A venue cleaning checklist is like no other. Is your checklist hitting all the right spots?
At first, a venue cleaning checklist doesn’t seem all that different from any other cleaning checklist you might have. Office buildings are filled with people, schools get plenty of spills and muddy footprints, and you never know what you might encounter in cleaning a medical facility. Things are no different for an event in just about any venue.
It’s also true that a venue cleaning checklist will include many of the tasks you and your team are already familiar with: vacuuming, mopping, wiping table tops, and so on. Even so, there are some significant differences.
To begin with, if you’re working at a venue, you’ll likely be working before, during, and after an event, which means working around any number of people who are moving around, talking, dancing, eating, drinking, and leaving behind cups, plates, napkins, and dirty tablecloths.
The venue itself might have a cleaning list that they expect you to follow. Alternatively, they may want to look at your list. An experienced venue host can tell just by looking through your checklist if your company is the right one for the job. So, will your venue cleaning checklist make the cut?
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12 Items to Include in Your Venue Cleaning Checklist
Your venue cleaning checklist likely already includes all the basics, such as sweeping and mopping floors, refilling soap dispensers, and cleaning and disinfecting bathroom fixtures, sinks, toilets, and mirrors. You undoubtedly have other common tasks on your list, such as cleaning tables, door handles, and entryways.
But does your checklist include many of the other items specific to events and venues? Here are some you may want to either include, or at least discuss with the venue manager.
1. Timing. In many situations, you dictate the time you need to complete a job. You know how long different tasks take, and you can base your estimates and timing on that knowledge. The situation in a venue might be entirely different. You might be expected to return a venue to its original state in time for another event to set up. While this isn’t necessarily a checklist item, it’s important to be aware of and discuss it with the facility director.
2. Orientation. If your commercial cleaning company is hired as a third-party vendor, you may be working in an entirely new space. Your team needs to know the location of supplies like additional toilet paper, as well as the location of outdoor trash bins or dumpsters. They need to know where the janitorial closet is or where they can store the supplies they bring in. There’s a lot to consider, depending on the size and location of the venue. That’s why it’s helpful to have a facility orientation on your venue cleaning checklist.
3. Proper disposal of trash/recycling/compost. Does the venue separate recycling? Do they compost leftover food? These are some of the things your team will need to know as they clean up during and after an event.
4. Prohibited cleaning products. Whether a venue serves a particular population or has delicate flooring, surfaces, or decor, you’ll need to know if there are any cleaning products you need to avoid.
5. Removing decorations. You may or may not be responsible for the cleanup of any special decorations, such as streamers, balloons, banners, or flowers. However, it’s good to have these on your checklist to alleviate confusion.
6. Outdoor sweeping. The areas around entries and exits, as well as parking areas, may need additional sweeping for litter, such as cigarette butts, napkins, and other items.
7. Kitchen. This one is multi-faceted, and you may or may not be responsible for some or all of it. In some cases, the catering team will take care of things like dishes and cleaning the refrigerator. Even so, it’s good to have these on your venue cleaning checklist so you can discuss them with the event organizer.
- Dishwashing
- Food prep areas
- Refrigerator
- Floors
- Sinks
8. Furniture. Furniture may need to be stacked, stored, or otherwise attended to.
9. Lights. If your team is the last out, do you need to turn the lights off or leave some of them on?
10. Lost and found. After most events, there will be at least a few lost items. It’s helpful to know where to place these so they can later be returned to their owners.
11. Heating/Air conditioning. Many venues may have a requirement to leave the thermostat at a specific temperature or turn it off entirely.
12. Locking doors and setting alarms. As with the lights, if you are the last group out, you may be responsible for ensuring the doors are locked, and the alarm is set.
It’s important to point out that you may not be responsible for everything on your venue cleaning checklist. However, a good checklist gives you a starting point for discussion when talking through expectations with the event planner or director to ensure everyone is on the same page.
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