Following the thread and picking up some of the earlier discussion about respective responsibilities of landlords and tenants re. repairs and cleanliness. According to CAB's advice on the legal position, tenants ARE required to keep their home reasonably clean (highly subjective, I know, but an absence of poo would cover most people's definitions, I"d guess! - sorry, I'm not trying to be goady, just work out what would be reasonable). Equally, I"m required (as a LL) to fix problems with pipes/drains, and I couldn't pass that over to the tenant by inserting a clause in the contract; BUT if a tenant blocks a lav by attempting to dispose of a nappy/sanitory towel down there, I could reasonably require the tenant to pay the costs of unblocking it, because they've misused the property:
Looking after your home
The law implies a condition into every tenancy agreement that the tenant must use their home in a ‘tenant-like’ way. This applies whether you have a written or an oral tenancy agreement.
Using your home in a tenant-like way generally means:
doing minor repairs yourself, such as changing fuses and light bulbs
keeping your home reasonably clean
not causing any damage to the property and making sure your visitors don’t cause any damage
using any fixtures and fittings properly, for example, not blocking a toilet by flushing something unsuitable down it.
Your tenancy agreement may also set out some express terms on what your responsibilities are for repairs, for example, that you are responsible for decorating your home.
Your landlord cannot include a term in your agreement that would pass on any of their repair responsibilities to you, for example, that you are responsible for repairs to the roof. This type of term would not have any force in law.