Food Safety Services

This page provides information about the environmental health food safety services, including the aim of the service, what the service provides, the food hygiene rating system and food safety enforcement. The page also includes an introduction to the Food Standards Agency and a link to their web site.

The aim of this service is to ensure that all food prepared, manufactured, stored and sold in the Borough is of a safe, wholesome and healthy standard.

To carry out this service, we do the following:

1. Programmed inspections and registration of food premises
2. Inspect certain businesses for food premises approval
3. Offer advice on all aspects of food safety, including starting up a food business
4. An annual food sampling programme
5. Raising awareness of food safety issues through local events and national initiatives such as safer food better business
6. Investigating all food and food related complaints made to us by members of the public
7. Investigating suspected and confirmed cases of food-borne illness
8. Holding training courses for food handlers

Contact us if you would like more information on any of these services.

Food hygiene rating scheme

In February 2011, the council launched the national food hygiene rating scheme in Oadby and Wigston.

This is a partnership initiative between the Food Standards Agency and local authorities that provides customers with at a glance information about the hygiene standards in food businesses during planned inspections.

Food safety enforcement

It is our responsibility to enforce food safety laws and regulations in our borough and in order to do this fairly, we have a set of guidelines that we follow. The guidelines are contained in our enforcement policies in the related documents at the bottom of this page.

The food standards agency

The Food Standards Agency is an independent food safety watchdog set up by an act of parliament in 2000 to protect the public's health and consumer interests in relation to food.

The agency sets a national plan which local councils help to deliver.

For more information on the Food Standards Agency visit their web site.