Food hygiene rating scheme
Last Updated: 10 September 2024
This is a national scheme run in partnership with the Food Standards Agency (FSA) to reflect hygiene standards in food premises based on inspection findings carried out by local authority food safety officers.
For businesses
The scheme will be a good advertisement for those that follow the rules. Having the six different ratings gives them room to improve.
For customers
The rating lets you make a choice about where you choose to eat out or buy food.
You can view the rating by checking the sticker in the window or by looking up food hygiene ratings.
How the ratings are worked out
A rating from zero (the worst) to five (the best) is awarded based on the following three areas:
- compliance with food hygiene and safety procedures
- compliance with structural requirements
- confidence in management control/procedures
The rating does not reflect the quality of food or the standard of service.
Safeguards for food businesses
In order to ensure that the scheme is fair it includes a number of safeguards.
These are:
- an appeal procedure
- a ‘right to reply’
- an opportunity to request a re visit when improvements have been made and be reassessed for a new rating
Food Standards Agency: Business safeguards explained