Food Safety & Hygiene Procedure template

2. Roles and responsibilities

• Food safety lead ([name/role]): owns the food safety management system, the records below, staff training, and contact with environmental health.
• Shift managers: run the opening and closing checks, enforce the fitness-to-work rules, and act on any out-of-range result before service continues.
• All food handlers: follow this procedure, complete the checks assigned to them honestly, and report illness, pests, or anything that doesn't look right.

3. Personal hygiene and fitness to work

1. 1Wash hands at the wash-hand basin on entering the food area, after handling raw food, after breaks, after using the toilet, after touching bins or cleaning materials, and after handling money or phones.
2. 2Wear clean [workwear/apron] on every shift; tie back or cover hair; remove watches and jewellery except [a plain band].
3. 3Cover cuts and wounds with a [blue] waterproof plaster; report any infected wound or skin condition to the shift manager.
4. 4Report vomiting or diarrhoea to the shift manager before starting work — do not enter food areas.
5. 5Stay away from food handling until symptom-free for [period — check current FSA guidance; 48 hours is the widely used standard].
6. 6No eating, and no personal phones, in food preparation areas.

4. Cleaning

The cleaning schedule at [location] lists every item and area with its frequency, method, chemical, contact time, and named owner. Clean as you go during service; the schedule is for the discipline on top, not instead.

• Use sanitiser at the manufacturer's stated dilution and contact time — a wiped-off sanitiser has done nothing.
• Use the colour-coded cloths and equipment scheme: [describe your scheme, e.g. red for raw areas, blue for ready-to-eat].
• Sign off completed cleaning tasks on the schedule; the shift manager verifies at close.
• Deep cleans ([equipment pull-outs, extraction, drains]) run at [frequency] and are recorded.

5. Temperature control

1. 1Check and record fridge and freezer temperatures at opening and closing against the targets in our food safety management system.
2. 2Check delivery temperatures for chilled and frozen goods before accepting; reject and record anything out of range.
3. 3Cook and reheat to the targets in our food safety management system, verified with a probe in the thickest part of the food.
4. 4Clean and sanitise the probe between uses and verify its accuracy at [frequency, e.g. weekly, using the method in the FSMS].
5. 5Cool cooked food for storage quickly using [method — shallow trays, blast chiller], and get it into the fridge within the time set in the FSMS.
6. 6If any reading is out of range: tell the shift manager, apply the corrective action in the FSMS, and record what was done with the food.

6. Cross-contamination and allergens

• Keep raw and ready-to-eat foods separate at every stage: separate storage (raw below ready-to-eat in fridges), separate boards and utensils [describe your colour scheme], separate preparation areas or times.
• The allergen matrix at [location] lists every menu item against the allergens it contains, and is updated by [role] whenever a recipe, ingredient or supplier changes — before the item is next served.
• Food prepacked for direct sale is labelled in line with Natasha's Law: full ingredient list with allergens emphasised.
• When a customer declares an allergy: [role] takes over the order, checks the matrix, and prepares the item with clean equipment in a clear area.
• Never guess an allergen answer. Check the matrix, ask the food safety lead, or decline the sale.

7. Daily checks and records

• Opening checks: [fridge/freezer temps, staff fitness for work, equipment working, area clean] — signed by the opening manager.
• Closing checks: [temps, cleaning sign-off, waste out, food covered/dated/labelled] — signed by the closing manager.
• Records kept: temperature logs, cleaning schedule sign-offs, delivery checks, corrective actions, pest checks, training records — in [diary/system] at [location], retained for [period].
• A record signed but not done is treated as a serious conduct issue — the records only protect us if they are true.

8. If something goes wrong

1. 1Suspected contamination or a food poisoning complaint: isolate the food, keep it (don't discard it — it may be needed for investigation), and record batch and supplier details.
2. 2Equipment failure: move stock to working units, check and record its temperature, and decide per the FSMS what can be kept.
3. 3Evidence of pests: close the affected area, inform [role], and call [pest control contractor].
4. 4Notify the food safety lead the same day in every case above.
5. 5For serious incidents, follow current FSA and local authority guidance on notification and product withdrawal.

9. Training and review

Every food handler is inducted on this procedure before their first solo shift, and completes food hygiene training appropriate to their role ([e.g. accredited Level 2 for food handlers]) with refreshers at [frequency]. Training is recorded in [system].

This procedure is reviewed [frequency, e.g. annually], after any environmental health visit, food incident, or menu or layout change. Owner: [name/role]. Next review due: [date].