Daycare and Childcare Centre Cleaning in Ottawa: What a Proper Clean Covers

Daycare and childcare centres in Ottawa face cleaning demands that a standard office or retail cleaning routine doesn't cover. Children spend their day at floor level, put toys and their hands in their mouths, and share close quarters with dozens of other kids — which means the bar for surface disinfection and product safety is much higher than in a typical workplace.

Why Childcare Cleaning Is Different From Office Cleaning

A daycare's highest-touch surfaces aren't desks and keyboards — they're toys, table tops, door handles, cubby hooks, and floor mats. Children also crawl, sit, and nap directly on floors, so a cleaning pass that only addresses waist-height surfaces misses most of what actually needs attention. Product choice matters more too: harsh chemical smells and residues that would be a non-issue in an office are a real concern in a room full of toddlers, so a childcare clean needs products the centre is comfortable having children in close contact with shortly afterward.

What a Proper Daycare Cleaning Checklist Covers

• Toys, play equipment, and shared learning materials wiped down and disinfected

• Nap mats, cots, and bedding-adjacent surfaces cleaned between uses

• Diaper-change stations and surrounding surfaces sanitized to the centre's own protocol

• Door handles, light switches, cubbies, and other high-touch points

• Floors mopped and vacuumed, including corners and under low furniture children can reach

• Handwashing stations and washroom fixtures disinfected

• Kitchen and snack-prep counters cleaned and sanitized

• Window sills, low shelving, and any surface within a child's reach

• Garbage and diaper-disposal areas emptied and sanitized

• Rooms ventilated after cleaning, before children re-enter

Scheduling Around a Centre's Hours

Cleaning almost always has to happen when children aren't in the room — after closing, before opening, or during a window when a specific room is empty. We coordinate directly with the centre director on timing, since disrupting nap schedules or pickup and drop-off isn't an option. A consistent after-hours or early-morning slot works best for most centres so the routine doesn't shift week to week.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you use products that are safe to have around children?

We can accommodate requests for non-toxic, fragrance-free cleaning products where a centre asks for them. Let us know your preference when booking and we'll work with it.

Can you clean daily, or only on a set schedule?

Both. Some centres want a daily pass on high-touch areas with a deeper clean weekly; others prefer a different rhythm. We build the schedule around what the centre actually needs.

Do you help centres prepare for licensing inspections?

We can align our cleaning schedule around an upcoming inspection date if you let us know in advance, though maintaining licensing compliance itself remains the centre's responsibility.

Is this service available outside Ottawa?

We serve daycare and childcare centres in Ottawa and the immediate surrounding area, including Gatineau.

If you run a daycare or childcare centre in the Ottawa area and want a cleaning routine built around your actual hours and concerns, call +1 613-439-2097 or email saintyves.ca@gmail.com to set it up.