‘They feel so worthless’: Queen of Clean Lynsey Crombie on NHS Property Services cleaners

The Queen of Clean also met a number of reception staff, a blast from the past for the cleaner who once worked on reception for the NHS herself.

“I met with the ladies on reception and it was really interesting to find out how their job role has developed since COVID,” she said.

“They’ve got a screen up. They’ve got their masks on. They can’t even share a pen. You’ve got elderly people coming in that are sort of hard of hearing, and they’re literally shouting at them. So, their job is something much more intense than it was pre-COVID.

“You know, years ago, I worked on reception for the NHS and the abuse you get.

“People come in they shout at you, they demand information, they don’t leave until they’ve got it. It’s a really, really tough position. Imagine doing that job in the thick of COVID, when people are panicking and they’re worried they’ve got symptoms.

“Just imagine the stress they would have been under.

“I spoke to one of the ladies, she was just hilarious, she had so much personality. She was infectious. I can imagine going into the surgery, feeling a bit like s*** being and greeted by her would just lift your spirits.

“When you go into the hospital and you don’t feel well, that reception person is the one that’s breaking down those boundaries, making you feel like there is a place for you there.”

Speaking on the intense cleaning regulations, even behind reception, Lynsey said: “Desk sharing has gone completely.

“As soon as they’ve answered the phone they have to disinfect the phone with wipes straight away.”

The Queen of Clean made a passionate plea for pay rises across the NHS, not just for medical professionals.

She said: “You know, the nurses and the doctors, are wanting pay rise which is completely understandable, but come on, everybody that worked in the NHS and put themselves on that frontline in the pandemic deserves the same treatment.

“Without these people, the NHS could not carry on. The doctors can’t go in that surgery if it’s not clean. You know, these people are the heart of the NHS.”