Taking care of your estate

Find out how we work with residents, staff and contractors to ensure our estates are clean, tidy and safe places to live and work

Cleaning and caretaking services are provided by our estate services team. We also have external contractors who provide window cleaning and grounds maintenance services across the borough.

Estate walkabouts

We monitor the standard of work by having regular inspections and estate walkabouts with housing officers and residents.

You can find your next estate walkabout schedule online

Estate services standards

Estate services manage the shared areas, inside and out, of more than 430 blocks.

We work in close partnership with our contractors, staff and residents.

This is so we can improve the quality and standards of the estates in line with our estate standards guide 

We strive to make sure your estates are clean, tidy and safe places to live and work. We aim to give you a pleasant environment to live in that is fair and affordable.

If standards aren’t being met

You can report online if an area is not meeting the standard.

Email: estate.services@kingston.gov.uk

Phone:020 8547 5003

Maintaining our standards 

We will be using a rating system to check whether standards are being met. Our aim is that all our estates will meet the standard.

We will inspection every 3 months to identity any poor standards.

Check when your next estate inspection will take place. You can find details of your housing officer and other local facilities for you to access

What to expect

Caretaker and estate cleaning services

There are many cleaners and caretakers in the estate services team. They work in weekly cycles.

Our cleaners clean communal areas to a high standard. They report any safety issues they come across.

Block noticeboards will let you know when the cleaning will take place and what will be done. 

External areas of blocks and estates

Our in-house caretaking and cleaning teams carry out day-to-day tasks.

Teams across the council collect bulk waste, remove graffiti, clear fly=tipping etc. 

Window cleaning 

The windows in public areas are cleaned 3 times a year. Check when your windows will be cleaned next

New Concept provides the window cleaning service and details of what they provide each time they visit are shown below;

Grounds maintenance 

The grass will be cut regularly. Trees, hedges and flower beds will be tidied.

If you live in a property with a private garden, you’re responsible for maintaining your own grounds.

Council teams maintain and prune trees on communal land. If you have a private garden, tree maintenance is also your responsibility.

You can report issues with trees in communal areas online. We’ll inspect the tree and prioritise any work.

Glendale Services provide the grass cutting and grounds maintenance. They look after:

  • your estates
  • parks
  • play areas

They also maintain some horticulture across the borough.

Check when hedges and grass will be cut

Health and safety inspections 

We’ll make sure: 

  • there is clear access to shared areas for emergency services
  • areas are safe and free from hazards
  • stop unauthorised access
  • we will remove stored forbid flammable items in communal spaces

How we charge for caretaker, cleaning and grounds maintenance services

Tenants

As a council tenant, you'll pay a service charge in addition to your rent. This covers:

  • caretaker services
  • cleaning services
  • estate maintenance

Leaseholders

If you’re a leaseholder, you pay for caretaker services and estate repairs for your block.

Contact your tenancy services officer

You can get in touch with your tenancy services officer by: