6 ways to automate closing safety checks

#1 - Simple checklist

Who it's for: Single-site venues where the manager closes up and wants the paper safety checklist on a phone.

What it is: A closing safety check confirms the site is left safe and secure overnight. This version is the tick-list of 12 checks, a pass/fail result, and a notes field. It covers equipment and gas off, hot surfaces and appliances safe, hazards cleared, waste out, fire points clear, exits and the building secure, and anything for the morning flagged.

In practice: A single-site restaurant runs the safety check at close. The duty manager works the list, confirms the gas is off and the appliances are cool and isolated, marks pass or fail, notes a fridge running warm for the morning team, and the close is logged before locking up.

Why it works: The list lives on the canvas, so the safety side of closing, the gas, the appliances, the security, doesn't get rushed at the end of a long shift. The notes field hands the morning team anything that needs attention.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (12 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field

#2 - With guidance

Who it's for: Venues where closing is delegated to whoever is on the rota.

What it is: The simple checklist with a guidance note: the closing steps that matter most are the ones that prevent an overnight fire, flood, or break-in. Gas and appliances off and isolated, hot equipment safe, no smouldering risks, water off where needed, and the building locked and alarmed.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. The fire, flood, and security risks are spelled out
2. Rota staff know why each step matters, not just that it is on the list
3. The close is consistent whoever runs it

Why it works: The guidance sits with the checklist, so a tired closer is reminded which steps stop the disasters that happen overnight, not just reading through a list.

Steps included:

• 1 guidance note (the steps that prevent overnight fire, flood, break-in)
• 1 checklist (12 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field

#3 - With a signature

Who it's for: Venues where the close needs a name against it. Groups where head office wants to know who signed off each site's close, and single sites where a different person closes every night.

What it is: A signed close is the simple checklist plus a signature captured at sign-off. The 12 checks and the notes field stay the same; the signature confirms who did the close and when they signed it.

In practice: A venue with a rotating close. Whoever closes works the 12-check list, notes anything that needs attention, and signs. The next day the manager knows exactly who to ask about any concerns, not just that someone left a note.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A signature naming who closed the site, captured at sign-off
2. A record of when the close was signed, next to what was checked
3. Accountability without asking anyone to take a photo

Why it works: The name goes on the record at the moment the work finishes, not from memory later. When something is found unsecured the next day, the conversation starts with who signed it off, which is specific instead of general.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (12 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 signature (sign-off)

#4 - With photo evidence

Who it's for: Teams that want proof the site was actually left safe and secure, not just ticked on the way out.

What it is: The simple checklist plus a photo of the gas isolation switch confirming it is turned off, taken on completion as a record alongside the ticks. One specific, telling spot rather than a vague wide shot.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A photo of the gas isolation switch, captured at the time
2. Proof that holds up to an inspector, not just a ticked box
3. A visual record kept alongside the checklist

Why it works: A photo taken on completion is far stronger than a tick. It shows the state things were actually left in, not just that someone said the work was done. A single named spot like the gas switch is easy to shoot and easy to check.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (12 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 photo of the gas isolation switch

#5 - With Poppi checking the photo

Who it's for: Venues where the closing photo gets taken but nobody looks at it. Multi-site groups where head office can't review every site's photos every night.

What it is: A photo-checked close is the simple checklist plus a photo of the gas isolation switch that Poppi (AI) reviews the moment it is saved. Poppi answers one question about that photo, set by you: is the gas isolation switch clearly in the OFF position? A single named spot is something an AI can actually judge, where a wide shot of the whole site is not. If the answer is no, Poppi posts what it spotted to the team chat, so the problem gets fixed before everyone leaves.

