Keeping your care home clean and hygienic at all times is crucial, and every member of staff has
their own part to play in ensuring that this is done. It's absolutely vital for the well being and health
of the people within your care.
However, with so many people taking responsibility for care home cleaning, it may be tricky to keep
a track of which cleaning tasks have been carried out and by whom. So, we’ve created a simple care
home cleaning schedule template that’s free for you to download, print and use, so that all staff can
see at-a-glance which tasks need to be tackled on a daily and weekly basis.
You can download your FREE care home cleaning schedule template here, and below we’ll explain
just why it is so important to pay great attention to the cleanliness of your care home.
Keeping your care home clean: it’s the law
Under Regulation 15 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
which relate to ‘Premises and Equipment’, your care home is legally required to be clean, suitable for
the purpose for which it is being used, and properly maintained.
You must also “maintain standards of hygiene appropriate for the purposes for which they are being
used”, which means that an elevated level of cleanliness and hygiene is expected in a care home
environment where thorough infection control procedures are vital.
This requires keeping well-stocked in your care home cleaning supplies so that you are always ready
to carry out the day’s cleaning tasks, as well as quickly tackle any spillages or other accidents that
may occur. To ensure that you’ve always got all of the cleaning products that you need on hand, our
care home cleaning schedule template also includes a useful cleaning supplies checklist for you to
refer to.
CQC fundamental standards for care home cleanliness
With a basis in the legal requirements for cleanliness of the care environment, the independent Care
Quality Commission (CQC) has established a set of fundamental standards for care homes that
include cleaning and hygiene standards that will be monitored when a care home inspection is
carried out.
The CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of Regulation 15 or any of its parts, but regulatory action can
be taken and your CQC rating severely affected.
However, if the CQC find that you are providing a high standard of cleanliness in your care home this
can contribute to a ‘Good’ or even ‘Outstanding’ rating for your facility, and this will also be
recorded in your inspection report which is publicly available. So it’s essential that you are
continually making efforts in maintaining a clean and hygienic care home with a regular care home
cleaning schedule, and clear expectations and excellent communication between your care home
staff where cleaning is concerned.