The Story, The Experience, The Expert Team
Living Roots
The COVID-19 Pandemic hit but propelled this well-established and family-owned event sector specialist company head-on into the commercial building world, learn more about its incredible and unique story here.
In 2019, Better Green designed and built a series of COVID testing stations for Kings College University (KCL) in London and other London Universities.
The operations team at KCL were impressed with Better Green’s ethic, quality, pricing, and overall team site conduct, loyalty and energy.
Due to the experience of Tom Dodson the Operations Director, with over 7 years with industry veterans Unite, it was a natural fit, and the relationship developed.
Tom strengthened Better Green’s association with KCL by conducting a complete fire-stopping survey for the Stamford Street campus. Within four months, the fire-stopping survey was complete and works well underway.
Better Green was then asked to be part of the group that explored the viability of renovation works for the halls of residence. Better Green swiftly conducted a focus group with all key stakeholders, created initial designs, refined final designs, and then built a test unit for final sign off.
Better Green was awarded the contract to re-design and then renovate the halls one phase at a time. Each phase is now on a 6-week cycle to prioritise and minimise student disruption.
Better Green Living is now a full division of the Better Green Group and undertaking projects across 4 KCL sites.
Better Green Living is also project lead for a new restaurant in Canary Wharf, set to open in the late Spring of 2023.
Why Better Green Living?
Events background
We are not an archaic traditional commercial building company.
Our roots are in the large-scale events industry that cross-pollinated into the commercial building arena during COVID, bringing a refreshing, dynamic way of working that perfectly suits live environments.
Collaborators
We collaborate from the design stage with any Estate, Operations, Residents Teams, Students and customers chain to ensure that what you need and expect, is what you receive.
Sustainability & outreach
We are called Better Green for a reason. We have a visible sustainability and outreach manifesto that is consistently updated, with a focus on students and young adults in the UK, Indonesia and Nakuru, Kenya.
Experience is paramount
Within universities, student experience is paramount. We work very closely with the students and student bodies to ensure we never effect their experience during works, but consistently elevate their experience before, during and after we have activated.
In-house
We design and conduct all research and development in-house.
Transparent
We are fully transparent; we never accumulate hidden extras. We are proud of this and why repeat business and recommendation has been the catalyst behind our growth.
Family-owned
The Better Green Group is family owned and operational for over 18 years. Senior Management has over 26 years experience each and worked together on projects for 21 years.
Our crucial team
We look after and retain our staff; staff turnover is low, with 50% of our team working for us for five years or more and 20% for over ten years.
We genuinely care, we pay good rates of pay, we have regular meetings on internal business for every individual in the company, whatever 'level ’ they operate at.
The Expert Team
The BGL team is well-bonded with over 45 experienced, eager, and diverse carpenters, electricians, plumbers, set designers, logistics managers and designers.
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Deborah Parsons
Group CEO – Sustainability & Outreach Director
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Edward Parsons
Co-Founder & Managing Director
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Tom Dodson
Chief Operations Office
Tom Dodson, Chief Operations Officer
Contact Tom
tom@better-green.com
Tom has 28 Years of experience in the hospitality sector, starting his career as a kitchen porter and working his way to his current position of COO, while completing his HNC in Construction Management.
With his background in hospitality, Tom moved into both the operations and construction of hospitality and live site venues. Tom then focused on modular and temporary event spaces, both construction and operations. At one such venue 23 years ago, Tom first met Better Green, and they have worked on projects together ever since.
Tom also moved into the student sector, specialising in refurbishments of modular buildings; this naturally led to Tom working on various projects across all mediums within University estates and campuses working with industry giants such as Unite.
As Tom’s career progressed, he kept close contact with the Better Green Group working on projects as Operations Director for:
Brixton Rooftop, Design My Night’s award-winning ‘Pop up of the Year’ (3 years running and nominated 1 year) a 1500 capacity venue, as well as Drum Award-winning campaign Guinness ‘Raise the Bar’, seeing 550 temporary structures designed, built and rolled out across the UK during COVID plus many other tours and projects of note over the years.
Tom became formally employed as COO of Better Green Living in 2019, rolling out Covid Vaccination and Testing Booths Programme for universities around the UK. Tom has since accelerated the growth of this commercial building division and is now responsible for Kings College University contracts with a staff of 40+ direct reports and contractors.
Tom’s career highlights
Project Director overseeing the implementation of the refurbishment programme of 550+ student flats at Kings College London (KCL) - Current
Principal supplier contact for KCL - Current
Project Director on large-scale fire-stopping programmes - Current
Design, build and operational management of an 80-bed hotel in the Falklands for the Oil and Gas Sector.
Safe and Secure Project Manager for Unite Students. Launching a new safeguarding initiative ensuring 12 halls of residents’ properties across Bristol, creating a safer place for students and staff.
Life Cycle Project Manager for Unite Students refurbishing over 7500 student flats, studios and common rooms.
Head of Operations for Snoozebox, having overall operational management of the mobilisation and running of all temporary event hotels and five worldwide permanent hotels.
Operations Project Director for the supply and installation of 500 bespoke structures across the UK during COVID - Drum Award Winner
Award for pop-up of the year in 2018 - Brixton Rooftop, Operations Director - Pop of the Year Award 3 years running – Design My Night.
“We get a genuine thrill about taking a tired environment and creating a distinctive, safe and high-quality space. This is not like any other commercial building company I have known, my team has a very rare intrinsic community, their energy and comradery seeps into the sites we work within, it is this along with our reliability and efficiencies, that we are welcomed on such prestigious sites such as Kings College University. There is no more I can say other than, we have a huge sense of pride on handover days, and I will personally ensure this always resonates in both client and our site teams. I look forward to speaking to you about your next project, where you can see this all-in action for yourself.”
– Tom Dodson, COO for Better Green Living