Hello, my name is Susannah and I’m an Organisational Psychology student at the University of Kent. To help you keep your accommodation clean and tidy, follow my helpful guide below!
Maintaining a clean space is essential for a clear state of mind and feeling comfortable in your surroundings! Often people overlook this as an important part of making your halls feel like home, so here are some tips about what cleaning products to bring and how to maintain a clean space without it piling on top of you. The cleaning staff will provide you with a vacuum, mop, and bin liners. This means that you are required to bring anything else that you’ll need to keep your space clean.
Kitchen
For the kitchen, you can bring your own items, or come together with your flatmates to buy and share products together. We also recommend making a weekly bin rota so that your bins don’t overflow!
Here’s a list of the best kitchen cleaning products and what things you might find useful:
- Washing up liquid
- Washing up brush or sponge
- Washing up bucket
- Surface cleaner/degreaser
- Surface wipes or cloths
- Kitchen roll
- Tea towels
Personal spaces
For your own room, cleaning is perhaps the most important part of feeling comfortable in what will be your home for the next year or so. Vacuuming, dusting and cleaning surfaces regularly will make the space far less overwhelming and therefore more comfortable for you! Here are some items that might prove useful to bring for cleaning your bedroom:
- Surface wipes or cloths
- Multi-purpose surface cleaner
- Duster
- A mini vacuum (if you would rather use your own)
- Plug in air-freshener or room scent sticks (no candles)
- Small bin liners
- A box for your cleaning supplies
Ensuite/bathroom
The bathroom is the final space that needs to be looked after. If you are sharing a bathroom, we’d recommend making a cleaning rota with your flatmates, perhaps weekly or every fortnight, to make sure the space is regularly looked after and dirt doesn’t build up. Again, you can buy your own products or buy and share them with your flatmates. Here’s what we’d recommended you bring:
- Bathroom cleaning spray: made especially for showers or bathroom surfaces
- Surface wipes or cloths
- Spare toilet brush
- Toilet cleaner (no bleach)
- A cleaning caddy/box for your products
If you would rather buy these once you have arrived, Co-op on campus, and shops in town such as Wilko, Tesco, Sainsbury and Aldi will have almost everything you will need to assure that you can look after your space effectively and feel comfortable in your own environment all year round!