End of Tenancy Cleaning in Surrey Quays

A 2-bed flat on the second floor of one of the blocks facing Greenland Dock — built in the early 1990s during the LDDC era. Two bedrooms, one bathroom, an open-plan kitchen-living room with a balcony looking out over the dock. A couple — both working Canary Wharf, Thames Clipper from Greenland Pier — 18 months at £1,950/month. Oliver Jaques managing from their SE16 office. Gina coordinating.

Underground parking — pre-booked via Gina the day before. Lift to the second floor.

Kitchen-living area first. Open plan, about 18ft by 12ft. The kitchen section was original 1990s — laminate doors, some with slight swelling at the base near the dishwasher. Noted. Fitted oven, electric, integrated. Door off, glass out, spray, 20 minutes. One pass — 18 months, a couple who ate out more than they cooked in. Hob done, four ceramic rings. Extractor recirculating — the original 1990s type, metal mesh filter. Soaked, cleaned, came out okay but the housing is yellowed with age. Noted. Fridge-freezer cleaned. Floor: ceramic tile, pH-neutral mop.

The balcony — about 6ft by 4ft, glass balustrade, overlooking the dock. Swept. Balustrade wiped both sides. The dock view catches the light off Canary Wharf in the evening — you can see why people take the flat.

Living section: carpet vacuumed, skirting wiped, radiators cleaned. The sliding balcony door track had a build-up of urban dust and dock moisture — dark, slightly oily. Vacuumed and wiped.

Bathroom. Bath-shower combo with a plastic curtain rail (curtain removed by tenant). Limescale at ~265 ppm, 18 months. Waterline: one pass. Taps done. Toilet done. Floor mopped. Grouting between the tiles was discoloured — 30+ years of use, not 18 months. Photographed as building age.

Two bedrooms. Both with carpet, both with wardrobes. The master overlooked the dock — sill had the same dock moisture film as the balcony track. Wiped. The second bedroom was used as a home office. Monitor stand mark on the desk area. Photographed.

Apartment front door wiped both sides.

3 hours. Straightforward Docklands flat. The dated kitchen fittings and the grouting are building age — the flat is 30+ years old and the surfaces show it.

Oliver Jaques came the next morning. Gina sent their SE16 lettings person — she does these Greenland Dock blocks every week. Kitchen: oven checked, laminate swelling noted as fitting age, extractor housing noted as original. Bathroom: waterline gone, grouting photographed and accepted as building age. Balcony: clean. Dock-sill moisture: accepted as location. Monitor mark: accepted. About 8 minutes. Passed.

Deposit back in 7 days. Full return. The couple were moving to a new-build at Canada Water — the Masterplan flats, bigger, newer, one stop on the Overground.

Surrey Quays Docklands flats are the middle layer of SE16 — newer than Rotherhithe's Victorian warehouses, older than Canada Water's regeneration towers. The buildings are 30–40 years old, the kitchens are showing it, and the dock creates its own moisture. We clean the flat, document the building, and the deposit comes back. Our guide on deposit dispute evidence covers how to separate 18 months of tenant use from 30 years of building age.