Shared Workplace Kitchen Cleaning Checklist
Updated 22 October 2026. This checklist replaces the pandemic-era advice previously published on this page. Adapt it to your premises, the number of users and any food preparation carried out. A staff kitchenette and a commercial catering kitchen may need different procedures.
Before the kitchen opens
- Check that handwashing facilities have running water, soap and a suitable way to dry hands.
- Make sure worktops, sinks and shared appliances are clean and ready for use.
- Provide clearly labelled cleaning products, clean cloths or appropriate disposable materials, and accessible instructions.
- Check that bins have enough capacity and that ventilation arrangements are working as intended.
After preparing food or drinks
- Wash hands before handling food and after activities that could contaminate them. Hand sanitiser does not replace proper handwashing in a food-preparation routine.
- Clear spills and food debris promptly. Wash used dishes and utensils using a suitable method.
- Clean worktops and equipment after use. Disinfect where your procedures require it, following the product's complete instructions.
- Put food away appropriately. Keep raw foods separate from ready-to-eat items and follow storage instructions on food packaging.
Daily checks and planned cleaning
- Assign responsibility for worktops, sinks, appliance handles, tables, floors and waste bins. Set the frequency according to use and contamination risk.
- Include fridge shelves, spills, food dates and any temperature checks required by your procedures. Agree how staff label and remove their food.
- Plan periodic cleaning inside appliances according to their manufacturers' instructions. Isolate equipment when required and never spray electrical parts indiscriminately.
- Replenish supplies and record missed tasks or faults so that someone can resolve them.
Make responsibilities clear
Use a simple rota showing the task, frequency, responsible person and completion check. Explain which jobs everyone does after use and which belong to the cleaning team. Store chemicals away from food and follow the label's safety instructions.
For the application steps, see our shared-kitchen sanitising method and archived video. For product selection, browse food-area disinfectants or contact Astral Hygiene.
Keep workplace arrangements current
Maintain a clean workplace, support good hand hygiene and provide suitable ventilation. Review your own risk assessment and current guidance when circumstances change. A fixed two-person limit or a blanket mask rule from an old pandemic article is not a universal rule for every shared kitchen.
Further reading: HSE: welfare facilities at work; UK government: reducing respiratory infections in the workplace; Food Standards Agency: Safe Catering.
