How to prepare for an EHO inspection: a checklist for UK kitchens

The honest answer: you can't cram for it

The officer walks in at 11:40 on a Thursday. You didn't know they were coming, because you usually won't. They have a legal right to enter at all reasonable hours, and they'll want to see the kitchen as it really runs.

So preparation isn't a deep clean the night before. It's three things:

1. A food safety system that matches what your kitchen actually does.
2. Daily records that prove you follow it.
3. A team who can answer "what do you do if...?" without looking at the chef.

This guide covers what the officer looks at, the records to have ready, and a walk-round you can do with your own eyes this week.

What the inspector looks at

The FSA says inspections cover three areas, and these map directly onto how your food hygiene rating is worked out:

The third area, often called "confidence in management", is where most well-run kitchens lose marks. A spotless kitchen with no records still gives the officer no evidence that it's spotless on the other 364 days. Our guide to getting a 5-star food hygiene rating explains how the scoring works.

The records folder (or screen) to have ready

When the officer asks, you should be able to put these in front of them within a minute or two. In England, Wales and Scotland, officers can inspect records in any form, including electronic.

Your food safety management system

• Safer Food, Better Business pack (England and Wales), Safe Catering or SFBB (Northern Ireland), CookSafe (Scotland), or your own HACCP-based plan
• Filled in for your menu and processes, not a blank pack still in its wrapper
• Dated, with a record of when it was last reviewed

Daily records

• Opening and closing checks, signed off each day
• Fridge, freezer and display temperature readings
• Hot-holding readings and cooking or reheating probe checks where you use them
• Anything that went wrong and what you did about it

Cleaning

• Your cleaning schedule: what, how, how often, which chemicals
• Evidence it's being done
• Disinfectants that meet BS EN 1276 or BS EN 13697

Allergens

• Allergen information for every dish, including specials
• A visible notice telling customers how to get it
• PPDS labels if you pre-pack food on site (see Natasha's Law explained)

Suppliers and traceability

• Records of who supplies you; the FSA says keeping invoices and receipts is usually the easiest way

Pest control

• Contractor reports or your own checks, and action taken

Training

• Who has been trained in what and when. Food handlers don't legally need a food hygiene certificate, but staff must have the right skills and up-to-date training for their role, and the FSA advises keeping records to show at inspections.

Probe thermometer

• A working, clean probe, and a record that you check its accuracy (iced water -1°C to 1°C, boiling water 99°C to 101°C, per SFBB)

A walk-round you can do this week

Do this as if you were the officer. Take a torch and a probe. Ideally get someone who doesn't work in the kitchen every day to come with you, because you stop seeing things you walk past daily.

At the door

• Rating sticker displayed (legally required in Wales and Northern Ireland; encouraged in England)
• Allergen notice visible to customers

Handwash and personal hygiene

• Dedicated handwash basin, hot and cold water, soap, paper towels, not blocked with a stack of trays
• Staff in clean clothes, hair tied back, no one handling food with a cut uncovered
• Everyone knows the rule: no work for 48 hours after the last bout of diarrhoea or vomiting

Fridges and freezers

• All at 5°C or below (legal limit for food is 8°C in England, Wales and NI)
• Raw meat below ready-to-eat food, or in a separate fridge
• Everything covered, labelled and in date
• Door seals intact, no ice build-up in freezers

Food prep

• Separate boards and knives for raw and ready-to-eat, and staff know which is which
• Probe thermometer clean and working
• Nothing cooling on the side with no one keeping an eye on how long it's been there

Cleaning and structure

• Behind and under equipment, not just the visible surfaces
• Extraction canopy and filters free of grease
• No flaking paint, broken tiles or holes where pests could get in
• Bins lidded, bin area clean

Dry store and cellar

• Food off the floor
• No signs of pests: droppings, gnawing, torn packaging
• Opened packets decanted or sealed and labelled

Your team

Ask three staff members, including the newest:

• "What temperature should that fridge be?"
• "A customer says they're allergic to sesame. What do you do?"
• "What do you do if the fridge reads 10°C?"

If any answer is a shrug, that's your training plan.

On the day

• Be polite and available. Let the officer see what they need. Offer someone to walk round with them.
• Don't hide anything. Officers have seen every trick. Honest answers about a problem you're already fixing go a long way in "confidence in management".
• Show records, not promises. "We check fridges twice a day" means nothing without the readings.
• Take notes. Write down what they point out so you can act on it.
• Ask questions. If you don't understand a requirement, ask what good looks like. Officers would rather explain than come back.
• Keep serving safely. The inspection doesn't stop service; don't let standards slip because everyone's distracted.

After the inspection

You'll receive the rating in writing, either on the day or within 14 days. If it's lower than you hoped, the letter will list what needs to improve and by when.

• Fix the issues first, and keep evidence (photos, invoices, updated records).
• Appeal within 21 days if you think the rating is unfair (England, Wales, NI).
• Publish a right to reply to explain what you've done.
• Request a re-rating visit once improvements are made. Most councils charge a fee, and the rating could go up, down or stay the same.

For serious problems the officer can serve a Hygiene Improvement Notice setting out what must be done and by when, or a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice banning a process or equipment. If that happens, take advice and act immediately.

Common reasons good kitchens drop marks

• Daily records with gaps, or entries that were obviously filled in later.
• A food safety pack that doesn't match the menu (the pack says you don't cook rice; the specials board says otherwise).
• Allergen information that hasn't been updated since the last menu change.
• Handwash basin used for washing veg.
• Staff who don't know the system because only the head chef does.

How ShiftComplete helps on inspection day

Graeme Kirkham, who owns The Lounge in Oswestry and Knock & Snitch, described the change like this:

"The rota stopped being a Sunday-night argument the week we switched over. The chef stopped being the only person who knows what's in the kitchen. And the EHO turn up to a screen, not a box file." Graeme Kirkham, Owner, The Lounge Oswestry & Knock & Snitch

In ShiftComplete, opening, closing and cleaning checklists are named and timestamped with optional photos, fridge and hot-hold readings sit in a 7-day rolling view with breaches flagged, allergen information is searchable by any member of staff, incidents and maintenance are logged with status, and the full audit log exports to CSV. It helps you keep the records an EHO asks to see; it doesn't replace your food safety system, and the rating is still earned in the kitchen.