What we learned: optimising workplace and facilities management processes with SFG20

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On 22 January, the National Audit Office (NAO) published a report featuring IWFM input on the UK Government’s building maintenance backlog, which amounts to a cost of at least £49 billion. The negative impact goes beyond cost, including reduced Government productivity and hampered public service delivery. In addition, the report stated how poor property conditions imperil civil service productivity, staff retention and the ability to meet sustainability targets.

Days later, IWFM Rising FMs and Home Counties Region met with the workplace and facilities management community (WFM) to discover the latest compliance trends and developments at the in-person event ‘SFG20: what you need to know to optimise workplace and facilities management processes’. SFG20 is a resource for WFM professionals, offering trustworthy and up-to-date guidelines for building services maintenance.

The NAO report outlined the importance of maintenance, a topic that IWFM and SFG20, part of the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA), have produced research on individually and collaboratively. Last May, IWFM published a joint statement on the definition of ‘statutory’ when working to achieve statutory compliance.

The publication noted that the lack of a common methodology for compiling specifications for statutory inspections allows for great variability in successfully complying with statutory requirements, at times resulting in properties potentially being non-compliant from a statutory inspection perspective. 

IWFM has published guidance across this area, including Next generation maintenance: challenges and opportunities. In 2025, IWFM will publish new and updated Good Practice Guides focusing on this area, which has seen collaboration from across the public and private sector.

The event hosts would like to thank The Chartered Institute of Marketing for hosting, SFG20 representatives for providing incisive insight, all attendees and the teams who worked to make the occasion a success.

To discover more, access Facilitate’s latest compliance content.