Black & White Facilities / Service brief
Workplace Hosts
A workplace host needs a practical task list for shared areas and a clear route to other service teams. Facilities managers can use attendance, meeting demand and recurring user questions to define where support is needed, without making the role responsible for every request.
Overview
Identify the spaces and users experiencing service gaps and what should improve. Include changes in occupancy or use so the host brief is based on the present workplace rather than an inherited routine.
Our full service catalogue, including every individual service, is available across every listed sector and location. For one site or several, we agree the scope, access and programme around the buildings concerned.
What the service can include
Workplace inspections, room readiness, user guidance and coordination with reception, catering, cleaning and facilities can be included. Distinguish tasks completed by the host from referrals, with records showing repeated problems and actions awaiting attention.
What to consider
Give the host current building information and defined decision rights. Coordination does not transfer technical, employment or tenancy authority. Establish the urgent escalation route and appropriate treatment of personal details received through user requests.
The instruction sets out our host duties and the work retained by the premises team. Linked repairs and specialist assistance need separate scopes, with responsibility for arranging them and the resulting records clearly allocated.
Before we visit
Share floor layouts, service contacts, meeting patterns and frequent questions. Establish readiness expectations and busy-period priorities, then agree the host's activity list and how faults, changes and feedback reach the appropriate team.
How we help
We prepare the role, local information and working routine around agreed transfer points. Hosts follow the service priorities and refer issues to their owners. Handover preserves follow-up actions and relevant changes that users need to understand.
Consistent reporting across hosted workplaces should retain the local contacts and operating conditions. Keep each action linked to the correct building or service area, with a decision route for matters extending beyond that location.
What affects cost and timing
Workplace size, user demand, service points and hours affect the proposal. Allow realistic travel and priorities where a host covers several areas, and distinguish coordination from specialist repairs or services requiring their own staffing.
Explain which workplace activities must continue and when demand is critical. Any phasing, extra access arrangements or reports needed by management should be accounted for in the planned service and its cost.
Sector applications
In Offices, hosts work around staff and visitor use; Retail requires trading and deliveries to be considered. Guest spaces and food operations shape Hospitality, while education needs teaching reflected in access arrangements. The wider service offering supports all sectors, based on the activities at each premises.
Local coverage
Host-service briefs can cover Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, County Durham and Tees Valley. Included locations range from Berwick-upon-Tweed, Alnwick, Morpeth and Hexham to Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland, Durham, Darlington, Hartlepool, Stockton-on-Tees and Middlesbrough; see the all locations directory.
Supply the contact and working conditions for every hosted location. A common role description still needs the building differences recorded so local requirements remain clear.
Frequently asked questions
Is a workplace host the same as a receptionist?
A host may coordinate services across shared areas, connecting with reception but carrying a different activity list. Specify the duties rather than relying on either title.
Can hosts repair equipment?
Assign repairs only where the task is expressly within scope and the required competence. Refer other defects through the established technical contact.
How are competing requests prioritised?
The workplace manager should agree the order of priorities and escalation rules, giving the host a consistent basis for handling competing demand.
Can hosts support hybrid workplaces?
Attendance and meeting patterns can inform a hybrid workplace brief, identifying readiness work and the places where assistance will be most useful.
Knowledge and guidance
Planning a recurring routine can draw on setting maintenance frequencies. Consult Official guidance for the relevant information-handling context and explore further resources in the Knowledge Centre.
Related services and your next step
Hosting can connect Workplace and Occupant Services with Occupant Support. Associated physical tasks may require maintenance or Minor Works; the services and projects directories set out the broader offering.
Contact Black & White Facilities with the shared spaces, support needs and information already available. Explain the desired workplace outcome and restrictions so the host role and next step can be defined.
Discuss the scope
Tell us what needs attention.
Share the site, the issue and any access requirements so we can discuss the next step.