Food premises inspection and investigation process

What should I do if I receive an improvement notice?

You must take immediate steps to ensure that you comply with it, within the specified time period. If you do not comply then you may be prosecuted. If you cannot comply within the time period you should contact the officer who served the notice, or the Environmental Health Department immediately. We encourage you to keep in contact with the officer to let them know of the progress that you are making to comply with the notice.

What if you do not agree with the officer’s action?

If you do not agree with the action taken by an officer, you should first contact the team manager to see if the problem can be resolved informally. If you are still unhappy with the outcome you may use the council’s complaints procedure. If you think that Surrey Heath is applying the law in a different way to other local authorities you can seek advice from the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (external link). You have the right to appeal to a Magistrates Court against an Improvement Notice or refusal by a Local Authority to lift an Emergency Prohibition Order.

Further information

You can find more information on the Food Standards Agency (FSA) website (external link).

The FSA have also produced a guidance document for businesses (external link).