The Grocer Chef, in Ardington, is closing its doors on Wednesday, 29 April.

The tearoom will reopen under new ownership on Tuesday, 5 May

Keith and Maria Greig, owners of The Grocer Chef in Ardington, near Wantage, revealed this week that they would be retiring.

READ MORE: 17th century farmhouse with stables and sunroom on market for £2m

In a statement on Facebook, they said “We are open today (Monday 27th), this Tuesday 28th & Wednesday 29th & then we are closed until next Tuesday 5th May, re-opening under new ownership.”

The tearoom and village shop serves ice creams, cream tea, coffee, breakfast, sandwiches, and jacket potatoes as part of its menu.

During the pandemic the eatery was saved from closure after a last-minute Facebook post in the third lockdown left them with queues out the door

Alpha Swanson has achieved ISO 27001:2022 certification, giving the UK consultancy three ISO certifications.

The new certification sits alongside its existing ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certifications. The business now holds recognised certifications covering quality management, environmental management and information security management.

Alpha Swanson secured ISO 27001:2022 certification using its own Certain® management system platform. Its information security management system was audited twice within three months by two separate UKAS-accredited certification bodies, with both audits confirming compliance.

The result strengthens the consultancy’s case that firms advising clients on ISO compliance should also meet those standards themselves. That argument is likely to resonate with companies facing greater scrutiny over governance and information security controls.

Own system

Its information security management system is hosted and managed on Certain®, which it also uses to hold documentation for ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. The platform now underpins an integrated management system across all three standards.

ISO 27001 is widely used as a framework for identifying and managing information security risks. Organisations that gain certification are assessed on the controls, processes and governance structures they use to protect sensitive information.

For consultancies operating in the ISO market, holding certification can carry particular weight because they advise clients on the same standards. Alpha Swanson’s latest certification brings that issue into sharper focus, especially in information security, where client expectations and regulatory pressure have increased.

Jon Tait, systems director at Alpha Swanson, addressed that point directly.

“Any consultancy can tell you how to achieve ISO certification. We believe you should expect them to hold it themselves. ISO 27001 is the most demanding standard we work with and achieving it on our own Certain® platform is proof of exactly what it can do,” said Tait.

Audit scrutiny

The double audit is a notable part of the certification process described by Alpha Swanson. Assessment by two separate UKAS-accredited bodies within a short period adds scrutiny to how the management system was built and maintained.

That matters because UKAS accreditation is often treated in the UK market as an important marker of assurance in certification. Businesses seeking ISO recognition commonly distinguish between accredited and non-accredited certification when choosing advisers and auditors.

Alpha Swanson wants to promote the value of UKAS-accredited certification across sectors, while recognising that formal certification may not be the first step for every business. It positions Certain® as a system for organisations building standards-aligned processes before deciding whether to pursue external certification.

The broader backdrop is a market in which customers, partners and suppliers increasingly ask businesses to show evidence of structured controls over data, risk and operations. For smaller firms in particular, consultancies often play a central role in helping management teams translate ISO requirements into day-to-day procedures.

Against that backdrop, Alpha Swanson’s own certification gives it a stronger basis for arguing that advisers should be able to demonstrate compliance themselves, not just guide clients through the process.

Workday has implemented its finance and human resources software at Sovereign Network Group.

The rollout covers one of the UK’s largest housing associations, which manages 85,000 homes.

Known as SNG, the organisation has brought together Workday Financial Management and Workday Human Capital Management on a single system for more than 3,000 employees. The change is intended to give leaders a clearer view of finance, staffing, talent and skills across the business.

The housing association operates across London, the South East, the South West and the East of England. It works in a sector facing tighter regulation, cost pressure and persistent demand for affordable housing.

By combining HR and finance data, SNG aims to reduce internal friction and improve decision-making. The new system is also expected to cut manual HR administration and speed up accounting processes in finance.

That matters for an organisation with a large development programme and broad social housing responsibilities. SNG wants to strengthen delivery across its communities while supporting a GBP £750 million affordable homes framework.

The deployment was carried out with PwC, which worked with Workday on the implementation. The project was delivered without disruption to operations.

Operational shift

The move reflects a wider trend among large housing associations to replace older back-office systems with unified cloud platforms. For providers managing tens of thousands of homes, finance and workforce data have become increasingly important as boards face scrutiny over costs, service standards and investment priorities.

In social housing, landlords are under pressure to improve tenant services while maintaining existing homes and funding new development. Better visibility over staffing and spending can help shape decisions on where resources are deployed and how quickly organisations can respond to operational problems.

SNG said the new platform gives it a stronger digital base to meet those demands. The group described the implementation as the first phase of a broader transformation of its core business systems.

“Moving our core HR and finance operations to Workday is a huge step forward for our organisation,” said Kevin Ives, Chief Information Officer, SNG. “Working hand-in-hand with PwC and Workday, we have successfully delivered this crucial first phase of our transformation. We now have a robust, unified system that vastly improves the daily experience for our colleagues, providing us with the sturdy groundwork required to evolve and better serve our communities.”

Workday said the project gives SNG more consistent and auditable information across the organisation. The software supplier has been expanding its position in sectors that need closer links between financial planning and workforce management.

For housing groups, those links are increasingly relevant. Providers must manage rent income, repairs programmes, compliance spending, development pipelines and community investment, while also handling recruitment, retention and skills gaps in specialist roles.

Housing context

SNG is among the larger not-for-profit housing providers in England and is a member of the G15 group of London housing associations. It is also involved in regional housing alliances in the South West and South East focused on increasing the supply of affordable homes.

The group has set out ambitions to add 25,000 homes over the next decade. It has also outlined wider social and environmental plans, including a Homes and Place Standard and a GBP £100 million Community Foundation.

Those objectives put pressure on internal systems to support planning, budgeting and workforce deployment at scale. A single finance and HR system can help management teams track costs, monitor organisational changes and identify skills needs across a large and dispersed operation.

Daniel Pell, Workday’s UK and Ireland Country Manager, said the software was intended to give SNG a more reliable operating base.

“When it comes to mission-critical work, organisations need a deterministic foundation that provides consistent, auditable outcomes,” said Daniel Pell, Vice President and Country Manager, UKI, Workday. “By bringing HR and Finance together on Workday, and in close partnership with PwC, SNG can operate with greater certainty and speed.”

PwC framed the work as a large-scale organisational change rather than a simple software installation. Consulting firms have increasingly targeted housing associations as they modernise finance, procurement and workforce systems after mergers and growth in asset bases.

“Delivering a transformation of this scale requires a shared vision and a profound commitment to the end goal,” said Althea D’Lima, Workforce Transformation Partner, PwC. “By combining Workday’s unified platform with our implementation expertise, we have helped equip SNG with a resilient, future-ready environment that will accelerate their strategic ambitions.”