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New star rating scheme for food businesses

Newcastle City Council is launching a star rating scheme for food businesses that aims to drive up hygiene standards across the city. Under the new Scores on the Doors scheme, launched last week, every food business in the city from hospital kitchens to the poshest restaurants will be rated according to their cleanliness and hygiene.

Scores will range from five stars to zero and businesses will be encouraged to display their scores. Businesses with low ratings will continue to get support and advice from Newcastle City Council’s team of food safety experts on how they can improve standards and enforcement action will be taken where necessary.

All the star ratings will be available at www.scoresonthedoors.org.uk. Initially the website will provide information on businesses inspected since January 1 2007, but more scores will be added as new inspections are carried out.

Councillor Anita Lower, City Council executive member for transformation, modernisation and regulation, said: “This is not a naming and shaming exercise, the idea is to encourage food businesses that aren’t up to scratch to put in place measures and systems that will help them serve safer food. “The star ratings are a clear and simple way of measuring how successful a food business is in meeting food safety standards. “Feedback from other local authorities who have taken up the scheme show it is a hit with both the public and food business owners.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .