Tender-Ready Pack: SAMPLE

Prepared for: Sample Cleaning Ltd (a fictional contract cleaner with 45 staff, based in Walsall and serving the West Midlands) What's in it: the 8 policies that public buyers ask for in the Selection Questionnaire, each on one page and signed by a director, plus one worked quality answer (a method statement). How a real pack is made: a short written form (no call needed) covering staff numbers, sites, equipment, training and certificates. We then fill in every bracketed detail, so nothing is left generic.

1. Health and Safety Policy

Statement of intent. Sample Cleaning Ltd will provide safe working conditions for its employees, the people who use the sites it cleans, and anyone else affected by its work, and will comply with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the regulations made under it.

Responsibilities

• The Managing Director has overall responsibility for health and safety. They review this policy every year and after any serious incident.
• The Operations Manager puts the policy into practice. They complete site risk assessments before each contract starts, keep COSHH assessments up to date, and investigate accidents within 48 hours.
• Area Supervisors carry out monthly site safety checks, deliver toolbox talks, and make sure staff wear the right PPE and use the right products.
• Every employee takes reasonable care of themselves and others, follows safe systems of work, and reports hazards and accidents straight away.

Arrangements

• Risk assessment. Every site has a written risk assessment covering slips and trips, lone working, manual handling, working at height (stepladders only; nothing above 2 m without a separate assessment), electrical equipment and sharps.
• COSHH. We keep a safety data sheet and a COSHH assessment for every chemical we use. Products are colour-coded, decanted only into labelled containers, and locked away when not in use. We use concentrated dosing systems to cut down handling.
• Training. Induction on day one, COSHH and manual handling within the first week, and an annual refresher. We keep a training record for each employee.
• Equipment. Electrical equipment is PAT-tested every year and visually checked before each use. Faulty equipment is tagged and taken out of use.
• Accidents. All accidents and near misses go in the accident book. We report RIDDOR incidents to the HSE within the legal deadlines.
• Lone working. Lone workers check in and out by phone app, and a missed check-in is followed up within 30 minutes.
• Consultation. Staff are consulted through supervisor meetings and a named safety representative.
• Insurance. Employer's liability £10m; public liability £5m [client to confirm].

Signed: [Director], Managing Director. Date: [date]. Next review: [date + 12 months].

2. Environmental Policy

Sample Cleaning Ltd is committed to reducing the environmental impact of its cleaning services. We comply with all relevant environmental law and aim to go beyond it where we can.

Our commitments

• Chemicals. We use concentrated, dilution-controlled products, and EU Ecolabel or equivalent products where they do the job. This cuts chemical use, packaging and delivery journeys.
• Water and energy. Microfibre cloths and mops reduce water and chemical use by up to 90% compared with traditional methods. Machines are battery-powered, low-noise models where available.
• Waste. We recycle packaging and support each client's own waste separation. We never pour chemicals down surface drains.
• Travel. Staff are recruited close to their sites wherever possible. Supervisors plan routes to combine site visits.
• Suppliers. We prefer suppliers who can show environmental certification and take back packaging.
• Carbon. We measure our Scope 1 and 2 emissions every year and publish a Carbon Reduction Plan [for contracts that need PPN 006 compliance].

Targets for [year]: reduce chemical volume per site by 15%, move 100% of floor care to microfibre, and switch our two supervisor vans to electric or hybrid when their leases renew.

Responsibility sits with the Operations Manager. We review progress every quarter and this policy every year.

Signed: [Director]. Date: [date].

3. Quality Policy

We aim to deliver cleaning to an agreed, measurable standard every day, and to fix problems before the client notices them.

• Specification first. For each site, we turn the client's specification into a task schedule by area and frequency, which is displayed in the cleaner's cupboard.
• Audits. Supervisors carry out a scored audit of every site at least monthly (weekly in the first 3 months of a contract), using a standard based on the BSI PAS 5748 approach to cleanliness scoring. The target is 90% or above. Any score under 85% triggers a written action plan within 5 working days.
• Client feedback. Clients get a named supervisor, a direct phone number, and a monthly or quarterly review meeting with scores, issues and actions.
• Complaints. We acknowledge complaints within 4 working hours and fix urgent issues the same day. We log every complaint, review it at month end, and look for patterns.
• Continuous improvement. Audit results, complaints and staff suggestions are reviewed monthly by management. [If held: We are certified to ISO 9001:2015, certificate no. ____.]

Signed: [Director]. Date: [date].

4. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy

Sample Cleaning Ltd treats everyone fairly and with respect, and complies with the Equality Act 2010. We do not discriminate on the grounds of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation.

• Recruitment. Jobs are advertised openly, with plain-English descriptions. Where helpful, application support is given in [Polish, Romanian, Punjabi]. Interview decisions are based on job-related criteria only.
• Pay. All staff are paid at least the Real Living Wage [or: the National Living Wage; say which honestly]. Pay rates are set by role, not by individual negotiation.
• Reasonable adjustments. We make reasonable adjustments for disabled staff, such as shift patterns, equipment and duties.
• Language. Safety training and COSHH instructions are given in each worker's main language where needed, with picture-based guides.
• Bullying and harassment. These are disciplinary offences. Staff can raise concerns with their supervisor, the Operations Manager, or a director directly.
• Monitoring. We collect anonymous equality data at recruitment and review it every year.

The Managing Director is responsible for this policy. We review it every year.

Signed: [Director]. Date: [date].

5. Modern Slavery and Ethical Labour Statement

The cleaning sector is recognised as a higher-risk industry for labour exploitation. Sample Cleaning Ltd is below the £36m turnover threshold in section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, but publishes this statement voluntarily because public buyers rightly expect it.

What we do

• Right to work. We check every employee's right to work in person or through a certified digital identity provider before their first shift, and keep copies.
• Direct employment. We employ our cleaners directly. We do not use labour agencies or gangmasters, except [named agency, if used], which we check every year.
• Pay. Wages are paid only into bank accounts in the worker's own name. We watch for several workers sharing one bank account or address, a known warning sign.
• No fees. Workers never pay fees for recruitment, uniforms, equipment or training.
• Training. Supervisors are trained to spot the signs of exploitation (for example, someone else collecting a worker's wages, or a worker without their own ID documents), and staff know how to report concerns, including to the Modern Slavery Helpline (08000 121 700).
• Suppliers. Our main product and equipment suppliers are asked to confirm their own anti-slavery policies.

We review this statement every year.

Signed: [Director]. Date: [date].

6. Safeguarding Policy (children and adults at risk)

Much of our work is in schools, academies and care settings, so safeguarding is part of how we recruit, train and supervise.

• Checks. Every employee working in a school or care setting has an Enhanced DBS check (with barred list checks where the role is regulated activity) before starting, and we renew it every 3 years [or: we use the DBS Update Service]. We share evidence with the client's Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) on request, for their Single Central Record.
• Working hours. Cleaning in schools is scheduled outside pupil hours wherever possible. Staff on site during the school day wear ID badges and follow the school's signing-in procedures.
• Training. All staff complete safeguarding awareness training at induction and every year after, covering what abuse looks like, not being alone with a child where avoidable, not taking photos, and how to report.
• Reporting. Any concern is reported immediately to the client's DSL, and to our own Safeguarding Lead, [name], the Operations Manager. We never investigate ourselves.
• Allegations against staff. The worker is removed from site straight away. We work with the client and the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO), and make DBS referrals where the law requires it.
• Safer recruitment. Two references, gaps in employment history explained, and identity confirmed in person.

Signed: [Director]. Date: [date].

7. Data Protection (UK GDPR) Policy

Sample Cleaning Ltd is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (registration no. [____]) and processes personal data in line with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

• What we hold. Employee records (including right-to-work and DBS details), and client contact details. We do not normally access client data. Staff are instructed not to read, move or photograph documents or screens on the sites they clean.
• Security. HR records are stored in [system] with role-based access and two-factor authentication. Paper records are kept locked. DBS certificates are handled in line with the DBS code of practice and not kept longer than needed.
• Retention. We keep records only as long as needed, following a written retention schedule (for example, payroll records for 6 years).
• Keys and access. Keys and access cards are signed out in a register, and losses are reported to the client within 1 hour.
• Breaches. Suspected breaches are reported to the Managing Director at once, and to the ICO within 72 hours where required. We notify clients without delay when their data or premises are involved.
• Rights. Subject access requests are answered within one month.

Data protection lead: [Director]. Reviewed every year.

Signed: [Director]. Date: [date].

8. Anti-Bribery and Business Conduct Policy

Sample Cleaning Ltd does not tolerate bribery or corruption of any kind, and complies with the Bribery Act 2010.

• Staff and directors must not offer, give, ask for or accept any bribe, facilitation payment or improper advantage.
• Gifts and hospitality. These must be modest, occasional and recorded in a register if worth more than £50. We never give gifts to a buyer's staff during a live procurement.
• Conflicts of interest. Any personal link to a client or to anyone involved in evaluating a tender must be declared to a director.
• Whistleblowing. Staff can report concerns in confidence to a director, or externally, without fear of retaliation.
• Breaches. Breaches are disciplinary matters and may lead to dismissal and a report to the authorities.

Signed: [Director]. Date: [date].

Worked quality answer: SAMPLE

Buyer: a fictional 1,100-pupil secondary academy. Question (weighted 25%, 1,000 words max): "Describe how you will deliver the cleaning service to the required standard, including staffing, supervision, quality monitoring and how you will manage periods of absence."

Our approach

We will clean the academy to the frequencies set out in the specification, with a stable team that knows the building and a supervisor who is on site every day. Our model has three parts: the right people in the right hours, daily supervision with measured quality, and cover that never leaves an area uncleaned.

1. Staffing and hours

From the specification's areas and frequencies, we have calculated 112 cleaning hours a week during term time:

Afternoon shifts start after the last lesson, so cleaning does not disturb teaching and staff are not on site with pupils unsupervised. The day cleaner's lunchtime shift covers the times when problems happen, such as toilets and the dining hall, and works to the academy's safeguarding and signing-in rules.

TUPE. We expect the current cleaning team to transfer under TUPE. We will meet every transferring employee individually in the first 2 weeks, confirm their terms, and have them trained in our systems before day one. Keeping experienced staff who know the academy is the fastest way to protect standards.

2. How the work is organised

Each area (classroom blocks, science labs, toilets, dining, sports hall, offices) has a task card showing exactly what is cleaned and how often: daily, weekly or periodic. Cards are colour-coded to match our cloths and mops (red for toilets, blue for general areas, green for kitchens and dining, yellow for medical rooms), which prevents cross-contamination.

• Toilets are cleaned and checked daily. At lunchtime they are checked and restocked by the day cleaner.
• Science labs and the medical room follow a separate procedure agreed with the academy's science technician and first aider.
• Periodic work is scheduled for school holidays and agreed with the Business Manager at least 4 weeks ahead. This includes deep cleaning, carpet extraction, floor stripping and resealing, and high-level dusting.

3. Supervision and quality monitoring

• Every day: the Site Supervisor walks a sample of areas each evening and fixes problems before the team leaves. Issues reported by the academy through our phone line or shared email are logged, and urgent ones (spills, toilets, anything affecting safety) are dealt with the same day.
• Every week (first 3 months), then monthly: a scored audit of at least 20% of rooms, covering every area type, using our 0–100 audit tool. The target is 90% or above. Any room below 85% is re-cleaned and re-audited within 48 hours, and the result is shared with the academy.
• Every month: our Area Manager carries out an independent audit and meets the Business Manager to review scores, issues and upcoming periodic work. Once a term, we report on the KPIs in the specification, such as audit score, response times and staffing levels.
• Joint audits: we invite the academy to audit alongside us every term, so scores are trusted by both sides.

4. Absence and cover

We will never leave an area uncleaned because someone is off.

• Staff report absence to the Site Supervisor by 12:00. The supervisor calls in cover from our relief pool of 6 trained, DBS-checked cleaners who already know the site.
• If cover can't be found in time, the supervisor follows a priority plan agreed with the academy: toilets, dining and medical rooms first, then classrooms in use the next day. We tell the Business Manager the same evening, and any missed tasks are caught up within 24 hours.
• Holiday is planned in advance and capped so that no more than 1 operative is off at a time during term.
• Our relief pool members work at least 2 shadow shifts on site before covering alone, and are on the academy's Single Central Record.

5. People and training

All staff receive our induction before their first shift. It covers safeguarding, COSHH, colour-coding, manual handling, and the academy's own rules (fire procedures, signing in, and no photos or phones in classrooms). Refresher training is every year. Staff are paid [the Real Living Wage] and we give 2 weeks' notice of rotas. We believe these are the main reasons our staff turnover is [__]% compared with a sector average of around 30%.

6. Why this will work for the academy

• A supervisor on site every day, not a mobile manager who visits once a month.
• Quality you can see: audit scores shared monthly and a 48-hour re-clean promise.
• Cover from people who already know the building.
• A team that stays because it is treated and paid well.

(About 800 words. In a real bid, every number is taken from the client's own records and the buyer's specification.)

Quality checks we run on every pack before delivery: word counts against the buyer's limits; every claim backed by something the client can evidence (a certificate, a policy or a record); UK English; no invented accreditations; and bracketed details confirmed with the client, never guessed.