Quick Overview
Housekeeping isn’t just about cleaning — it’s about creating order, safety, and efficiency in any space, from homes to hospitals. In 2025, modern housekeeping blends sustainability, technology, and consistent discipline to maintain high hygiene and safety standards.
This guide covers:
✅ The seven core principles of housekeeping: Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardise, Sustain, Safety, and Self-Discipline.
✅ How each principle applies to homes, hotels, workplaces, and healthcare settings.
✅ The importance of structured housekeeping for cleanliness, safety, and productivity.
✅ Modern trends for 2025, including eco-friendly cleaning, digital tools, and smart equipment.
✅ How these principles create a healthy, efficient, and professional environment for everyone.
Housekeeping means more than just cleaning; it is a key part of health, safety, and proficiency in any setting, whether it is your home, a hotel, or a healthcare facility. In 2025, with the rise of more advanced sustainability and hygiene standards, professional housekeeping will be more evolved than it is now and be more solidly structured around foundational discipline principles.
If you’ve ever wondered what the seven basic principles of housekeeping are, this guide outlines them and shows their application in the home and professional environments. This guide also highlights modern housekeeping practices for 2025 to ensure cleanliness, safety, and order are provided in all environments.
The Importance of Having Housekeeping Principles
The principles of good housekeeping create order and a welcoming space, which helps prevent accidents and promotes a healthy environment. In the workplace, good housekeeping helps to improve productivity and adherence to safety standards; in hotels, it helps ensure guest satisfaction, and in healthcare, it impacts the health of the patients.
Structured housekeeping principles and practices help to:
- Maintain principles of cleanliness and hygiene to reduce the chances of contamination
- Improve efficiency through organised routines
- Eliminate health risks and injuries that can occur in the workplace
- Increase the lifespan of equipment, furniture and surfaces
- Display a positive and professional image to clients and visitors
Let’s discuss the seven basic principles that effective housekeeping is built on.
Sort – (Remove the Unnecessary)
The first step in housekeeping is sorting: the decluttering phase. Every decluttering process involves identifying what is needed and what can be removed.
For instance, in a home setting, this involves clearing cupboards and storage areas. In a workplace (like a hotel), this involves making sure the cleaning tools, supplies, and documents are current, relevant and stored in an efficient manner.
Practical Steps:
- Determine the items that are used frequently and those that are rarely touched.
- Safely dispose of cleaning products that are broken or expired.
- For organisation, make “keep,” “discard,” and “donate” categories.
Why It Matters:
Sorting helps create space and lays the needed foundation for a clean, efficient environment. It will ultimately reduce confusion.
Set in Order – (Organise for Efficiency)
As soon as the clutter has been removed, the next phase is organisation, which involves making sure everything has a place and everything is in its place. This will provide ease of access to cleaning tools, equipment and materials, which improves the workflow and safety for all.
In Hotels:
For housekeeping trolleys, linens and cleaning agents should be in the same place for quick restocking, and should also be arranged in a neat way.
In Homes:
Orderly cleaning materials can be kept in labelled containers, shelves and cabinets.
In Healthcare:
Storage must follow infection control guidelines. Sterile and non-sterile supplies must be separated and clearly marked.
Tip:
To reduce strain when reaching for items, keep lighter things at waist level, while heavier ones are best stored below.
Why This Is Important:
Good organisation saves time, prevents mistakes, and improves the professional image of the housekeeping team.
Shine — (Clean and Inspect Regularly)
For the third principle, shine, means more than the unglamorous reputation of the routine. It means removing and maintaining equipment, furniture, and surfaces to keep them fully operational at all times.
Shining is more than unglamorous appearances. It means providing a hygienic, safe space and removing harmful elements. This is the time for the basic cleaning and maintenance tips to kick in.
Professional Housekeeping Standards Recommend:
- Clean from top to bottom (ceiling to floor).
- Use different, colour-coded cloths and mops for different surfaces to prevent cross-contamination.
- Draft and stick to daily and weekly deep cleaning schedules.
- Inspect potential cleaning tools after every use and carry out a replacement for damaged items.
In Healthcare:
Shining is a must when it comes to infection prevention. High-touch surfaces (door handles, switches, bed rails) should be fully sanitised several times a day following the healthcare housekeeping safety guidelines.
Why This Is Important:
Clean environments prevent the spread of illness, prolong the lifespan of facilities and tools, and aid in maintaining a professional image.
Standardise — (Establish Consistent Procedures)
Standardisation is principle four. It ensures that every single person in the team can follow the same procedures and maintain the same standards of quality, regardless of location or staff member.
For Hotels:
Daily room cleaning checklists, turnaround time standards, and approved cleaning chemicals for each surface are some examples.
For Workplaces:
Maintenance log, inspection schedule, and site safety sign-offs ensure each area satisfies compliance and cleanliness standards.
How to Standardise Effectively:
- Written cleaning procedures or cleaning manuals.
- Training all staff on identical methods and products.
- Standards need to be reviewed at least annually, or upon the introduction of new equipment.
