Sevenoaks

Friday 22 November 2002

25-27 June 2002

The audit highlighted a number of significant management and operational deficiencies in the food law enforcement service. The Authority faced a major problem in ensuring that all food premises in the District are brought into a routine inspection programme.

More than 40% of the food businesses known to the Authority are not part of the current planned inspection programme, others have not been inspected at the necessary minimum frequencies based on risk. Management of this task had been made more difficult through problems with the computer administration system and inadequate records.

Key Areas for Improvement:

Routine Inspection Programme and Frequency of Inspections – The Authority was not carrying out inspections at the minimum frequencies, required by official guidance. More than 40% of the food businesses in the District and known to the Authority had fallen out of the routine inspection programme and did not have a current risk rating. These include a number of premises that were previously classified as high risk, and also manufacturers, catering premises, butchers and residential care homes.

A high proportion of the food businesses that had been inspected were overdue at the time they were visited, these included premises approved by the Authority. The minimum inspection frequencies set out in the official guidance are devised to ensure that regular monitoring checks on food businesses are carried out and to enable timely intervention when necessary.

The Food Premises Database – The current system was introduced in 2000 and was still being developed for effective and efficient use. The food premises database did not include all of the businesses in the area and some records of activities and actions were incomplete and inconsistent with the paper file records. The Authority was not able to obtain key service performance information from the database or by other means, and cannot currently provide the official returns required by the Food Standards Agency.

Record Keeping – There were significant gaps in the Authority’s records, particularly in respect of general premises inspections, Approved Premises and butchers’ shops licensing assessments. The details of operations at food businesses and their enforcement histories recorded on the paper files were not sufficient to determine whether assessments of compliance had been made in full accordance with the official guidance. Adequate records are essential to guide future inspecting officers, to inform appropriate enforcement decisions and to permit effective internal monitoring.