Client Liason at West Clean, Marlon looks at the different cleaning requirements in PRS and Social Housing.
There are three types of housing in the UK:
- Social housing: accommodation provided by local authorities
- Private rented: accommodation found and paid for by the tenants themselves
- Owner occupier: accommodation found, bought and occupied by the owners
Each housing type has its own cleaning needs and brings its own challenges.
While the vast majority of social housing is occupied by working families, a portion of the accommodation is provided to those not currently in work for a multitude of reasons. Unfortunately, with this comes a heightened rate of criminality and drug use which can lead to cleaning companies being faced with more hazardous and challenging waste to deal with:
- Sharps/Needles/Hazardous Waste Removal: a percentage of waste found in vacant homes and the areas surrounding social housing estates can include syringes, needles and bodily fluids. In these cases, entire structures have to be disinfected to avoid any contamination and the offending objects removed for the sake of public safety.
- Graffiti Removal: with the issue of graffiti currently rife, effective methods must be used to remove any form of graffiti that they come across.
- Odour Removal: with densely populated areas comes the issue of overloaded water and sewage systems. Cleaning companies must be prepared to remove any odours to provide a breath of fresh air.
- Bin Store Cleaning: a necessary service due to the fact that bins in social housing areas tend to fill faster due to the high number of people living in close proximity.
While all of the above can be required when cleaning privately rented or owner-occupied accommodation, these types of housing also bring with them their own unique cleaning needs:
- End of Tenancy Cleaning: at the completion of any tenancy, landlords want their premises cleaned professionally to attract the best tenants and to ensure a good basis for the next inventory to be taken when a new tenant is found. Tenants can also employ this service at the end of their tenancy to ensure their compliance with their inventory and therefore to regain their full deposit.
- New Build or After Build Cleaning: whether your building has just been completed or you’ve just finished a refurbishment, you’ll need the services of a cleaning company.
- Regular Common Area Cleaning: if you want your apartment to attract new tenants, your apartment should have clean common areas and hallways so, providing services in private rented accommodation often entails offering hallway and common area cleaning.
- Serviced Accommodation Cleaning: serviced accommodation properties require regular cleaning to ensure that clients are comfortable. The scope of work in these facilities may be broad and ranges from upholstery to bathroom and toilet cleaning.
- Regular Mid-Tenancy Cleaning: these services may range from removing mould in bathrooms to eradicating grease in ovens, vacuum cleaning the carpets, mopping, and dusting.
- Sparkle Cleaning: sometimes you may need to sparkle clean an apartment, especially when you are handing over the house. In such a case, the cleaning may involve removing protective coverings on new fittings, cleaning and polishing services, and cleaning any hidden areas within the house.
If you need a professional cleaning service you need to find a provider that understands the particular needs of all the different housing types.
At West Clean London, we take pride in our fully personalised service. We create bespoke task lists for any home we clean, whether it’s a workplace or home, to ensure that all our clients have an exceptional service based on their cleaning needs.
