New resources for national food hygiene rating scheme early adopters

The Agency leaflet is called ‘Good hygiene is good for your business’ and is available in English and as a bilingual Welsh/English version. The leaflet can be ordered from the Agency’s mailing house by calling 0845 606 0667 or emailing foodstandards@ecgroup.co.uk, quoting the relevant code:

• FSA/1493/0110 (English language version)
• FSA/1492/0110 (bilingual version: English/Welsh)

The Agency has produced template letters and briefing packs for local authorities to use. These resources, which are described below, and others, form part of a wider package of support being developed by the Agency to help local authorities beginning preparatory work towards introducing the national scheme in their local area.

• Template covering letter – for local authorities to issue to businesses, with a copy of the FSA leaflet.
• Briefing notes and a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation – local authorities can use these when they seek support from their elected council members for participating in the national scheme. These materials can be tailored to each individual authority's requirements.

The template letters, briefing notes and presentations are each available in two versions – one set is for local authorities launching a scheme for the first time and the other set is for those local authorities migrating from existing schemes.

If you are a local authority interested in joining the national scheme, or would like to find out more about it, we would encourage you to contact one of our local authority secondees. Nat Slade and Jaan Stanton both have experience of implementing 'scores on the doors' schemes and have joined the Agency to help local authorities with the implementation of the national scheme. If you need advice, you can email Nat at Nat.Slade@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk or Jaan at Jaan.Stanton@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk.

The purpose of scores on the doors schemes is to allow consumers to make informed choices about the places in which they eat out and from which they purchase food, and, through this, to encourage businesses to improve hygiene standards.