Cleaning services
Source: gov.uk (2025-06-18)

How to find the right cleaning services for your school or multi-academy trust.

See if you can buy what you need through a DfE-approved buying option (https://get-help-buying-for-schools.education.gov.uk/categories/facilities-management-estates).

See where to get help with buying for schools (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/get-help-buying-for-schools) if you need it.

Before you start

Cleaning products and chemicals must be labelled and stored in accordance with the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) regulations.

You should get advice if you’re unsure about any of the relevant legislation.

Changing your cleaning arrangements may be time consuming and complex so try to plan your changes carefully.

You may be able to get better value by renegotiating your current contract.

Current contract

If you already have a contract, you should think about:
- the level of service you’re currently paying for
- what you want to change or improve
- whether you’ll need to make a business case
Moving to a new contract

Gather the information you’ll need before you move contracts such as the:
- expiry date of your current agreement
- notice period
- likely value of your contract
Planning

Moving to a new contract may take longer than you think. The points below will help you plan your changes.

When to start a new contract

To avoid disruption, try to start a new contract:
- at the beginning of a new academic year
at the beginning of new financial year
- after a big holiday such as Christmas or Easter
Approval time

Allow for decision-making time with governors and trustees.

You may find it easier to work backwards from your switch date to plan each stage of the process.

Keep staff informed

Talk regularly to your staff. These are the people most likely to be affected by changes.

Try to reduce any concerns and be aware that staff may want to contact their union.

Talk to stakeholders

Get feedback from people using the building regularly. Find out if they have concerns about the current cleaning contract and any suggestions on how to improve it.

Talk to other schools

You may want to contact local schools to see if they’re looking to renew or change contracts.

You may be able to combine provision to:
- get better value for money
- save time by splitting the workload
TUPE considerations

Consider whether TUPE (https://www.gov.uk/transfers-takeovers) (Transfer of undertakings) or the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) will apply to your school, especially if you’re looking to:
- outsource provision
- move away from your local authority (#moving-away) for the first time
When you give notice of termination to your current provider, you should request details of any staff that will be subject to TUPE transfer.

This information should include:
- salary details
- terms and conditions
- pension details
These details will form part of your business case and potential tender requirements.

Specification

You’re likely to get better value if you can tell suppliers exactly what you need.

Guidance on writing a specification (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/buying-procedures-and-procurement-law-for-schools/writing-a-specification) is available.

Frequency of cleaning

Specify:
- the number of weeks each year that you’ll need to carry out cleaning
- whether you’ll need periodic or non-routine cleaning (#periodic)
Annual cleaning schedule

If you decide to outsource your cleaning services, consider the length of the contract you’ll need.

For example, you may want to consider a 2-year period with the option of extending for a further year.

Day-to-day cleaning

This covers cleaning during term time, with set access hours for these tasks.

It also includes morning and evening cleaning duties which can differ from each other and from day-to-day.

Periodic or non-routine cleaning

You may need some tasks carrying out during holidays or inset days to maintain the standards of the routine cleaning. This can include a whole school deep clean during the summer holidays.

Emergency cleaning

There may be times when personnel are needed on site to carry out emergency work, for example, after vandalism or break-in. You may need access to someone 24 hours a day.

Categories: internal and external cleaning

You’ll need different cleaning schedules for different types of cleaning.

Some of these tasks include internal cleaning such as:
- toilets
- furniture
- floors
- book shelves
- corridors
- staff room
- store rooms
- internal doors and windows
Some of these tasks include external cleaning such as:
- windows
- doors
- litter picking
Specialist surfaces cleaning

Some surfaces, such as sports hall flooring, may need specific treatments so try to consider:
- any additional costs
- the frequency of cleaning
- timescales involved
Exclusions

Try to identify cleaning tasks that are not included in the cleaning requirement as they are covered by other parties. These can include:
- recycling bins
- sanitary disposal units
- catering kitchen used for lunchtime meals
- specialist cleaning such as IT equipment
Monitoring performance and quality

Consider how you will measure, manage and maintain quality standards for:
- daily cleaning
- daily inspections of quality assurance
- timekeeping of cleaning staff
- absence management (planned and unplanned)
- maintenance of stock levels
- the reporting of faulty cleaning equipment
- machinery maintenance, including portable appliance testing (PAT) by qualified personnel
You may want to plan to outline who’s responsible for:
- reporting issues
- logging issues
- managing issues or under performance
Services

Resources

Consider who will supply the resources and services needed to carry out the cleaning provision, such as:
- labour
- cleaning equipment
- materials
- chemicals
- storage areas
- heating
- electricity
- lighting
- hot and cold water
Refuse disposal

Consider who’ll be responsible for the safe and hygienic disposal of:
- wet waste
- dry waste
You should assess the facilities you have on site such as collection areas and mechanical compaction.

