Registration - food businesses
Summary
Food
businesses do not require a licence however they must be registered with the local authority 28 days prior to commencement
of business. Failure to register is an automatic offence under The Food Premises (Registration) Regulations 1991.
How to register a food premises
- Registration cannot be refused and there is no charge.
- The registration form must be sent to your local authority.
- If the form is sent to the wrong address, your application will not take effect until it is received at the proper place. If you use premises in more than one local authority area, you must register with each authority separately.
- You must tick all the boxes which apply to your business, answer all the questions and give all the information requested.
- Seasonal businesses operating for a certain period of each year should provide this information on the form.
- It is an offence to give information which you know is false.
Printable forms
Further information
Registration will allow Blaby District Council to keep an up-to-date list of all those premises in their area so they can inspect them when they need to. The frequency of the inspections will depend on the type of business.
The aim of the inspections is to maintain and improve conditions in food premises, promote and provide food hygiene training, address issues in relation to foodborne disease, provide advice and carry out sampling.
Who needs to register?
All food businesses including voluntary organisations need to register with their appropriate local authority, informing them of the premise used for storing, selling, distributing or preparing food. This is regardless of the amount of food produced, the number of days you trade for or who you supply the food to.
Food premises includes restaurants, hotels, cafes, shops, supermarkets, staff canteens, kitchens in offices, warehouses, guest houses, delivery vehicles, buffet cars on trains, market and other stalls, hot dog and ice cream vans, etc.
If you use vehicles for your food business in connection with permanent premises such as a shop, or warehouse, you only need to tell the local authority how many vehicles you have. You do not need to register each vehicle separately. If you have one or more vehicles but no permanent premises, you must tell the authority where they are normally kept.
Anyone starting a new food business must register with the local authority at least 28 days before doing so.
What happens to the information given on the form?
The local authority will enter the details on its Register. A register of addresses and the type of business carried out at these will be open to inspection by the general public. Records of the other information provided will not be publicly available and will not be disclosed outside of the Council, Local Government Departments and Government Agencies. The details will be used for the purpose of registration, enforcement and the protection of public funds. Anyone wishing to view an entry in the Food Premises Register can do so by visiting the Council Offices.
What about changes?
Once you have registered with the local authority, you only need to notify them of a change of proprietor, if the nature of the business changes, or if there is a change of the address at which moveable premises are kept. The new proprietor will have to complete a new application.
Exemptions
Although the majority of premises have to be registered, some premises are except, for example, those registered for food law purposes, certain agricultural premises. Contact the local authority for confirmation.
Guidance Notes
Please note that planning permission may be required if premises are being converted to be used as food premises for the first time. If liquor is to be served a liquor license is needed.
All food businesses should carry out hazard analysis in order to identify what could possibly go wrong with the food they produce or sell. This requires looking at each step of food preparation from choosing suppliers to serving or selling food to customers and putting in place the necessary steps to minimise or eliminate the hazards.
The controls that are put in place are often just simple common sense practices which benefit the overall running of the food business. At present food businesses are not required to record the hazard analysis however new laws that are expected to come into force in 2006 will mean that systems and checks will have to be documented.
The Environmental Health Department at Blaby District Council are happy to provide information and guidance to help you comply with food safety law.
External websites
Contact us
| Officer / Team | Commercial Environmental Health Team |
|---|---|
| Postal address | Blaby District Council Council Offices Desford Road Narborough Leicester LE19 2EP |
| E-mail address | environmental.health@blaby.gov.uk |
| Telephone | 0116 272 7555 |
If you need this information in other languages or formats (large print, Braille or audio), please let us know when you contact us.
This page was last updated on 20th August 2009
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