Key takeaways
- Car parks and entrances shape the first impression more than anything inside the units.
- High-footfall sites need a daytime presence, not just an out-of-hours clean.
- Washrooms and bin stores generate the most tenant complaints.
- One provider covering internal, external and waste is cheaper and easier to hold accountable.
A retail scheme is judged before anyone gets out of the car. Litter along the kerb line, an overflowing bin by the entrance or streaked glass on the frontage tells a customer something about how the site is run, and it tells tenants something about what their service charge is buying.
Retail park cleaning has become one of the biggest parts of our business as more schemes are developed and refurbished. Here's what a specification needs to cover.
The areas that matter
External
- Car park litter picking and sweeping
- Kerb lines, planters and landscaped edges
- Trolley bays and pedestrian walkways
- External bins emptied and cleaned
- Pressure washing of entrances and hard standing
- Removal of chewing gum and spills
- Signage and totem cleaning
- Cigarette bins and smoking areas
Common areas
- Malls, walkways and seating areas
- Entrance matting and glass doors
- Lifts, stairs and service corridors
- Public washrooms and baby change
- Customer service points
- Bin stores and compactor areas
Bin stores. They're out of sight, so they get dropped from the schedule, then become a pest and odour problem that costs far more to fix than to prevent. Put them in the specification with a defined frequency.
Splitting daytime and out-of-hours
A retail scheme can't be cleaned entirely at night. Litter arrives all day, spills happen during trading, and washrooms used by hundreds of people need checking more than once in 24 hours.
- Early morning deep passBefore trading: sweep, mop, empty bins, full washroom clean, glass and entrances so the scheme opens looking right.
- Daytime janitorial presenceThrough trading hours: litter patrol, washroom checks, spill response, bins, trolley bays. This is the single biggest driver of how the site looks to customers.
- Evening close-downAfter trading: heavier tasks, floor machining, bin store management, external sweep ready for the morning.
Scale each element to footfall. A scheme with a supermarket anchor needs far more daytime cover than a small parade of units.
Periodic works to schedule
| Task | Typical frequency |
|---|---|
| Pressure washing of walkways and entrances | Quarterly |
| External glass and fascias | Monthly |
| Gum removal | Quarterly |
| Bin store deep clean and disinfection | Monthly |
| Car park deep sweep | Quarterly |
| High-level cleaning in covered areas | Twice yearly |
| Drain and gully clearance | Twice yearly |
Reporting and accountability
On a multi-tenant site the person paying isn't the person noticing. Managing agents need evidence, not assurances. Agree in advance:
- Who the named site supervisor is
- How tenants report an issue and expected response time
- What check sheets or logs are kept
- Frequency of a joint site walk with the agent
- How seasonal changes are handled (leaves, gritting, longer trading)
One specification adapted per area, a named supervisor, and a direct reporting route so site managers and tenants can flag an issue without going through three people.
Frequently asked questions
Can one provider cover internal, external and waste?
Yes, and it's normally cheaper and far easier to manage than three contractors blaming each other for the bin store.
Who is responsible for cleaning inside the units?
Usually the tenant. The landlord's contract covers common areas, externals and shared washrooms. Make the boundary explicit in the specification.
How do you handle winter?
Leaf clearance in autumn and gritting arrangements in winter should be written into the contract, with trigger temperatures agreed in advance.
Can you cover several schemes under one contract?
Yes. Multi-site contracts run off one specification with regional teams and a single invoice and contact.
More reading
Other guides from AMA
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Managing a retail scheme?
We'll walk the site, write the specification and quote a fixed monthly price covering internal, external and washrooms.