haiti and the Philippines.

His latest deployment has taken him to Africa, where he was part of the MapAction team in its role in managing data and information for the Ebola Operation Centre in Monrovia. 

As Darren explains, there is a dearth of information managers prepared to travel to the region and overall poor communication networks in the area, therefore the role MapAction plays in collating data across Liberia, ensures that everyone involved in the UN's Ebola response mission is up to date with the very latest, accurate information related to the aid programme:

Darren Connaghan

“The geographical scope of the Ebola outbreak is vast, covering three countries - Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea - and it has already claimed thousands of lives. MapAction's mapped situational analysis helps make the response as targeted and effective as possible, by bringing together, mapping and information management specialists to help coordinate the communications in one place.

In this particular deployment, we were asked by the UNDAC (UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination) team to fly to Liberia and support them with their information management and mapping needs. A team of three were initially deployed and I joined them in late September for a two week period, where I worked from the main Ebola Operation Centre in Monrovia. 

Working alongside government departments, national departments, military and NGOs, the centre is a hub where all the organisation of the response mission takes place.  We talk to all the aid agencies to find out what data they need, as well as work closely with the Liberian Institute of Statistics' GIS department and the US military to build a picture of what the mission looks like.

In Liberia, radio and telephone communications are generally poor as are the road networks so much of the information regarding what has been undertaken in individual locations was predominantly verbal.  This, by its very nature, is difficult to plot, manage and track and the overall accuracy of data diminishes as it gets passed from person to person, so cannot be fully relied on.

Instead, MapAction is able to coordinate the mapping of critical situational information so that all agencies involved have a clear understanding on what is happening in each and every location, at any time. 

"Aid in the wrong place is no aid at all"

“MapAction deployment model is based on self-sufficiency. We arrive with all equipment required such as laptop, printer, networking kit, paper and in some deployments, even a small generator as without power, we can't function for long.

I now have another four week deployment in Africa throughout November, during which time I will be working on extending the reach of information managers across the three affected countries advising on GIS, mapping and product strategy for UNMEER (IN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response).

As I see it, with the correct right level of information management in place, you avoid duplicating efforts, resources can be designated correctly, and everyone involved in the mission has a clear and current view on who is carrying out what actions and where, removing uncertainty.

This is also known as 3W (who, what and where)

Supporting MapAction enables me to utilise my GIS expertise in some of the most challenging emergencies that we face today in the world. I am proud to be supporting MapAction in this deployment and in doing my bit towards halting this deadly disease in its tracks."

http://www.mapaction.org/

Brownfield Gets The Green Light

With the Government issuing new guidance to councils regarding the use of Local Plans to safeguard against ‘urban sprawl’ on green areas surrounding towns and cities, we have seen a swathe of news related to the availability of brownfield sites that are prime (or already set) for future redevelopment.

The Homes and Communities Agency has said that councils will play a key role in highlighting appropriate brownfield land, and as such want to see permissions in place for homes on over 90% of suitable brownfield land by 2020. This could potentially create up to 200,000 new homes whilst at the same time also protect our green belt land.

According to a recent survey by property consultancy Daniel Watney, their data indicates that approximately 25,000 acres of brownfield land currently exists across the UK, which could be utilised for around 466,000 new homes.   This was based on 45% of council data, meaning that there could potentially be land for up to a million homes if all council land was taken into consideration.

We are already seeing industry land owners starting to take into account their land use, with National Grid pledging to free-up unused industrial land for redevelopment. 24 sites have already been earmarked for building, which includes removing disused gasometers. It is estimated that in the first 10 locations alone, approximately 7,000 properties could be developed across 84 acres of brownfield land.

Here at Landmark, we have seen this focus on brownfield growing over the past 18-months, as more and more organisations work together on identifying ways of remediating brownfield plots and rejuvenating them back into local communities.

Our environmental data and historical maps are able to provide a clear picture of exactly how the land has been used through the years, enabling thorough site assessments to be conducted so the correct remediation can take place prior to development.  

Recent enhancements to our Envirocheck Analysis tool give the ability to now see historical land use of a site overlaid with present hazards and environmental data.  This gives the ability to view potential sources, pathways and receptors together to gain a more comprehensive understanding of risk on a site and to execute a better phase 1 report. 

As such, brownfield land should not be feared for what might lie beneath the surface, but instead it is an opportunity for land that may have been affected by industrial or commercial usage in the past to be given a new lease of life, for future generations and communities.

Envirocheck Analysis - reveals the hidden secrets of an area or plot of land