A number of readers have contacted me regarding possible consequences for our sector of the recession. Many express grave concern that if margins or occupancy are pushed any further, it could be difficult to survive. Two ideas were discussed at our annual managers conference this month. The efficient use of staff is essential to maintaining a commercially viable nursery, but that efficiency can be severely compromised by sickness which results in the use of agency staff. In our chain of 20 nurseries, the levels of sickness varied enormously. Last year,...