Good housekeeping is more than cleaning a room quickly. It means working through a home in an orderly way, respecting the household, and knowing how to look after different rooms, fabrics and surfaces. If this is the work you know best, your application should show exactly what you have done.
What the work covers
Depending on the position, the work may include:
- Cleaning bedrooms, living areas, the kitchen and bathrooms
- Dusting, vacuuming and mopping
- Laundry and ironing
- Making beds and organizing wardrobes
- Keeping the rest of the home in order
No two households divide the work in quite the same way, so check what a particular job includes.
Housekeeper or housemaid?
Our application form lists both, and applicants often ask which to choose. The titles overlap, and employers do not all use them the same way. "Housemaid" is commonly used for general household help: cleaning, laundry and the everyday tasks of a home. "Housekeeper" is often used when the work centres on keeping the whole home clean, organized and running to a routine.
Neither title tells you what a particular job involves. That is set by the employer and should be explained to you before you accept. In the form, choose the title closest to the work you have done, or the one your previous employers used, and describe your actual duties in the skills box. That description matters more than the title.
Be specific about what you have done
"I know cleaning" does not help an employer. Explain the work instead. Were you responsible for the whole home or for certain areas? Did the laundry and ironing fall to you? Did you organize wardrobes? Did you work alone or alongside other staff? Three or four concrete answers make your experience easy to understand.
If laundry is part of your experience, describe it separately: sorting, washing, drying, folding, ironing and putting clothes away. Mention delicate garments only if you have really handled them.
Products and surfaces you do not know
Different surfaces need different care, and nobody knows every product. If you are given a cleaning product you have not used before, or an instruction you do not understand, ask before you start. Asking takes a moment. Damaging something because you were afraid to ask is much harder to put right.
Every home has its own system
A home can be clean and still feel disorganized. Part of the job is returning things to their agreed places, keeping rooms in order and following the household's routine. Families do this differently, so learn their way of doing things before assuming that your last employer's way is the right one.
Speed on its own does not make a good housekeeper. Employers value thorough, consistent work done safely and in good time.
Housework and childcare
Do not call yourself a nanny simply because children lived in a home where you worked. If your responsibility was the cleaning and not the children, describe it that way. If you have also cared for children, the nanny guide explains how to present that.
In the interview
Be ready to talk about the size and type of homes you have looked after, your main cleaning duties, your laundry and ironing experience, any cooking you did, and the countries where you have worked. Real examples are always more convincing than general statements.
Common questions
Is cooking always part of a housekeeping job?
Not necessarily. It depends on the position, so ask.
Do I need to know every cleaning product?
No. Follow the household's instructions and the safety directions on the product, and ask when you are unsure.
How do I apply?
Use the application form and choose "Housekeeper" or "Housemaid". You send no documents with it. Our team contacts you within 24 hours, and the step-by-step guide explains what happens after that.