Janitorial and Personal Care
JOURNEY INFORMATION
This page outlines your janitorial and personal care eco-journey and is here to help you stay determined and on track! It contains detailed actions that you and your nursery setting can take at every step of your journey towards sustainability (including ways to share the message).
If you haven’t already, visit the Eco wheel page which will give you step by step instructions on utilising the information available on this site, in the most logical order!
If you’re one step ahead and ready to get going with your journey docs, either follow the stages one-by-one by scrolling down and reading the steps in order. Or use the menu to the left to jump to your desired stage!
Next step: Getting familiar with the Janitorial & Personal Care impact docs!
Alternatively, to view the downloadable PDF version of this content select the link below
No Priority for the environment
If you are at this stage…..
Below is a description of a setting at the beginning of its eco-journey which currently has No Priority for the Environment in terms of the use of janitorial and personal care products.
- Janitorial purchases contain harsh, environmentally damaging chemicals (e.g. irritant and anti-bacterial products) and are stored in single use plastic (SUP) containers.
- Multi-use plastic is not recycled.
- Paper is consumed extensively for hand drying and materials are not recycled.
If you are at this stage…..
Some Consideration for the environment
In-House Actions
Below is a description of a setting which qualifies for the stage: Some Consideration for the Environment, in terms of the use of janitorial and personal care products.
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An inventory has been undertaken for all janitorial items within the setting.
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The 8Rs are starting to be applied.
Chemicals
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The ingredients of janitorial products are given some consideration in terms of their impact on natural ecosystems.
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The type of hand soap used is re-evaluated to reduce plastic waste and environmental impacts. Unwrapped bars of soap should be introduced in both adult and children bathrooms.
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Disposal of all chemicals (including paints) is done safely, with consideration of environmental impacts.
Paper Products
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Switch to recycled paper towels and toilet paper. Paper towels may also be replaced with washable towels.
Plastics
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For advice on SUP (single use plastic e.g. surface wipes, plastic gloves, aprons) waste reduction, refer to the ‘Single Use Plastic and Nappies’ journey document. Relevant advice is marked with an asterisk (*).
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A system is implemented to allow multi-use plastics (e.g. cleaning product bottles) to be sorted and recycled.
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All multi-use plastics are bought with their longevity and recyclability in mind.
Personal care products
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More environmentally friendly personal care products are used e.g. bamboo toothbrushes.
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Staff are made aware of more environmentally conscious personal care products.
Sharing the Message
Colleague Engagement
Pedagogy & Curricula
Parents & Community
Colleague Engagement
Staff understand the 8Rs and begin to implement these with regards to janitorial products. Staff start to understand the consequences of anti-bacterial products and the impact of harsh chemicals on the eco-system. Staff are involved with introducing DIY surface wipes and share their benefits with the children and parents.
Pedagogy & Curricula
Children help sort the recycling. Children understand the importance of trees and are aware that paper comes from trees. They understand the concept of recycled paper, and how this protects our forests. This could be achieved by making recycled paper within the setting.
Parents & Community
Share with parents recycled paper suppliers. Ensure parents are aware of the 8Rs message with recycling areas prominent to see.
Improvements making a difference
If you are at this stage….
In-House Actions
Below is a description of a setting which qualifies for the stage: Improvements Making a Difference, in terms of the use of janitorial and personal care products.
Chemicals
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The 8Rs are being more widely introduced. The long-term impacts of harsh cleaning chemicals and anti-bacterial agents are understood.
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More environmentally-friendly cleaning chemicals are being introduced e.g. products from BioVation, ECO3, Bio D and Ecoleaf, Ecozone and Faith in Nature.
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Soaps are starting to be not anti-bacterial versions and plastic packaging; dispensers are at least all recyclable but ideally eliminated.
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Harmful clothes and dish washing chemicals are replaced with eco-friendly alternatives, such as Eco-eggs.
Paper Products
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Reduce the use of recycled paper towels by considering swapping to low energy hand dryers (if your setting uses a renewable supply of energy).