You may want to consider:
- how facilities will be managed and by who
- who will manage them
Manage risk

It’s important you know how to manage risk. You should get legal advice if you’re unsure about any of the relevant legislation.

Insurance

You should ask contractors to take out indemnity insurance to protect you against any loss or damage caused by non-compliance.

Security

Consider who will be responsible for final lock up and setting of any alarms.

For example, the site manager may want to nominate or be notified of a person responsible for holding the master key to lock all internal doors and windows.

Disclosure and barring service (DBS)

You must complete DBS checks (https://www.gov.uk/dbs-check-applicant-criminal-record) to the appropriate level for any staff involved in the cleaning service.

Legislation

You or your contractor must:
- understand the existing legislation relating to your cleaning requirements
- follow regulations closely
This legislation includes, but is not limited to:
- UK legislation
- European community legislation
Legislation can also take different forms, such as:
- regulations
- orders
- statutes
- statutory instruments
- codes of practice
- bylaws
- directives
Find the right way to buy

Follow your school’s procurement rules. These may be your school’s own rules, or those set by the local authority.

You have 3 options:
- use a framework
- run your own procurement
- in-house cleaning
The option you choose will depend on your school requirements and circumstances.

If the lifetime value of your contract is over the ​public procurement threshold (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/schedule/1), you’ll need to use a framework agreement or carry out your own procurement, issuing a tender using the Central Digital Platform (https://www.gov.uk/find-tender).

Use a framework

DfE reviews a range of frameworks. These are assessed for compliance with procurement regulations, ease of use, suitability and value for money.

Find a DfE approved framework for your school (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/find-a-dfe-approved-framework-for-your-school)

Buying from a framework is usually quicker and easier than getting bids or quotes because the agreements:
- have already been through a full competitive tender process
- have been quality checked
- are checked to make sure they comply with the law
- may have draft specifications and expert help available
Equipment

You should consider:
- what equipment you own
- what the bidding suppliers will provide
- if you’ll have to buy new equipment and costs involved
Potential suppliers

When choosing suppliers, consider:
- confirming that DBS checks have been completed
- inviting suppliers to your school to produce sample meals
- getting feedback on suppliers by talking to other schools they provide for
Run your own procurement

If you cannot get what you need through a framework, you can run your own buying process.

You should consider whether:
- maintenance contracts are covered by existing contractors
- contractor tests and checks are up to date
- you need to replace equipment because it belongs to the current provider
- DBS checks have been completed by suppliers
- staff training is required for things like COSHH and health and safety regulations
Moving away from local authority provision

There may be timeframes around when the local authority is obliged to release TUPE and LGPS information.

These timeframes can cause delays and further expense if you award the contract without having these details.

You may want to invite your local authority to tender and involve them in the process. This way, the information you need is provided during the bidding process.

In-house cleaning

You may decide to take your cleaning provision in-house and hire your own staff to carry out your provision. You’ll still need to write a specification (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/buying-for-schools-things-to-consider-before-you-start) to outline your needs.

Equipment

You may want to consider:
- what materials and equipment you’ll need
- potential equipment maintenance costs
- equipment storage
- hazardous material or equipment storage
- health and safety
Staff training

You may want to consider initial training for your staff such as:
- health and safety
- hazardous material or equipment storage
- emergency cleaning procedures
- cleaning agents
- cleaning methods
- equipment and machines
- waste management
- health, safety and the environment
You should consider who’ll cover the daily responsibilities of staff who are away on training.

Costs

Check your figures and requirements as a miscalculated business plan can be costly.

Consider whether costs will increase for:
- staff (hours and number of staff needed)
- planned staff holidays
- absence management
- cleaning products
- equipment requirements
- storage
- utility bills
- initial staff training (including time needed)
- ongoing staff training for changes in qualifications and regulations
Opportunities

You may find you can:
- offer cleaning services to other local schools and generate additional income
- negotiate better prices from suppliers of cleaning products and equipment
- increase quality
- respond quicker if your equipment is broken or faulty
- develop staff skills through bespoke training
- be in control of your expenditure
The Procurement Act 2023

Under the Procurement Act 2023 you will need to understand your obligations with regards to contract management and the publishing of appropriate notices.

The section Get training on the Procurement Act 2023 (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/buying-for-schools-things-to-consider-before-you-start/get-training-on-the-procurement-act-2023) has information on how to:
- get free, approved DfE training on the Procurement Act 2023
- register on the central digital platform
Find out more from the update for schools and trusts on Procurement Act 2023 (https://buyingforschools.blog.gov.uk/2024/11/19/update-for-schools-and-trusts-on-procurement-act-2023-are-you-ready/).