Why it Matters:
Standardisation equals consistent quality and safety compliance while also easing staff training.
Sustain — (Clean Maintain and Continue to Improve)
Cleanliness is a constant goal, and the sustain principle is all about the control of standards and the upkeep of discipline and proactive enhancements.
In Hotels and Workplaces:
- Take quality audits of the housekeeping at set intervals.
- Reward staff for consistent standards.
- Adopt new cleaning approaches aligned with eco-sustainability.
In homes:
To reduce the likelihood of dirty space, set cleaning schedules which include daily exercises and constant upkeep, along with deep cleaning sessions every quarter.
Why it Matters:
Sustained housekeeping habits promote the prevention of a decline in cleanliness and establish a sense of pride and accountability.
Safety — Make Health and Safety Hazards a Priority
No housekeeping programme is complete without safety. Safety is an integral part of housekeeping. Orderliness and safety go hand in hand. A clean and tidy environment can reduce accidents, and proper cleaning practices can prevent chemical and physical hazards.
Guidelines for housekeeping safety:
- Store and secure chemicals and do not mix cleaning agents.
- Wear protective gloves, aprons and masks when necessary.
- Post “Wet Floor” or other hazard signs to warn people.
- Keep emergency contact numbers and first aid supplies handy.
In Healthcare and Hospitality:
Abide by the COSHH regulations, use the proper dilution of disinfectants, and ensure the room is ventilated when cleaning to mitigate airborne infections.
Why It Matters:
Housekeeping is not complete without considering the health and safety of everyone.
Self-Discipline — Build Good Habits and Responsibility
The last principle, self-discipline, is the most important. It is the orderly and clean state of an environment and the effort to keep it that way without supervision.
For professionals, self-discipline means every member of the staff, even those at the front desk and the janitor, understands the standard of order and cleanliness they are expected to maintain.
For homes, it is personal commitment to self-discipline; putting things back where they belong, cleaning up immediately after use, and being consistent with routines.
Ways to Promote Self-Discipline:
- Offering staff training and refresher courses is important.
- Supervisors should lead by example, demonstrating the standards.
- Recognition should be given to those who reward consistency and detail.
The Importance of Self-Discipline
Without self-discipline, the most effective systems will ultimately collapse and fail. Unwavering efforts and self-discipline will guarantee the long-lasting hygiene, safety, and pride in the workplace or in the home.
Applying the Principles: Different Environments of Housekeeping
Take a look at how these seven principles are compatible with different environments.
1. Hotel Housekeeping
In the hospitality sector, housekeeping rules for hotels focus on efficiency, guest satisfaction, and brand image. Clean rooms, fresh linen, and sanitised bathrooms create memorable stays. Consistent training and room-check audits help maintain standards.
2. Healthcare Housekeeping
One cannot overstate the importance of housekeeping in healthcare. It covers all aspects of infection control, patient recovery, and even regulatory compliance. Proper segregation of waste, sterilisation, and routine disinfection are crucial practices in the healthcare system and the WHO guidelines.
3. Workplace and Industrial Housekeeping
In factories, offices, and warehouses, good housekeeping minimises hazards and ensures smooth operations. Clean floors, well-marked walkways, and organised storage prevent accidents and improve morale.
4. Domestic Housekeeping
When it comes to homes, these principles mean routines for the family to enjoy cleanliness and comfort. Housekeeping techniques for homes include decluttering regularly, eco-friendly cleaning, and the safe storage of chemicals, all of which contribute to improved health for family members.
Housekeeping Best Practices 2025
As we enter 2025, the impact of new technology and new approaches to sustainability and eco-friendly cleaning will reshape the practice of professional housekeeping. Here are some trends in the practice of housekeeping for 2025:
- Cleaning for Health: The promotion of health and cleaning for the environment with the use of non-toxic and biodegradable cleaning materials.
- Digital Task Checklists: The use of apps to schedule and track cleaning activities in hotels and other facilities.
- Smart Cleaning Tools: The use of automated floor scrubbers and robotic vacuums to improve efficiency.
- Training for Global Standardisation: Global consistency using VR training modules and e-learning courses.
- Hygiene Certification: Newly validated health regulation compliance for workplaces and hospitality venues.
These innovations still support the same timeless principles of the practice of housekeeping. It just makes housekeeping more sustainable and applicable to today’s modern and fast-paced world.
The Importance of Housekeeping
The importance of the principles of housekeeping contains these seven elements: safety, self-discipline, sort, set in order, standardise, and sustain. With these principles, you will create a clean, safe, efficient, and welcoming space.
The principles illustrated in this text apply to any type of maintenance, whether it be for a hotel, a healthcare facility, or your home.
Conclusion
Thus, what are the seven principles of housekeeping?
The seven principles are sorting, setting in order, shining, standardising, sustaining, safety, and self-discipline. In 2025, focused np first cleans, the principles incorporate sustainability, modern technology, and improvements. These principles can help create a positive work and professional environment.
Good housekeeping should never just be about cleaning. It should create harmony, safety, and comfort for people, whether at home or in the workplace.