With our Center Parcs housekeepers looking after hundreds of Lodges every day, we’re taking you behind the scenes and introducing you to Deb Hooper as she tells all about her life as a Center Parcs housekeeper and how she likes to put smiles on our guest’s faces.
Deb’s Center Parcs story
“I started my job as a housekeeper at Center Parcs on October 14, 2011. Before this I spent 16 years working in a nursing home. In the past few years, I have moved from looking after the Executive Lodges to now looking after the Exclusive Lodges.”
“I work on rota, which means I work on days around arrival and departure days. On a typical day at work, I meet my friends in the car park and we all walk up to the ‘bucket room’, where we collect all the things we will need to do a day of housekeeping. I provide the daily maid service that comes with an Exclusive Lodge so a typical day consists of the general cleaning and tidying of the Lodges and having a daily interaction with guests.”
“I enjoy being able to talk to guests, however if they’re not in we leave a slip or a message on the chalkboard so they know we’ve been to clean their Lodge.”
Memorable moments
We asked Deb what some of her most memorable moments have been while at Center Parcs. Deb says: “I recently met a little girl called Allison, who was staying in one of our adapted Lodges. She had a really good wheelchair with a radio and music player on. When I came to their Lodge, I used to interact with her and make her smile.”
“I made her a pom-pom bug which had wobbly eyes and I attached a piece of ribbon around it so I could attach it to her wheelchair. When I meet guests such as Allison it makes my job much more worthwhile.”
Special added extras
A perk of being a Center Parcs employee is being able to surprise and delight our guests, which at times can be a truly heart-warming experience. We were told that Deb does so many surprise and delights, that there were too many to mention. Recently, Deb has left colouring and activity packs, made towel animals, set up games, and made sleeping bag teddies for our guests.
We asked Deb what her favourite surprise and delight she had delivered was and, after thinking of the many that were in her mind, she says: “Recently we made a joint team effort to surprise a couple who were celebrating a golden wedding anniversary. We decorated their Lodge and drew a picture on their chalkboard. It was nice to work as a team to decorate their Lodge and the couple weren’t expecting it.”
Talking of other special added extras, Deb says: “I particularly love Christmas time at Center Parcs. A few friends and I like to dress up as elves, which is always a laugh as we like to cause mischief!”
Looking to follow in Deb’s footsteps?
We could tell by talking to Deb that she enjoyed her job and loved working at Sherwood Forest. So we asked Deb what advice she would give to anyone thinking of starting a career in housekeeping at Center Parcs. She says: “Just go for it – it will be the best thing you’ll ever do!”
She adds: “Center Parcs look after their staff so well and we get rewarded throughout the year. It’s also great if you want to further your career; there are so many opportunities.”
Convinced? If like Deb, you would like to start a career at Center Parcs, check out our careers page on our website or on our dedicated Facebook and Twitter pages.
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