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Serco Celebrates 30-Year Anniversary Serving Melbourne Parks and Gardens: A Facilities Management (FM) Story

Published: 2 Jul 2025

Since June 1995, Serco has been maintaining scenic public grounds for the City of Melbourne through our Melbourne Parks and Gardens (MPG) contract. With unwavering attention to detail, our FM team of 60 full-time staff ensures 35,000 assets are maintained, 10,000 garden beds and 10,000 turf sites are kept healthy, trimmed and thriving, and over 250 rubbish bins are emptied daily. These are just a few of the tasks that go into ensuring the Victorian community can enjoy 290,000m2 of dedicated public spaces for work, sport and recreation across Kensington, Carlton North, North and West Melbourne, Docklands, Parkville, Royal Park, Fisherman’s Bend and Princes Park.  

This milestone is also particularly special for our team, with three members - Ian Harvey, Ross Maltby and Phillip Vanree – celebrating 30 years with Serco and MPG since being hired when Serco was first awarded the contract in the 90s. 

Today, we’re proud to look back on key moments and achievements that have defined this collaborative relationship. 

Across the 30-year partnership with the City of Melbourne, Serco has supported our MPG stakeholders through: 

  • The Millennium Drought: severely dry conditions that occurred between 1997 and 2009; 

  • The Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2000, bringing increased foot traffic and logistics; 

  • Keeping staff and the public safe during the COVID-19 pandemic; 

  • Facility complexity and growth, with our MPG facilities management covering a high volume of tasks, such as 43,800 BBQ and 11,680 toilet cleanings annually; and 

  • Changes in operating processes, requirements and technologies during three decades of community service, spanning approximately five contract renewals and extensions. 

Highlights from the past 30 years include: 

  • Meticulous operational and quality control and delivery on KPIs, with every blade of grass across the region being mowed every 14 days, made possible by high quality mowing equipment sourced from local businesses; 

  • The ability to help nurture Victoria’s incredible biodiversity across our team of turf, horticulture, water and infrastructure specialists, including controlling invasive species and working with the City of Melbourne to introduce 15 hectares of improved landscape through planting and maintenance of indigenous and local species; and 

  • The recent introduction of our 100% electric sweeper to Serco’s fleet, reflecting a strong ongoing commitment to reducing emissions and minimising environmental impact. 

In recognition of these incredible 30 years of exceptional service delivery and our people’s dedication across the partnership, the City of Melbourne and Serco AsPac leadership joined our MPG team in Melbourne this month to celebrate and individually recognise Ian, Ross and Phillip for their service. It was a great event, and truly energising to have everyone on location to share and reflect on the many successes achieved together. 

For our people, despite the passing of time, one thing remains unchanged – delivering operational excellence is an ongoing priority. It’s something we are able to achieve every day because – for the Serco team – it’s not just about emptying bins, maintaining 30 sports fields and 15,000 sprinkler heads, or ensuring 13 cricket pitches are green and grassy. It’s about caring for our community and offering locals and guests the best experience possible when they visit an MPG site. To read their reflections on this significant milestone directly, visit LinkedIn for comments from our FM Director Dave Reynolds, and follow the Serco LinkedIn page for profiles of our frontline team.