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Food Hygiene Rating Scheme

Our food hygiene rating scheme, which is run in partnership with the Food Standards Agency, is designed to help you choose where to eat out or shop for food by providing information about food hygiene standards.

Included in the scheme are restaurants, pubs, cafes, takeaways, hotels supermarkets and other shops selling food directly to consumers.  Each business is given a rating following an inspection by a Food Safety Officer, which is based on how well the business is meeting the requirements of food hygiene law at that time. In particular:

  • How hygienically the food is handled (safe food preparation, cooking, re-heating, cooling and storage);
  • The condition of the structure of the premises (cleanliness, repair, layout, lighting, ventilation and other facilities); and
  • How food safety is managed and documented.

Within 28 days of the inspection, the hygiene rating is uploaded onto the Food Standards Agency national website which can be found by visiting http://ratings.food.gov.uk/.

Food Hygiene Rating Image

  • 5 = very good
  • 4 = good
  • 3 = generally satisfactory
  • 2 = improvement necessary
  • 1 = major improvement necessary
  • 0 = urgent improvement necessary

The rating reflects the conditions found at the time of the last inspection and does not reflect the quality of food or the standards of service the business provides.

Food Business Operator Advice

What happens if I don't agree with my food hygiene rating?

In order to ensure that the scheme is fair to businesses, it has been designed to include a number of safeguards. These are: an appeal procedure; a 'right to reply'; and an opportunity to request a revisit when improvements have been made in order to be reassessed for a 'new' rating. Information for food businesses about these different safeguards is provided on the links to the side of this page. Please note: as of 01/04/2023 a Food Hygiene Re-Rating fee of £205.00 applies for all businesses requesting a rescore of their food hygiene rating.

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