I continue to marvel and admire the sheer scale of work being done daily by the thousands of turf professionals and volunteers who spend their time preparing and maintaining sports and amenity landscape facilities here in the UK. 

As mentioned in previous blogs the size and the scale of our industry is impressive and diverse, offering a plethora of opportunities for people who would like to work in this challenging and rewarding industry.

I was pleased recently that the GMA have been conducting a proper and inclusive survey for people working in this industry to have a say on what the GMA should be doing to support, promote and retrain people who chose to come and work in this industry.

Members and non-members were being asked for feedback in the survey, that closed last Wednesday, on what they value and would like to see the GMA do for its members and the wider sector going forwards, by taking part in two surveys - one for individuals working across the sector and one for businesses or suppliers operating in the turf-care industry. 

By gathering data, the GMA say they will look to review its existing benefits to members, as well as what it can offer the sector by looking to better understand what respondents believe to be most valuable and relevant following a year like no other. The GMA also say they are working on its digital offering, with its website due to be relaunched in 2022. 

 
Let’s hope this survey will help us finally move forward as an industry. I personally feel it has been a bit long in coming, and if any of the previous and past surveys results are to go by then we still find ourselves way behind other industries. 

For us to finally move forward and provide new opportunities for better pay and working conditions we really needed everybody who works in our industry to complete this survey - not just a few hundred people. The GMA state they have over 3,500 paid members, so at the very least there should close to that number of respondents. However, as we all know they are thousands more paid and volunteer grounds people working in this industry. 

So I sincerely hope many have taken this opportunity to swamp the GMA with a vast response, providing at least 10,000 voices. We could finally have a proper say about what we see as required for the future to improve the industry we work in.

If this has happened, perhaps then the GMA will be in a better position to offer improved membership services , training and support - or even set up a trade union - to aid employees and help get better pay and working conditions.

We are still a fragmented industry, when it comes to pay, conditions and education. 

We especially need to improve working conditions. I regularly see examples of poor staff accommodation and storage facilities that do not meet official standards. I am sure if you were to ask some head teachers, golf course secretaries and owners to live and work under these conditions, they would think differently.

Also on the machinery front, I still see sheds full of old, tired and inefficient machinery. It is time we began to invest properly to enable our grounds professionals to become more efficient and professional in the way they work. This can only be achieved by good working conditions and respect for the staff employed. Equally, staff may also need to change their habits and become more professional in the way they work and conduct themselves. It is a two-way street and we need to be more flexible and tolerant with one another and take this opportunity to change our industry for the better.