Rating scheme

Food hygiene training

Everyone involved in food handling has to be appropriately supervised, instructed and/or trained according to the type of job that they do. It is the responsibility of the food business operator to ensure that food handlers have training. The level of supervision, instruction or training will depend on the actual job of the individual and the type of food handled.

Chefs, cooks, kitchen assistants, staff working on meat or delicatessen counters, staff preparing sandwiches etc. would require training equivalent to the Level 2 award in food safety in catering. This course aims to provide an understanding of the basic principles of food hygiene. More advanced training would be appropriate for managers i.e. Level 3 award in supervising food safety in catering or the Level 4 award in managing food safety.

Knowledge for all caterers should be updated regularly especially to take into account changes in the business or to legislation. Staff demonstrating poor practices should attend refresher courses or be re-trained in-house.

Please see our food safety advice fact sheet “Food Hygiene Training Providers” which details local training providers for this area.