A landlord’s inspection, a social worker’s visit, a relative arriving, someone coming home from hospital. A date on the calendar can make a home that already felt heavy feel impossible. This plan is for that fortnight. It is not about making the home perfect. It is about making it safe, usable and a bit lighter, one small job a day.
Before you start
- Pick a time each day, 30 to 60 minutes, and a timer. Stop when it rings, even mid-job.
- Get bin bags in three colours, or labels: Keep, Donate, Rubbish.
- Tell one person you trust that you’re doing this, if you can. A friend on the phone while you sort (body doubling) helps more than it sounds.
What an inspection or a visit usually needs
Clear paths and exits, a working kitchen and bathroom, no rubbish going off, and the things that need checking reachable (boiler, meters, windows, smoke alarms). That is the list. Everything else can wait.
The fourteen days
Want it on the fridge? Get the free one-page 14-day plan by email (A4 or US Letter, colour or low ink).
| Day | One job |
|---|---|
| 1 | Walk the home with a notepad. Write the three things that would worry a visitor most. Nothing else today. |
| 2 | Rubbish only: food waste, packaging, anything going off. Bags out of the home today. |
| 3 | The front door to the main room: a clear path wide enough to walk without turning sideways. |
| 4 | Kitchen surfaces: one clear worktop and a clear sink. |
| 5 | Rest day, or carry over anything unfinished. |
| 6 | Bathroom: toilet, sink, bath or shower usable and reachable. |
| 7 | The things that get checked: boiler, meters, windows, smoke alarms. Clear a space in front of each. |
| 8 | Donate bags out of the home (see the West London donation guide). |
| 9 | Bedroom: a clear bed and a path to it. |
| 10 | Rest day. |
| 11 | Kitchen: fridge, then the floor. |
| 12 | One “hot spot” from day 1’s list. |
| 13 | Last rubbish and donation run. |
| 14 | Walk the home again. Notice what is done. Leave the rest for after the visit. |
If it is too much
You don’t have to do this alone. If the date is close and the home feels out of reach, ask for help early: a friend, family, your landlord or housing officer (most would rather hear early), your GP, or a decluttering service. Asking for help is not failing.