Siân Pelleschi runs Sorted! A decluttering business that spans Cheshire and Greater Manchester, which she founded in 2016.

Alongside that, she is the President of APDO (Association of Professional Declutterers and Organisers), is a member of a school PTA committee and has a busy home life with her husband, two young children, a dog and a cat.

Some details and genders have been changed to protect the anonymity of Siân's clients.

Monday

Monday morning is a day some people dislike but not me, it's a brand-new week and there's plenty to do.

A quick trip to school to drop the boys off having manoeuvred the morning breakfast routine - a meeting in the junior school about transitioning up from infants for my eldest and then onward to a client session.

This client is autistic and lives alone in a small flat but recognised that they needed support in creating better systems to help manage their space and belongings. They struggle with decision-making and find the process quite draining. The change will need to be made slowly and steadily. Today we focused on a cupboard, currently stuffed with a mish-mash of items. The client wants it to be used for their art materials.

The session starts with a quick recap and a check-in from the work we did last time (kitchen) before moving on to the cupboard. We worked through the items one at a time, with the client picking up each item to assess and process. In three hours, we managed to get through two of the three shelves. Whilst others might not think so, this is good progress.

Tuesday

Same start to the day as yesterday only this time dropping the dog off at the walkers for the day too. Onwards to a different kind of client today. One who is very clear on the help and support she needs.

Her house looks extremely organised and colourful from the outside - just like her character - but there are areas she wants to assess and go through; under cupboards, in wardrobes, under beds, that she puts off on her own. She feels the need for someone to be with her to go through and occasionally guide her through the process.

We spend thirty minutes with her offloading and mentally processing her life over the last couple of months since I was last with her. She jokes that today I'm her therapist. It's something a lot of clients often say, and I suppose there is an element of therapy in this whole process, not that I claim to be a therapist by any means.

Today we're focusing on her home office. She likes to do a mood board and regularly journals. There has been a build-up of paperwork, and notebooks, and her office filing cupboard, in her eyes, has become a little bit chaotic.

She always says she feels much better after we've had a session together and I really enjoy seeing her delight at what's been achieved.

After my session, I pop to the shop to pick up a few essentials ready for dinner later before heading back for a Zoom meeting with another Association President to discuss ways we can support and learn from each other.

Wednesday

It's a board meeting day for APDO - this time in person. A full day of working through our wants, needs and strategies for the Association. We've travelled up to Preston this time (with board members coming from as far as London) and I travelled up last night, so no school drop-off for me today! The day always starts with catching up and nattering over a cup of coffee before settling down with notepads and laptops at the ready.

We're a collection of independent businesses – each coming with our own strengths, skills, and experiences but with one thing in common - the love for APDO and its purpose.

With the impending campaigns and conference high on the agenda there is a lot to get through. Plenty of coffee and tea made with a quick stroll around the garden at lunch to stretch our legs, we created our actions going forward, made some decisions and ploughed on. After a quick trip back to the train station to catch my train home, it was then time for a quick online meeting.

Sian has run Sorted! since 2017, helping a whole host of clients with their decluttering needs (Image - Sian Pelleschi)

Thursday

A rare admin day for me today. It started with the regular school run and a quick meeting with the school parent council (on behalf of the PTA) to help build the connection between the parents and teachers.

Today has been a day of three-thirds. A section working on admin for my decluttering business, a small section on my events business and the remainder working on APDO-related items – namely keeping up with the high volume of emails I get daily.

A day like today also allows me some time to stop and think about what I need, not just for me, but for my clients and my own family as often my evenings are caught up with planning, and additional meetings I wasn't able to have during the daytime and prepping for the next day.

Of course, I do get time to relax in the evenings, but I tend to keep that to the weekend. 

Friday

Today I'm working in a storage unit. Not your average day but exciting, nonetheless. This time it's a client who's abroad that has had items in storage for a significant amount of time and now wants to be re-connected with some of those in storage and throw or donate the rest.

It's slightly more unusual as I won't be working directly with the client on this occasion. They've provided a spreadsheet with an inventory of what's in the unit and listed the items they want to be returned to them, those they want to let go of and those they're unsure of. My job is to work through everything, document and pull out to one side the items to be returned, and then have a video call with the client to double-check the rest before I load up what I can into the car to take to a charity.

The difficult bit is the time difference – there are seven hours between us, so speaking to them and getting this arranged hasn't been the easiest of tasks - but we've sorted it.

I sometimes find it incredible what people are prepared to let go of but when there isn't a need for it in your life, it's the right thing to do. I'll always advocate either giving to charity or finding a way to keep items out of a landfill and used.

Saturday

It's the weekend! Most weekends I'm with my family, but not today. Today I'm working with another family. The parents have very busy working lives and don't really have, in their words, the time or head space to assess and see how they can improve their home space to work better for them and their two young children.

I'm working with them on their ground floor open plan living/dining/playing space. It's a little chaotic when I arrive but they're in the process of getting the kids out of the way so that their full attention can be on the work we'll do together.

In the time I'm there, we go through all the existing items in the space, take out those that need to be let go of, move items to their rightful homes (if not in that space) and rearrange it into workable zones – relaxing, playing, eating. By the time we're finished, the kids have a section that's easy for them to maintain with labels on shelving to help put away, a dining space that's easier to reach from the kitchen and a relaxing lounge area that the adults can enjoy once the kids are in bed. Lovely!

Sunday

A day of rest? What's that? Today is a chance for a lie-in, some quiet time with my boys, a chance to get out in the fresh air with the dog and family in tow and just to enjoy the day. There is a little bit of planning for the week ahead that needs to be done – food, work, and logistics of juggling it all – but that won't take long and will help ease the busyness of the week to come.

Find out more about Sorted! by visiting their website at www.all-sorted.co.uk

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