Hygiene rating scheme

To find out the food hygiene rating before you choose to eat out, visit the Food Standards Agency (FSA) "Food hygiene ratings for businesses" webpage here.

Good food hygiene means a good hygiene rating which is good for business.

To view the rating system used by the FSA, visit their "Making the most of your business’ rating" webpage here.

Right to Reply

The owner or manager of the business should talk to the Council Officer that inspected the business about why the rating was given.

The owner or manager can complete a form to share improvements or explain unique circumstances regarding hygiene conditions found at the time of the inspection. This form can be submitted via email (food@wakefield.gov.uk) or mail.

Once approved by the Service, the reply will be published online alongside the business's hygiene rating.

It is also advised for the owner or manager to discuss the rating with the inspecting Council Officer.

Appeals

If the business owner or manager believes the rating is unfair or incorrect, they can submit a written appeal by filling out an appeal form. The form should be sent to the Council via mail or email (food@wakefield.gov.uk) within 21 days of receiving the rating. This includes weekends and public holidays, appeals submitted after this deadline will not be considered.

If the business has implemented the hygiene improvements suggested by the food safety officer during the last inspection, the owner or manager can request a revisit.

Rescore visits

Food business owners or managers can request an additional inspection. This is to improve their food hygiene rating before the next scheduled inspection. This option is available to businesses with ratings of '0' to '4' who have addressed the non-compliances identified during the previous inspection.

To request another inspection, the food business needs to complete a revisit request form and send it via email or mail to food@wakefield.gov.uk.
The form should include an explanation of how improvements have been made in the areas of:

• structure
• hygiene
• management confidence

If there is insufficient evidence of improvements, the Council may decline the request and will provide an explanation for their decision.

There is a cost to the business for rescore visits under the Food Hygiene Rating scheme, please contact food@wakefield.gov.uk for the current fee. Revisit requests will not be accepted where no fee has been paid first.

There is no time limit within which a request for a re-visit can be made after the planned intervention. Once a revisit request has been accepted, the visit will take place within a 3-month period.

All re-visits will be unannounced.

During the re-visit the Officer will check that the required improvements have been made. They may also assess the level of compliance that is found overall. This means that the food hygiene rating could go up, down or remain the same as deemed appropriate.

Early Display of Ratings

Food businesses which receive an improved score (new score is 1-4) in their food hygiene rating following either an inspection or revisit may forfeit the appeal period by requesting in writing for the rating to be displayed earlier. A form will be left by the Officer where this is appropriate or can be requested at food@wakefield.gov.uk. This allows the Service to display the new rating of 1-4 sooner than the 28-day period of appeal and notification periods. All 5 rated businesses are displayed immediately as they are not subject to appeal.