Service Description: The scheme help consumers choose where to eat out or shop for food by giving them information about the hygiene standards in restaurants, cafés, takeaways, hotels and food shops. The scheme also encourage businesses to improve hygiene standards. The overarching aim is to reduce the incidence of foodborne illness.
Also known as:- Score on the Doors
Answer: Businesses given ratings of ‘0’ or ‘1’ must make urgent or major improvements to hygiene standards. The environmental health officer will use a number of enforcement tools as well as giving advice and guidance to make sure these improvements are made. If the officer finds that a business’s hygiene standards are very poor and there is an imminent risk to health – this means food is not safe to eat – the officer must take action to ensure that consumers are protected. This could mean prohibiting part of an operation or closing the business down. - Related Link