Plastics
- Seek further advice from the ‘Single Use Plastic and Nappies’ journey document.
- Multi-use plastics are reused and repurposed (e.g. spray bottles could be filled with water and used to mist plants, bottles could be made into bird feeders) at least once before being recycled.
- Cleaning products are starting to be bought in bulk and are decanted and diluted to save packaging and money.
Sharing the Message
Colleague Engagement
Pedagogy & Curricula
Parents & Community
Colleague Engagement
Staff share changes with parents and visitors. Staff can confidently discuss the benefits and reasoning behind the changes within the setting.
Pedagogy & Curricula
Children are taught how to wash and dry their hands properly, to save on soap and paper towels, whilst maintaining good hygiene.
Parents & Community
Eco-friendly products changes are shared with parents to inform them and allow similar changes to be made at home.
Doing well on your eco journey
If you are this stage…
In-House Actions
Below is a description of a setting which qualifies for the stage: Doing Well on Your Eco Journey, in terms of the use of janitorial and personal care products.
Doing really well
- The 8Rs are almost entirely implemented.
- The long-term impacts of harsh cleaning chemicals and anti-bacterial agents are well understood and specific chemicals are avoided (e.g. Triclosan and Parabens).
- Environmentally-friendly cleaning chemicals are used in most applications e.g. products from BioVation, ECO3, Bio D and Ecoleaf, Ecozone, Faith in Nature products.
- Soaps are mostly not anti-bacterial (to reduce the use of unnecessary harmful chemicals) and plastic packaging is reduced. Dispensers are recyclable if not entirely eliminated.
Paper Products
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Any paper products used are made from recycled materials and are composted or recycled.
plastics
- SUPs are mostly eliminated and if not, they are recycled.
- Multi-use plastics are partially made from recycled materials and all are recycled at the end of their use in the setting after being repurposed and reused multiple times.
- Cleaning products are predominantly bought in bulk and are decanted and diluted to save packaging and money.
Sharing the Message
Colleague Engagement
Pedagogy & Curricula
Parents & Community
Colleague Engagement
Staff will readily explain why they are switching to eco-friendly alternatives and give advice to parents about the best practices/ alternatives. Staff implement similar changes at homes.
Pedagogy & Curricula
Children are taught to put dirty tissues in the correct bin (without bin bags).
Parents & Community
Introduce ‘parent days’ whereby parents are invited to learn and take part in different eco-friendly cleaning practices, such as creating wet wipes.
Gone Fully Green
If you are this stage…
Below is a description of a setting which qualifies for the stage: Gone Fully Green, in terms of the use of janitorial and personal care products.
In-House Actions
Chemicals
- The 8Rs are fully implemented for all janitorial and personal care products used within the setting.
- All cleaning products have been considered from an environmental perspective, and their negative impact has been minimised.
- Hand washing chemicals do not have any impact on the environment.
Paper products
- Hand drying has a minimal impact on the environment by either: 1) conversion to low energy, green air hand dryers, 2) composting recycled paper or 3) reusing cotton towels.
Plastics
- SUPs are eliminated in all cases unless they are critical to maintain adequate hygiene.
- All multi-use plastics are made from recycled materials (e.g. “I’m green” plastics), are reused or repurposed multiple times and are recycled or biodegraded at the end of use.
- All cleaning products are bought in bulk and are decanted and diluted (whenever possible) to save packaging and money.
Sharing the Message
Colleague Engagement
Pedagogy & Curricula
Parents & Community
Colleague Engagement
Staff are ambassadors for eco-friendly cleaning practices/ products, they use the alternatives themselves at home and they share changes with friends and families.
Pedagogy & Curricula
Older children understand some of the environmental issues with normal cleaning products (e.g. the impact of chemicals in the water system).
Parents & Community
Parents only use environmentally friendly cleaning products at home and dispose of packaging responsibly. They share changes with friends and family.