With the children heading back to school, it’s the perfect time to reclaim your kitchen from the chaos of the summer holidays. Dishes piled high, toys and games all over the kitchen island and pantry cupboards packed with half-eaten snacks can make even the most spacious modern kitchen design feel cluttered. Here’s how to restore order, streamline storage, and create a functional and serene modern bespoke kitchen that will make the return to term time routines more enjoyable.

Begin with a thorough clean

After a hectic summer, your kitchen will benefit from a deep clean. Start by decluttering all visible surfaces, especially if you have an open view kitchen, and remove anything that normally lives elsewhere. Use a damp cloth to wipe down kitchen cabinet interior shelves and the inside of larder drawers – microfibre cloths are perfect for shining cabinet hardware, taps and metallic appliances.

Clear out the fridge and kitchen pantry cupboard, checking for expiry dates and any jars or bottles that have been open too long. This a good opportunity to assess what you use, check stock levels and pinpoint any undesirables for potential donation. Then give your kitchen work surfaces a thorough clean and wipe down kitchen larder doors and all other vertical surfaces. Most bespoke kitchen cabinets only require warm water and a soft cloth to remove fingerprints and spills. A splash of washing up liquid can help with grease marks but always avoid any abrasive, bleach-based or acidic cleaning products on bespoke cabinets.

Zone storage to boost efficiency

When the kids go back to school, breakfast and mealtime prep will inevitably need to speed up. One of the best ways to restore order in the kitchen is by reorganising storage with maximum efficiency in mind. Roundhouse kitchen designers always plan kitchen storage in terms of zones. These zones will depend on what and how you prefer to work in the kitchen, but generally revolve around prepping, cooking, cleaning and socialising. In each zone, the built in storage cupboards will be loaded with everything necessary for the task in hand. For example, pots and pans, cooking utensils, oils, herbs and spices will be close to the hob, while knife blocks, chopping boards and scales will be in the prepping zone (often on a large kitchen island worktop). Drawer dividers, kitchen storage racks and other bespoke storage solutions can all make a huge difference when it comes to maintaining order. Label containers, drawers, and shelves so everyone in the family quickly learns where things go. This also helps children be more independent in the kitchen.

Seek new storage opportunities

The main reason a kitchen descends into chaos over the summer is usually down to a simple lack of storage, especially as your family grows. It’s never too late to seek out new storage options. If you’ve already maxed out the number of cabinets that will fit into your layout, look to the walls for vertical storage opportunities. Pegboards, hooks and rails are all versatile solutions for organising your kitchen essentials, and they can be more stylish than you’d imagine. Even in a luxury contemporary kitchen, sleek backsplash storage for kitchen tools and ingredients can free up drawer space without ruining the modern, streamlined aesthetic. Floating shelves are another great way to add extra storage without taking up precious floor space. Use them to display frequently used items, such as spices, cookbooks, or small plants and invest in attractive containers and baskets to keep them neat and avoid visual clutter.

Establish a dedicated packed lunch station

For many, back-to-school comes with the dreaded rush to get packed lunches ready while completing several other tasks. Streamline the routine, make the school run less fraught and increase your chances of coming home to a tidy kitchen by creating a dedicated lunch prep station. A similar concept to the breakfast cupboard, which is an increasingly popular feature in Roundhouse kitchens, a lunch station puts everything needed for packed lunches in one place for grab-and-go ease.

A typical lunch station might include a drawer for sweet and savoury snacks, and another for drinks bottles, sandwich bags and containers. It should also be within easy reach of the fruit bowl and bread bin/butter. Upgrade with a refrigerated drawer that’s stocked with pre-loaded snack bowls, cheese sticks, yoghurt, drinks and sandwich fillers. In an ideal scenario, you (or your children) will be able to prep lunch with everything within arm’s reach.

How can I get my kitchen organised for back to school?

Getting mealtimes on track now the kids are headed back to school will go much more smoothly if you establish a weekly meal planning system. Dedicating half an hour on a Sunday night to plan meals and order groceries will make it easy for whoever is cooking to get cracking and helps avoid any last-minute takeaways. The super organised pre-prep ingredients to save time on busy school nights when rushing between clubs. Chopping vegetables, marinating proteins, and batch-cooking grains and proteins over the weekend can make weekday meals a breeze. Roundhouse designers recommend vacuum storage solutions, like Bora’s Q-Vac system, which are great for keeping prepped foods fresher for far longer and can be installed directly into modern kitchen worktops for a neat look.

Our expert kitchen designers can help you make the best choices for your Roundhouse bespoke kitchen, furniture or wardrobes. Visit any of our seven Roundhouse showrooms; Wigmore St, Clapham, Fulham, Richmond, Cambridge, Guildford & Cheltenham and get planning!