Food safety and hygiene

The food safety enforcement service protects public health by preventing the spread of food borne disease and promotes food safety within the District.

To achieve this we:

Ensure that food which is manufactured, prepared, stored or sold is fit for human consumption
Ensure that all premises that manufacture, prepare, store or sell food meet at least legal standards of food hygiene and safety
Promote food safety
Control the spread of food borne ill health
Co-operate with and assist other statutory bodies with responsibilities for food safety where food related issues have wider regional or national considerations.

The Council's Food Service Plan for 2012-13 is available to download on the right hand side of this page.

Starting Up

If you're thinking of starting a new food business visit the Food standards Agency website for advice and guidance.

Register a food business

Virtually all food businesses need to register with the Council, and a small number require approval:

If you have any queries, please contact us online via our food safety help and advice form or telephone 01993 861000.

Food Hygiene Rating Scheme

This scheme replaced Scores on the Doors from 1st April 2012. Like the old scheme it provides access to food hygiene inspection ratings for most food businesses in the District. Included food businesses get a rating from five to zero stars which represents the combined score for the following areas:

Compliance with food hygiene & safety
Compliance with structural requirements
Confidence in management

View Food Hygiene Ratings

Find out more about the rating scheme

Further information about food safety

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is the non-ministerial government department which has the responsibility of protecting the public's health and consumers' interests in relation to food. Further advice for caterers is available from the FSA.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs provides information covering issues regarding the start of the food chain (i.e. primary producers).

The Health Protection Agency is a source of information about microbiology, bacteria, diseases and food poisoning etc.

Advice on Trading Standards issues can be found at Oxfordshire County Council's web site.

Guidance notes

The Council has produced guidance notes covering various topics on food safety, these are listed in the 'Publications' area of the site (prefixed by 'Food & Hygiene Safety' or 'Food Poisoning) from where they can be downloaded.