The Clean Start
How to set up, price and grow a cleaning business in the UK, by Robin Ashford.
£14.99
PDF ebook, 52 pages, about 13,000 words, with templates and checklists. Instant download.
What's inside
- Which cleaning business?
- What it costs to start
- Sole trader or limited company
- Registering with HMRC and paying tax
- Insurance
- Cleaning chemicals and COSHH
- Keys, alarm codes and data protection
- Terms, quotes and cancellations
- Working out your hourly rate
- Quoting different jobs
- VAT
- Your first 10 clients
- Google Business Profile and reviews
- Winning commercial contracts
- Keeping clients and raising prices
- Hiring your first cleaner
- Employees or subcontractors?
- Systems, scheduling and money
Plus a legal set-up checklist, three quote templates, a sample client agreement and a glossary.
Why this guide
Every legal and tax rule is checked against GOV.UK, HMRC, the Health and Safety Executive, the legislation itself or The Pensions Regulator, and the sources are listed. Where the book offers its own methods, such as pricing, it says so.
What it isn't
It isn't legal, tax or financial advice, and it isn't produced or endorsed by any government body. Rules change, so it tells you which figures to recheck.
Free sample: three businesses, three rates
The same pricing method gives very different answers depending on how you work. These profiles are illustrative.
| Part-time domestic | Full-time domestic | End-of-tenancy specialist | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Target profit | £12,000 | £28,000 | £35,000 |
| Yearly costs | £1,200 | £3,000 | £6,000 |
| Billable hours a year | 528 | 1,150 | 1,012 |
| Minimum rate | £25.00 | £26.96 | £40.51 |
The specialist needs a much higher rate because of fewer billable hours and higher costs. That's why end-of-tenancy work is priced by the job, not the hour. The book shows how.
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Get the free legal set-up checklist
Everything a UK cleaning business needs in place before the first paid job, and before the first employee. One page, each item linked to its official source.
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