About the data
Where the ratings come from
Local authority food safety officers inspect food businesses and give them a rating. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) publishes the current rating for every business in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland as open data, updated daily. Hygiene Index loads that file every night.
The FSA's data only shows each business's latest rating. Hygiene Index compares each night's file with the night before and keeps a record of what changed.
The record begins on 23 September 2026. Changes before this site's own nightly downloads started were rebuilt from apublic daily archive of the same FSA file, checking each archived copy against its stored checksum. Inspections before that date aren't included.
What counts as a change
A change is recorded when a business's rating or inspection date changes, when a new business is listed, or when one stops being listed. A new inspection date with the same rating shows as "re-inspected, kept" that rating. Dates on this site are the inspection date the FSA publishes; a change can appear a few weeks after the inspection because businesses can appeal before a rating is published.
Occasionally a rating is replaced by one from an earlier inspection, for example after an appeal or a correction by the council. Those show as "earlier rating reinstated" and aren't counted as a rise or a fall.
The rating scale
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland ratings run from 0 (urgent improvement necessary) to 5 (very good). Scotland's scheme gives a pass or improvement required instead, so Scottish areas aren't ranked against the 0 to 5 areas. "Not inspected in 4+ years" counts rated businesses whose most recent published inspection is at least four years before the latest data date.
If something looks wrong
Every rating here is copied from the FSA's published data, and each business page links to its official record. Businesses can appeal a rating, publish a right to reply, or ask for a re-inspection through their local authority. Once the FSA's data changes, this site updates the next night.
Licence
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Hygiene Index is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by the Food Standards Agency. It does not use the FSA's rating images or logo.