Food hygiene rating scheme

About the food hygiene rating scheme

The scheme is run by Rushmoor Borough Council in partnership with the Food Standards Agency (FSA) as part of their national scheme.

Its aim is to provide customers with at-a-glance information about the hygiene standards in food businesses, so that customers can make informed choices about where to buy and eat food.

Businesses covered by the scheme

The scheme covers a range of businesses where customers can eat or buy food. This includes:

• Restaurants
• Takeaways
• Cafes
• Sandwich shops
• Pubs
• Hotels
• Supermarkets and other shops selling food

Businesses receive a rating certificate and sticker and are encouraged to display them.

How the rating is calculated

Following a food hygiene inspection by our food safety team, we will give the business a rating based on the standards of hygiene we find at the time. These include:

• How hygienically the business handles food - 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
• The management of the business including the management system and the records in place to make sure food is safe

The rating

We rate the hygiene standards found at the time of inspection on a scale from '0' - this means urgent improvement is required to '5' - this means the hygiene standards are very good.

The rating shows how well the business does overall.

A business may do better in some areas than in others - the rating is designed to take this into account, including the areas that need the most improvement.

The rating is not a guide to the quality or value of the food the business prepares or sells.

Find food business hygiene ratings

The Food Standards Agency publishes food hygiene ratings on its website where you can search for local businesses.

Please note that the ratings are based on standards at the time of inspection and the business may have made changes since then.

Scheme disclaimer

The food hygiene rating scheme is not an endorsement of current standards but reflects the rating we awarded at the time of the last inspection. It may also take up to 28 days for the new rating to appear on the website after an inspection.

We try very hard to make sure the information is correct and meets the FSA's standards.

For more information on the scheme and how it works, visit the FSA's website or contact us using the contact details on this page