Achieving the top food hygiene rating
All business should be able to achieve the top rating.
To achieve this, you must show very good compliance with legal requirements for food hygiene.
Food safety officers assess your level of compliance when they inspect your business.
How is this assessed?
Your food hygiene rating is based on the level of compliance in three areas:
- how hygienically the food is handled
- the condition of the premises
- how food safety is managed and documented.
Improving your rating
To get the best possible rating, you should:
- Look at your last food hygiene inspection report to check that you've taken all the actions needed to meet legal requirements. If you can’t find your last report, contact us and we will be able to give you a copy
- Ask the food safety officer at your next inspection about the improvements you need to make
- Complete a self-check to determine your likely score using our self-check page.
The Food Standards Agency has a range of tools, such as Safer food, better business, that can help you manage food hygiene. You can find out more about these on the hygiene resources page of the Agency’s website.