Tag Archives: Kent

We’re in the Press – Removals Firm’s Great Reputation

9 January 2016 Colin Batt Removals Comment

Happy New Year from all of us at Colin Batt Removals Firm and we hope you had a great Christmas. While you were enjoying some well earned time off you may have sat down with the Kentish Express on Christmas Eve and seen a great article on us. We’re very excited that the Kentish Express journalists wanted to write a piece on us and found our removals firm story interesting.

We’re really proud of our history and our reputation. We have worked hard to grow and nurture this from the very first day that Colin Batt started the Company back in 1978. We have grown a lot since those early days but the Removals Firm is still family owned by Simon Batt and now covers house removals, piano moves, storage and document archive. In fact, we have a new and expanded store on Maidstone Road in Ashford, Kent.

If you missed the article or didn’t get a copy of the Kentish Express here is a copy of the great editorial.

The Removals Firm that knows Reputation is Key

By Aiden Barlow abarlow@thekmgroup.co.uk @aidanbarlowKM

An RAF Typhoon fighter pilot turned businessman says business is booming after his removals firm completed the purchase of new premises.

Simon Batt, 39, took over Colin Batt Removals from his father just over three years ago alongside childhood friend Andrew Urquhart.

As a Royal Air Force pilot and father of one he is keeping alive the family business that his father started in Challock in 1978.

The company originally prided itself on being one of the best at moving musical instruments such as pianos and has even carried out work for the Royal Household and moved Beethoven’s piano across Europe.

But now Mr Batt says things are really moving after he took over the Move-It Storage Warehouse in Maidstone Road off the A20.

He said: “We have pretty much doubled our workforce and completed our move to the new location. So we’re really pleased with the progress, especially given the growth of the business even when the economy has been fairly stagnant.

“My father started the business, but my passion while I was growing up was always for flying. I met Andrew in the RAF Air Cadets as youngsters and we’ve been friends ever since.

“We thought it would be a good idea to work together here with him managing the business day to day while I finish my career in the RAF.

“We’re very lucky that my father built such a great company with a great reputation. He started it as a piano-moving business on his own with a van.

“It included for the Spencer family and later for Royals including Prince Charles.”

He said the business grew such a big reputation that musical performers like Duran Duran and Elton John also used the company’s services.

But the greatest honour was perhaps moving Beethoven’s famous piano from a museum in Hungary to tour Europe.

Mr Batt said: “It is insured for about £7 million, but it is 175 years old so it is really priceless.

“Moving it was a fantastic accolade for the business and we’re all really proud of it.”

His friend Andrew had left the Air Training Corps to pursue a golfing career.

He said: “I came on board to help push the company forward, so when we took over the Move-It site it presented a big opportunity and we had to grab it with both hands.”

For more information, visit www.colinbattremovals.co.uk

House removals

Charity Walk for Pilgrims Hospice

15 December 2015 Colin Batt Removals Comment

Congratulations to our Removals Office Manager, Emily Martin. She has recently completed a moonlight charity walk around the city of Canterbury, Kent to raise money for the Pilgrims Hospice. Emily completed the 3km charity walk in under 40 minutes and helped raise £16,000 so far for the Pilgrims Hospice.

Night Charity Walk

Emily started the charity walk with over 800 people dressed in bright fluorescent colours and some even had fairy lights on. Moving from Dane John Gardens the route passed Fenwicks, took in Canterbury Cathedral, Kings School and the Marlowe Theatre, loitered at the Canterbury Tales before finishing where it all began.

Pilgrims Hospice

The Pilgrims Hospices provide end of life care across Kent at sites in Canterbury, Ashford and Thanet. This vital care is provided free of charge to some of the neediest and vulnerable in our society. Over 2300 people are referred to the Hospice every year to help them and their families deal with their life-limiting illnesses.

It costs £20 an hour to provide care for one person and we are elated that the moonlight walk has contributed to approximately 800 hours of nursing care. Overall the Pilgrims Hospices needs to raise in excess of £12 million a year to continue providing services across east Kent. Over 80p in every £1 raised is spent on patient care, which for the those facing incurable illness is priceless support.

Donate

You can help by donating or raising money through many ways. Pilgrims Hospices organises its own series of fundraising events throughout the year and these include sponsored cycle rides, night time themed walks, cake baking, bonded places in marathons and events for young people. These are all described on the Pilgrims Hospice website. Alternatively, you can donate any unwanted furniture, books or clothes to one of the Pilgrims’ 34 shops that are located across east Kent.

With everyone’s help, the priceless services that Pilgrims Hospice deliver for the people of Kent can continue and remain free to patients. Well done to Emily for supporting this truly worthy cause and for completing the moonlight walk. We wish the Pilgrims Hospice well and thank them for supporting our local community. To learn more about supporting or donating to Pilgrims Hospice check out their website – http://www.pilgrimshospices.org.

Company News

Meet Our New Office Manager

3 December 2015 Colin Batt Removals Comment

A very warm welcome to Emily Martin, our newest recruit to the Colin Batt Removals Team. She takes over the removals Office Manager role, running the day to day operations and administration from our site in Ashford, Kent. Emily will most likely be the first person you speak to when you call the office to discuss your house or piano move. Please give her a nice friendly welcome next time you ring.

