1. Home: Explore careers
  2. Housekeeper

Housekeeper

Alternative titles for this job include Hotel housekeeper, housekeeping manager, head housekeeper

Housekeepers organise hotel staff to make sure that all the rooms are kept clean and tidy.

Average salary (a year)

£14,500 Starter

to

£25,000 Experienced

Typical hours (a week)

38 to 40 a week

You could work

evenings / weekends / bank holidays on shifts

How to become

Explore the different ways to get into this role.

How to become a housekeeper

You can get into this job through:

  • a college course
  • an apprenticeship
  • working towards this role

College

You could take a college course to get some of the skills needed in this job. Courses include:

  • Level 2 Certificate in Hospitality and Catering Principles (Housekeeping)
  • Level 2 Certificate in Hospitality Industry Skills (Housekeeping)
  • Level 3 Award in Hospitality Supervision and Leadership Principles

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 2 or more GCSEs at grades 9 to 3 (A* to D), or equivalent, for a level 2 course
  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, for a level 3 course

More Information

Apprenticeship

You can get into this job through a hospitality supervisor advanced apprenticeship.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for an intermediate apprenticeship

More Information

Work

You may be able to work your way up from room attendant or floor manager, if you show you have the necessary skills.

Direct Application

You may be able to apply directly if you have experience of working in other roles in the hospitality industry, customer service or supervisory experience.

More Information

Career tips

You might have an advantage if you have a background in customer service, cleaning or portering.

Further information

You'll find more details about housekeeping careers through the Hospitality Guild.

What it takes

Find out what skills you’ll use in this role.

What it takes

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • persistence and determination
  • the ability to use your initiative
  • patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • to be flexible and open to change
  • customer service skills
  • knowledge of human resources and employment law
  • business management skills
  • to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device

What you’ll do

Discover the day to day tasks you’ll do in this role.

What you'll do

Day-to-day tasks

In this role you could:

  • prepare shift rotas and allocate daily cleaning duties to room attendants
  • inspect rooms to make sure that standards have been met
  • record any faults or damage and make arrangements for repairs
  • recruit, train and supervise staff
  • work closely with other department heads and the general manager

Working environment

You could work in a hotel, at a health spa or at a fitness centre.

Your working environment may be physically demanding.

Career path and progression

Look at progression in this role and similar opportunities.

Career path and progression

You could progress to head housekeeper or accommodation manager.

You could move into a related hotel job, like front-of-house manager, training manager, or domestic services management.

Current opportunities

Find apprenticeships, courses and jobs available near you.

Current opportunities

Apprenticeships In England

Assistant Manager Apprenticeship

  • Wage: £25,000.00 - £27,000.00 Annually
  • Location: Not known

Apprentice Shift Manager - Dudley

  • Wage: £15,912.00 Annually
  • Location: Not known
Find apprenticeships near you

Courses In England

Are you interested in becoming a housekeeper?

Search for training courses near you.

Jobs In the United Kingdom

The Find a job service can help you with your search for jobs and send alerts when new jobs become available.

Search further careers

Related careers

Skills assessment

Take an assessment to learn more about your skills and the careers that might suit you.

Speak to an adviser

Call 0800 100 900 to speak to an adviser.

We're open:

  • 8am - 8pm Monday - Friday
  • 10am - 5pm Saturday and bank holidays

We're closed Sunday, Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

Webchat

You can also use webchat.

Webchat is unavailable if you are using Internet Explorer 11 as your browser. To use webchat, try opening this page on a different web browser.

Is this page useful?

Yes No

Thank you for your feedback.

Thank you for your feedback. Click here if you'd like to let us know how we can improve the service.