City and County of Swansea

The authority had developed and implemented a detailed Food Law Enforcement Service Plan for 2010-2011 that satisfied the Service Planning Guidance in the Framework Agreement. The plan had been submitted for appropriate member approval.

Officers had been authorised in accordance with their qualifications, training and experience.

Individual Officers' training needs were identified as part of their annual performance review and were entered onto a training programme matrix. Training records contained evidence that each officer had completed the required minimum 10 hours relevant training in the past year.

The service had developed and implemented a wide range of documented policies and procedures covering its food law enforcement responsibilities. However, there was no documented policy for internal monitoring. These documents were available to all officers in electronic format on a read-only basis to ensure that only latest and most up-to-date documents were available.

Auditors reviewed 10 premises files during the onsite audit. Food business operators were provided with clearly worded reports or letters confirming the findings from inspections, differentiating between legal requirements and advice. The aide-memoire used for capturing information during an inspection/intervention was comprehensive and appropriate.

The authority had undertaken a full range of enforcement, from issue of warning letters to hygiene improvement notices to prosecutions, including actions ensuring compliance with Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No.852/2004. During the verification visits undertaken as part of the onsite audit process, it was demonstrated that officers paid particular attention to compliance with food safety management systems based on HACCP principles.

It was evident from audit checks that officers were taking a graduated approach to enforcement and actively worked with businesses to achieve compliance. The information reviewed relating to Hygiene Improvement Notices and prosecutions identified that the enforcement decisions reached were appropriate to the contraventions identified and secured appropriate improvements in compliance and taken in accordance with the enforcement policy.

An officer of the City and County of Swansea had been a member of one of the Agency's Working Groups for the National Food Hygiene Rating Scheme. The officer is also a member of the Wales Food Hygiene Rating Scheme Implementation Group where the officer's experience and knowledge are shared.

The authority had received Agency grant funding over the past three years for a number of specialised projects, such as seminars for butchers, seminars and seven coaching visits to catering establishments including the provision of coaching in Mandarin and Bengali in order to assist food business operators whose first language was Mandarin or Bengali to achieve compliance with the food safety requirements of Article 5. In terms of the Bengali training the Agency has received evidence that out of 21 premises there has been an increase in compliance in 17 premises based on the 'confidence in management' rating. The Agency is to carry out feedback to ascertain the effectiveness of these initiatives. The authority was utilising grant funding to employ an officer to provide dedicated Safer food better business (SFBB) coaching visits for appropriate businesses where enforcement officers had highlighted a need during routine inspections/interventions.

An officer of the authority has sat on the Agency/Local Authority Food Safety Management Steering Group since its inception several years ago.

The authority did not have an internal monitoring policy and auditors were unable to produce any records of internal monitoring being undertaken. Auditors were advised that the Food and Safety Divisional Officer sanctioned the service of Hygiene Improvement Notices, Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notices, voluntary closures and prosecutions.