In practice: A multi-site venue group closes at 6pm. The closing person photographs the gas isolation switch as always. Poppi reads the photo: switch is clearly OFF. Verdict yes, and nothing changes. On a rushed evening the photo shows the switch is ON or unclear. Poppi answers no and posts the reason to the team chat ("The photo shows the gas isolation switch is not clearly in the OFF position"). The closer sorts it and retakes the photo while still in the building.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A photo of the gas isolation switch that gets checked the moment it is saved, not just stored
2. A team chat message with Poppi's reason the moment a photo fails the check
3. The manager stops being the only person who ever looks at closing photos

Why it works: The check happens in the seconds between the photo being taken and the closer leaving. That is the only moment the problem is still cheap to fix. A manager reviewing photos the next morning can only record that the close was poor; Poppi catching it at 6pm gets it fixed before the site is locked.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (12 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 photo of the gas isolation switch
• 1 Poppi decision (judges the photo against your question)
• 1 Poppi action (posts to the team chat if the photo fails the check)

#6 - With a team alert if the close isn't finished on time

Who it's for: Venues that have to be locked up by a set time. Late-night venues with a hard close, sites in a shared building with a security lock-up, and groups where a half-finished close is a real risk overnight.

What it is: A late-close alert is the simple checklist plus a Poppi (AI) action set to the workflow's end time. If the closing checks aren't finished by the time the site is due to be locked up, Poppi posts a message in the Pilla team chat so the outstanding steps get done before anyone leaves. It watches the end time, so it catches the close that quietly got abandoned half-done, not just the one that never started.

In practice: A late-night venue is meant to be closed and locked by midnight. On a busy Saturday the team is tired and it is easy to leave the last few checks: perimeter not locked, gas valve not confirmed off. With this version, if the close isn't finished by midnight, the team chat gets a message, so the shift lead catches the unfinished checks that night rather than discovering them when the site opens in the morning.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A message in the team chat if the close isn't finished on time
2. A catch for the close that got abandoned half-done, not just the one that was skipped
3. A record of when the close should have been done, next to when it was
4. The manager finds out that night, not from the next morning's open

Why it works: The alert is tied to the lock-up time, so an unfinished close raises its own hand. Nobody has to notice it is missing; the deadline does.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (12 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 Poppi action (posts to the team chat if the close isn't finished by lock-up)

How to pick the right version

You don't need to know our product to choose. Every version here is the simple checklist plus one addition, so pick the additions your site actually needs.

Do other people run the close?

If you close yourself and know the safety steps, the plain list is enough: #1. The moment rota staff close, safety guidance needs to be on the screen: #2.

Does the close need a name against it?

If knowing it was done is enough, skip this one. If you want who signed it off on the record, #3 adds a signature.

Do you need photo proof?

A ticked checklist says the work was done; a photo shows it. If you want visual proof, #4 adds a photo of one telling spot like the gas switch.

Does anyone actually look at the photos?

If a manager genuinely reviews every photo, #4's record is enough. If photos get taken and filed unseen, #5 has Poppi (AI) check each one as it is saved, and tell the team chat when something is wrong.

Does the close have to be finished by a set time?

If a tired team sometimes leaves the last steps, #6 posts a message to the team chat when the deadline passes with the close unfinished.

Need more than one addition? Open the version with the addition that matters most in the playground and add the others as steps. That is how the product works anyway: every option here is one step added to the same list.

Related workflows

• Opening safety check - the start-of-day counterpart to this close
• Kitchen closing checklist - the wider kitchen close
• Fire extinguisher check - the monthly extinguisher check

Conclusion

The close is the last line of defence against the incidents that happen overnight, and it is done when staff are most tired. A recorded close makes sure the site is left safe. Every version above is the simple checklist plus one addition: guidance, a signature, a photo, an AI check on the photo, or a deadline alert. Pick the ones your site needs and combine them in the playground.

More additions are coming in future refreshes, like pulling every site's closes into one report. Those need more review time and will land separately.

→ Build your own closing safety check on Pilla.

===SQLDATA=== PHOTO_INSTRUCTION: Take a photo of the gas isolation switch confirming it is in the OFF position. JUDGE_QUESTION: Is the gas isolation switch clearly in the OFF position? ALERT_MESSAGE: Your closing safety check wasn't finished by lock-up time. Check it now so the site is secure. ===END===