Office Cleaning Checklist: Frequently Forgotten Areas
The forgotten areas.....
In a small office environment, it is often the case that everyone has to muck in to get the office to a clean and hygienic standard before the weekend. This might mean, one of you cleaning the loos, and filling up the paper towels, one putting the hoover around, one giving the kitchen the once over, and one emptying the bins.
When cleaning duties are shared, overlooked areas need a named owner and a clear method. Include these tasks in the rota and provide the training, equipment and time needed to carry them out safely.
Buttons and light switches: include frequently touched controls in the cleaning plan. Use a method compatible with the equipment and avoid spraying liquid into switches or electrical openings. Where disinfection is required, choose an appropriate product and follow its stated contact time; a bactericidal claim alone does not establish activity against norovirus.
The office dishwasher: assign responsibility for inspecting and cleaning the filter and running the appliance’s specified maintenance programme. Follow its manual and use an approved dishwasher-cleaning product. Do not add bleach tablets or surface sanitiser unless both the appliance and product instructions explicitly permit that use. The Cleaner Sanitiser that is BS EN 1276 is a surface product link, not an instruction to put it into the dishwasher.
Blinds: start with the blind manufacturer’s care instructions and remove loose dust using a suitable tool. Check material compatibility before wet cleaning. Heavy Duty Degreaser and Lift are specialist degreasers, not universal blind cleaners; Evans identifies Lift as alkaline, not acidic. Use a suitable cloth or tool, the specified dilution and the protective equipment required by the assessment. Do not use a chemical-soaked sock over a glove as a substitute for a safe method.
Vent grilles and extractor intakes: include accessible external surfaces in the dusting plan. Arrange safe access and follow the equipment’s isolation and maintenance instructions; internal servicing should be handled by a competent person.
Fire extinguishers: keep the exterior clean without disturbing pins, seals, labels or controls. Cleaning does not replace inspections or servicing. Report damage and keep access clear.
Plants: follow the species or artificial plant’s care instructions. Remove dust gently using an appropriate method; do not assume every plant or pot is suitable for hosing down.
Walls and Baseboards - Dust and grime can cling to vertical surfaces as well as horizontal ones. Start at the top of the wall and work down using a duster that traps particles. Finish by cleaning away any stray marks or body soil that may be around light switches and doorknobs. Finish your wall cleaning by paying attention to baseboards. An amazing amount of dust can collect on those tiny ledges. In rooms like kitchens and baths where there is more humidity, you'll probably need to wipe the baseboards down with a damp cloth because the moisture has turned the dust into soil that clings to the surface.
In order to get these forgotten areas cleaned, simply add them to your cleaning rota, and make sure that everyone that comes into your office environment gets the right first impression.
A simple rota for the areas that get missed
Use this as a planning checklist, then set frequencies to suit occupancy, use and the equipment instructions.
- Touchpoints: name the person responsible for shared controls, handles and switches; specify a safe cleaning method.
- Kitchen equipment: record the dishwasher filter check and maintenance cycle separately from loading and unloading.
- Periodic dusting: allocate blinds, accessible vent covers, plant leaves and skirting boards.
- Completion: record the date, initials and any damage or access problem. Give unresolved defects to a named person.
Keep cleaning materials separate from food and check the product and surface instructions before changing methods.
Practical guidance and corrections checked 25 October 2026. Sources: Bosch: dishwasher cleaning; Evans Lift SDS; HSE: cleaning controls. Original publication date and author attribution retained.
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