2021 | Onward and Upward

2020 has been quite a year.

• The UK officially left the EU.
• The USA elected a new President.
• One of the most talked about Royal Princes resigned his royal duties to make a new life abroad.
• The whole world has battled with a new, life-rattling pandemic.

Closer to home, and remaining centred on the primary focal point of 2020, we had to all adapt our lives to ride out the pressures and changes brought about by COVID-19.

The last nine months feel somewhat like a blur – like we have starred in our own fictitious movie – watching our shops, theatres, streets, and sometimes schools empty and our offices reduce, or even lose the staff within them.

Some have not been so lucky this year. Our thoughts and hearts go out to those adversely affected by the virus.

Here at HCS, we are grateful to look back on 2020 and see that our team remained in good health, and we have continued to operate successfully during the ups and downs.

Following a period of furlough, our full team reunited – albeit in a different fashion. Our weekly team meetings transferred to a virtual meeting room rather than in the office, with an addition of weekly team activities to retain our sense of togetherness, including: ‘show and tell’, ‘Who’s baby photo is this?’ and true or false quiz games, to name a few.

We survived the camera malfunctions with quick-minded surveyors drawing our non-visible team members (Dan’s portrait of Christmas-ready Daisy below), and forget the amount of times we muttered, “You’re on mute!”

We have worked together to keep spirits up, welcome enquiries in and deliver our instructions as professionally as ever. 2020 has provided a record-breaking year for residential pre-acquisition surveys along with many new projects, expert reports, valuations, architectural design schemes and structural engineering projects.

We have participated in the events that remained possible, such hosting a Brentwood Chamber of Commerce Meet the Members night in February, taking part in the SNAP Charity 26th Year celebration relay, Essex Season Finder (70 mile bike ride), and we were privileged to sponsor a nutcracker in the Brentwood Borough Council Christmas Nutcracker Trial.

We celebrated the success of Spencer achieving Associate RICS membership and Cally joining the executive committee of the Brentwood Chamber of Commerce. We welcomed new staff members Daisy into our administration team and Michael into the surveying team. Both enthusiastic, professional, and fabulous additions to the HCS family.

2021 is in sight, with some remaining COVID uncertainty but also much positivity. We at HCS welcome the Christmas break and New Year with open arms, excited to see what lies ahead.

From our HCS family to you and yours, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy & Healthy 2021. As our new office mugs tell us, let’s take 2021 like we take our tea, ‘However it comes’… even if sometimes it’s not a tea at all – it’s a messy hot chocolate!