Making the most of half-term: what to deep clean while pupils are away
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With October half term coming up for UK schools, now might be a good time to consider a full deep clean whilst your pupils are away. This blog will look at some useful advice for maintaining a clean and healthy school environment.
There are several important areas to prioritise that will require some TLC after a hectic school period.
How to plan a half-term deep clean
Start with a quick walk round the site and note where the term has taken its toll. The hall may have hosted assemblies, performances and wet-weather lunches. The kitchen will have served hundreds of meals a day. Entrances will have taken the brunt of autumn rain and mud.
Put those areas in priority order, then book the work in as early as you can. Half-term is a busy week for school cleaning, so leaving it until the Friday before can limit what’s possible.
Areas to prioritise
Toilets and washrooms
School toilets are used by a lot of people throughout the day, and daily cleaning can only go so far. A deep clean lets the team descale toilets, urinals and sinks, clean behind and under fittings, wash down cubicle walls and partitions, and treat floor drains and grout lines where bacteria and odours build up. For more detail, see our school bathroom cleaning guide.
Hard floors in halls, corridors and entrances
Heavy footfall grinds dirt into hard floors, and wet leaves get walked in at this time of year. Machine scrubbing removes the build-up that a mop leaves behind and helps restore grip, which reduces the risk of slips. Read more on why commercial floor cleaning matters.
Kitchens and dining areas
With so many pupils eating school meals, kitchens and dining halls need more than a daily wipe down. A deep clean should cover behind and under equipment, inside fridges and storage areas, and dining tables and chairs. If your catering is run by a separate provider, check what they already cover so nothing is missed or done twice.
High touch surfaces
Door handles, push plates, light switches, banisters, taps and shared equipment are touched hundreds of times a day. Cleaning and disinfecting them thoroughly helps reduce the spread of coughs, colds and stomach bugs when pupils return. Here’s why cleaning high-touch points is so important.
Carpets
Deep cleaning carpets in classrooms, libraries and staff rooms need empty rooms and time to dry, which you don’t get in term time. It removes trapped dirt, allergens and stains, so rooms feel fresher when pupils come back. Book carpets early in the week so they’re fully dry by Friday. See our commercial carpet cleaning tips.
High-level dusting
Tops of cupboards, light fittings, window ledges, vents and display boards collect dust, pollen and fine particles over the term. That dust eventually falls back into the room, which isn’t helpful for pupils and staff with asthma or allergies. Do this before the floors and carpets, so nothing lands on a freshly cleaned surface.
Classroom furniture
Desks and chairs pick up sticky residue, pen marks and chewing gum underneath. A proper clean means pupils come back to clean, clear desks, which is better for hygiene and makes it easier to settle back into lessons. For more areas that are easy to overlook, see 12 places often missed in school cleaning.
A simple order for the week
- Start high: dusting, lights, vents and tops of cupboards.
- Then the wet work: carpets early in the week so they have time to dry, followed
- by toilets and kitchens.
- Then floors: machine scrubbing halls, corridors and entrances.
- Finish with touch points and furniture, so everything is clean right before pupils
- return.
How often should schools deep clean?
Most schools benefit from a deep clean in every school holiday, with a larger one over the summer. Half-terms work well for a focused clean of the busiest areas. We can put together a schedule that spreads the work across the year, so no area goes too long without attention.
Frequently asked questions
Monday 26th October to Friday 30th October 2026, for schools in all 22 Welsh local authorities, including Swansea and Neath Port Talbot.
Yes, if you focus on priority areas rather than the whole site. Toilets, kitchens, floors, carpets and touch points can all be done in a week with the right team and a clear plan.
Every ServiceMaster team member working in schools, nurseries or colleges holds an enhanced DBS check and has passed right-to-work and background checks.
Yes. Many schools have staff in during half-term, so we plan the work around them and agree which areas will be closed off and when.
Book your half-term clean
ServiceMaster South Wales has been cleaning schools, nurseries and colleges across Swansea, Neath Port Talbot and South Wales for over 20 years. Our team can plan and carry out your half-term deep clean, with regular audits from our Contracts Managers so you know the work has been done properly.
