A sample page of the actual document
A signed, dated cleaning rota is your legal evidence that you control food hygiene and premises safety. If it is not written down, an Environmental Health Officer treats the cleaning as if it never happened, however clean the place looks on the day, and that drives down your Food Hygiene Rating.
This free daily cleaning rota template gives every cleaning job a named owner, a fixed slot and a place to sign, so the clean actually happens the same way every day. Print it or run it off a phone.
Food Standards Agency, Safer Food Better Business: Safe Methods "Cleaning Effectively" and "Your Cleaning Schedule", and "Chilled Storage and Display". Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 (SI 2013/2996), Schedule 4 (8 degrees C chill holding requirement). Regulation (EC) No 852/2004, Annex II, Chapter I (premises) and Chapter V (equipment), on chemical storage and equipment hygiene. BS EN 1276 and BS EN 13697 (bactericidal efficacy standards for food-area disinfectants). National colour-coding scheme (BICSc / former NPSA): red, blue, green, yellow. FSA "International review of the literature and guidance on food allergen cleaning" (dry-wiping leaves residue; wash, rinse, sanitise removes it). The 25 percent grease-trap rule is the recognised FOG maintenance threshold; Water Industry Act 1991 s.111 prohibits discharging FOG to sewers.
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What’s on it
Everything that matters, nothing that does not. Here is the full list, exactly as it appears on the template.
Good to know
Disinfectant only kills bacteria if the surface is visibly clean first and the product is left on for its full contact time. Spraying and wiping straight away gives almost no bactericidal effect, even with a BS EN 1276 product, because the label contact time (often 30 seconds or more) has not passed. This is why a two-stage clean (detergent first, then disinfectant left to dwell) is the rule, not a nicety.
Source: Food Standards Agency, Safer Food Better Business: Safe Methods "Cleaning Effectively" and "Your Cleaning Schedule", and "Chilled Storage and Display". Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 (SI 2013/2996), Schedule 4 (8 degrees C chill holding requirement). Regulation (EC) No 852/2004, Annex II, Chapter I (premises) and Chapter V (equipment), on chemical storage and equipment hygiene. BS EN 1276 and BS EN 13697 (bactericidal efficacy standards for food-area disinfectants). National colour-coding scheme (BICSc / former NPSA): red, blue, green, yellow. FSA "International review of the literature and guidance on food allergen cleaning" (dry-wiping leaves residue; wash, rinse, sanitise removes it). The 25 percent grease-trap rule is the recognised FOG maintenance threshold; Water Industry Act 1991 s.111 prohibits discharging FOG to sewers.
Good to know
A rota says who does which job today, with initials when it is done. A schedule plans jobs across the week or month. This free template is the daily rota; the Weekly Cleaning Schedule covers the planning side, and they work together.
Yes, the full one-page rota is a free download. The sector packs add the matching weekly, monthly and deep-clean checklists for your kind of place.
A signed, dated cleaning rota is your legal evidence that you control food hygiene and premises safety. If it is not written down, an Environmental Health Officer treats the cleaning as if it never happened, however clean the place looks on the day, and that drives down your Food Hygiene Rating.
Disinfectant only kills bacteria if the surface is visibly clean first and the product is left on for its full contact time. Spraying and wiping straight away gives almost no bactericidal effect, even with a BS EN 1276 product, because the label contact time (often 30 seconds or more) has not passed. This is why a two-stage clean (detergent first, then disinfectant left to dwell) is the rule, not a nicety.
The PDF downloads the moment you check out, prints sharp in black and white, and opens on any phone. It is reviewed for August 2026 and you get any future update free when the official guidance changes.
A signed cleaning record is the main evidence an Environmental Health Officer uses to decide whether your kitchen is clean every day, not just on inspection day. Done properly, this routine stops the four things that sink hygiene ratings and trigger enforcement: cross-contamination between raw and ready-to-eat food, allergen cross-contact, grease fires in the extract system, and pest infestations.
A signed, time-stamped hourly check gives you a paper trail that protects you if someone slips, complains, or is injured, and it forces a physical walk-through that catches the small failures (empty soap, no toilet roll, a broken lock, a wet floor) before they turn into complaints, bad reviews, or a downmark from the Environmental Health Officer. The log is usually the first thing an EHO asks to see.
A neglected waste area is the most common cause of pest infestation, the most common spot for a deliberate fire to start and spread into the building, and the source of unlimited fines under the duty of care in EPA 1990 s.34. This check keeps the environmental health officer, your insurer, and the fire risk assessment satisfied, and proves the area was inspected if anyone asks.