Keeping neighbourhoods clean and safe

You may have noticed the teams out and about in your neighbourhood, wearing their new blue uniforms. The teams are responsible for looking after the communal areas in tower blocks and walk-up blocks. This includes keeping the foyer, stairs, lifts, walkways, light covers, walls, doors and windows clean. During the pandemic, they have been regularly disinfecting high-touch surfaces such as door handles, handrails and intercom systems.

Over the course of a year, the teams clean over 7200 blocks! That involves sweeping a staggering 112,684 steps and mopping almost 3 million square foot of floors.

Whenever you see our cleaners in your neighbourhood, they will be happy to advise you if you have any queries on cleaning, but please remember social distancing rules and keep at least two metres away from staff at all times. You can also contact your Local Housing Office with any cleaning or tenancy-related queries.

Please help your local team by playing your part in caring for your block: keep the walkways and communal area clear of clutter, and always make sure your waste is tied up in bin bags and placed in the correct bins provided.

Whilst we’re working hard to keep communal areas clean and hygienic, it’s important that we all keep our homes as safe as possible to reduce our risk of infection. Our cleaners have shared some top tips below to help you keep your household safe.

• Regularly disinfect high-touch surfaces around your home as these can harbour germs. Use a disinfectant spray or diluted bleach on areas that are touched all the time such as door handles, tables, chairs, taps, toilets, light switches, mobile phones, keyboards, remote controls, game controllers, favourite toys and everyday appliances such as the microwave, kettle, toaster, washing machine, oven and fridge.
• Be extra careful when cleaning sensitive electronic items like mobiles, remote controls and computer keyboards. You can use alcohol-based wipes to disinfect touch screens on tablets and phones and invest in wipeable covers to protect these items and make them easier to clean.
• Wipe kitchen and bathroom surfaces more often than usual to keep these areas as clean as possible.
• It’s a good idea to wear disposable gloves when cleaning and disinfecting surfaces so you can throw away the gloves after each clean.
• Open the windows when cleaning (especially if you’re using bleach) and remember to wash your hands with soap when finished.
• Wash all your sponges, cleaning cloths and tea towels at 60 degrees after use. You can also put washing up sponges on a hot cycle in the dishwasher.

For lots more useful advice and tips about how to stop germs spreading at home check out the NHS website.