Removals Office Manager in Training!

Emily graduated University in 2011 with a degree in Business and English from Canterbury Christ Church University. Since graduating Emily has primarily worked in customer facing roles, whether this may be dealing with the general consumer or corporate clients. This education and business background means she is perfectly placed to take over as our removals office manager.

Emily has a good understanding of how to adapt and attend to each customer’s unique moving needs. She is all too aware that even the best laid plans do not always go as intended, be that a change in the completion date or delayed exchange. It is how we handle these situations, by working through these issues with you, that set us apart from the competition.

Customer Service is Key

Emily is passionate about delivering customer service and nothing but the best will do. This aligns with our company motto “Where Service is Key”. Emily is determined that the whole team do all they can to achieve the best service for each customer. Emily knows that it takes more than just moving belongings carefully from one house to another to deliver good service. It takes a positive attitude, good communication and a drive to go that extra mile to really achieve excellent and memorable service.

Emily joins a great team and will be a real asset to Colin Batt Removals as our office manager. Her unique skills, experience and great customer service will help us all deliver you a superior and stress-free removal experience, from the first phone call to the last box moved. Welcome Emily, we look forward to working with you.

Property News

Thinking of Moving Home to Wye?

15 September 2015 Colin Batt Removals Comment

Thinking of moving home? Have you checked out Wye in Kent or the surrounding villages? Wye is a great medieval village on the outskirts of Ashford in the fold of the picturesque North Downs. In 2013 Wye was voted the third best place to live in the country by the Sunday Times and you may have seen the village in the TV series Perfect Village.

The village cum town is quintessentially British, with a farmers market twice a month. At Christmas you can also enjoy a street party and in the summer take walks along the Devils Kneading Trough.

Wye History

Wye has been an important crossing in Kent for centuries lying on the Pilgrims’ Way. The Romans built a settlement at the fording point of the River Stour on their road between Canterbury and Hastings. The village grew a meeting point and resting place for the weary medieval travellers. Since then the village has grown and now the travellers are mainly commuters.

Wye Properties

Like many of the villages in Kent, Wye boasts some beautiful houses, check out the medieval houses on Bridge Street. In fact in Wye you can find almost any type of property you fancy, from Georgian to 60s.

Transport Links

The train station allows you to get to Canterbury in 15 min and Ashford in a mere 6 min away, you can also reach London by train in 90min. By road Canterbury is only 12 miles away with the coast, Maidstone and London easily accessible from the M2 and M20.

Wye Schools

If you are looking for a primary school Lady Joanna Thornhill’s is graded as ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted as is Challock Primary School, which is only a few miles away. For secondary schools Highworth (Girls) in Ashford and Canterbury’s Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys and Barton Court Grammar are all also graded as ‘outstanding’.

Activities

Enjoy a walk along the North Downs and enjoy the views from the Devil’s Kneeding Trough or the Wye Chalk Crown. Further afield you have some great golf courses in Ashford or check out Chart Hills Golf Club in Biddenden. After all of this you might want to refresh yourself with a meal or a drink in the Tickled Trout or the New Flying Horse Inn.

House removals

Thinking of Moving to Maidstone?

27 March 2015 Colin Batt Removals Comment

Maidstone has much to offer being situated in the heart of Kent and only a stones throw from London as well as the coast. It is surrounded by some of the most picturesque villages in the South-East, without the hustle and bustle of some other commuter cities.

Maidstone is the administrative centre of Kent but surprisingly only has a population of 140,000 people. Sought-after areas of the town include Loose and Mote Park and there are several popular villages nearby such as Bearsted and Aylesford. The River Medway provides a beautiful back drop for the town which still has some wonderfully historic parts.

Maidstone House Prices

House prices in Maidstone have risen by 5.96% in the last year, according to Zoopla, with the average price paid for all properties being £282,904. This makes Maidstone really good value when you compare it to other commuter areas such as Surrey. For instance, the average price for a detached property in Maidstone is £446,433 whereas in Surrey the cost is £812,407.

One of Maidstone’s main draws for home buyers is education, with great schooling in and around the town. Several schools have an Ofsted grading of outstanding, including St Michael’s Church of England Infant School, Valley Park School and Maidstone Grammar School for Boys and Girls. Check out all the school reports at http://dashboard.ofsted.gov.uk

Culturally the town benefits from a plethora of attractions. You can catch a play at the Hazlitt theatre, explore over 600,000 objects at the Maidstone Museum & Art Gallery, all for free, or enjoy nature at its finest in the 450 acres of parkland at Mote Park. If retail therapy is more your thing check out Fremiln Walk and The Mall Maidstone, Maidstone is ranked in the top 5 shopping centres in the South-East for shopping yields.

Great Value Commuter Town

When you need to roam further afield, London can be reached by train in under an hour, or even 35 minutes if you’re prepared to drive to nearby Stroud. The M20 also gives easy access to London, including Gatwick and Heathrow which are 45 and 65 miles away respectively.

Maidstone has considerable appeal with its proximity to London, great schools and culture. If you’re considering moving house the value that Maidstone offers is considerable. Thinking of moving to maidstone? Why wouldn’t you.