If you could see what I can see...

Braving the wind and rain at the top of the Great Western Hospital may strike fear in some but it doesn't cause Roy Brewer, 47, much pane.

Since the wards opened in 2002, he has been scaling new heights to reach every corner of the 6,000 plus windows.

The week-long mammoth operation, which started on Monday and happens four times a year, involves a 22 metre-long lorry mount, extendable brooms, gallons of water, cleaning agent and kit to slap on and remove soapsuds.

Abseiling equipment is used for some of the tougher buildings, such as the front of the Atrium reception area and cleaners pull on thermal underwear before bracing freezing temperatures for up to eight hours a day.

"It might look like a big task but cleaning the hospital's windows is a run of the mill job really," said Roy, who works for Reading-based company Lingwoods.

"It is quite satisfying when you drive away at the end of the job and see that the building looks a lot cleaner than when you arrived."

Nobody has been injured during the cleaning of the hospital's four main buildings but patients who ignore zoned off areas have been splashed with water, and high winds can make work precarious at times. Roy admits there have been some shocking moments, such as being confronted with a semi-naked woman while scrubbing away.

But, as all wards are given notice of the cleaners' daily movements, such hazards are usually avoided.

Andy Maddox, 42, quality and training manager for the hospital, said the window cleaning was always meticulously planned.

"Logistically, it was quite tricky at the start but now the cleaners have got into the swing of things," he said.

"They do a good job and work hard to finish the building. You can literally see the sweat drip off them when they do the more difficult bits like the Atrium.

"It is important for the hospital to be clean inside and out. It wouldn't be nice for people if they drove up to a drab-looking building."

Ben Payne