Scores on the Doors is a star rating scheme based on the Food Standards Agency Code of Practice. It rates a wide range of establishments including hotels, restaurants, coffee shops, butchers, shops, pubs, schools and care homes – anywhere where food is handled or served for public consumption.

The rating is based on three elements:

Confidence in management

• The track record of the business, willingness to act on previous advice and enforcement and the complaint history
• The attitude of management towards hygiene and food safety
• Hygiene and food safety knowledge available to the business, including Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP)
• Satisfactory HACCP-based procedures, e.g. Safer Food Better Business

Level of compliance with food hygiene and safety procedures

• Food handling practices and procedures
• Temperature control

Level of compliance with structural requirements

• Cleanliness
• Layout
• Condition of structure
• Lighting
• Ventilation

Of 1,116 hotels, pubs and restaurants listed for Cumbria, only 129 have the full five stars. Surprisingly, some of our best clients only have three stars (we know who you are!) while KFC and McDonalds clock up five stars.

Elaine Lomas, Principal Environmental Health Officer, Eden District Council, told AWOL: ‘Some kitchens fall down because they think they have HACCPs procedures in place, but in practice, staff do not keep their records up-to-date. We can only go on what we see on the day of inspection.’

One four-star pub chef told AWOL that he was squeaky clean on confidence and food handling, but some rather old floor tiles that were hard to clean let him down on the structural side. He’s hoping that his investment in new flooring will bring him five stars at his next Scores on the Doors inspection – and one less thing to worry about on his Health and Safety risk assessment.

Training: The Food Standards Agency offers video training in Safer Food Better Business, with voiceover in 16 languages.