Food Hygene Scores for Council Premises
09 August 2011 by Paul Rhoades
Rather timely as I've just returned from a leisurely stroll in the park with assistant editor Saffie, and enjoyed a coffee at the new Nut Shell cafe (locally know as the Moses Basket of the North due to its architecture).While I was out I tweeted about the repairs to the fountain following its refurbishment and also about how popular the park and cafe was with picnickers making use of what seems to be a very popular local attraction.
When I got back to the "Office" I found a press release waiting for me from the Council all about their food hygiene ratings and specifically about that of the Nutshell Cafe.
It would appear that the cafe has been awarded 4 out of 5 stars in its first inspection, which is classed as "very good" by the council, and can be viewed here:
It takes a lot of businesses a long time to get 4 or 5 stars. 2 stars represents legal compliance according to the above web site.
The main area for improvement would seem to be in the management area, this includes items such as record keeping, temperature monitoring and the like. Being a newly established business its not unreasonable to expect there to be some room for improvement in this area. As with any business it takes time to develop, review and refine procedures so after less than a year of part time operation its should be expected that there would be some room for improvement.
If you've not already visited the cafe, I'd recommend it, there's a nice seating area out side and an excellent choice of drinks / snacks etc. The cafe is operated by Clover Leaf Catering and is staffed by the Crosby Employment Bureau, providing employment and training opportunities for unemployed teenagers to learn new skills.
The Pod's cafe has also received its first rating, sadly gaining only 3 stars in comparison to the cafe's 4. However, its been open for just one month (if that) and was certainly undergoing staff training when I visited for the first time just a couple of weeks ago. Based on that it may be a little unfair to draw too much of a correlation between its rating and the quality of food / service (which I thought was good) at this point in time.
The web site listed above may also be used to view the ratings of business premises in North Lincolnshire, all of which should be displaying their "Scores on the Doors" so customers can see them as they go in.
Photo courtesy of the facebook fan page "Moses Basket of The North" a little bit of typical Scunthorpe humour which may give reader's a chuckle : http://www.facebook.com/pages/Moses-Basket-of-the-North/157282710959617
Footnote:
It's just been pointed out to me via twitter that the star rating is in no way a reflection of the level of quality or service you can expect from a cafe or restaurant, though I do think these things take time to earn, and do believe that over time ratings on premises could potentially go up as management teams become more experienced and the staff better trained.
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Comments
Hi Cloverleaf,
Thanks for the clarification, and for taking the time to update our readers.
We thought you were still running it as the price list on display in the cafe at the time this article was written did say Cloverleaf Catering on it Is there a particular reason for this change?.
I'll email through to the Scores on the Doors web site and ask why the earlier 5 star rating has been removed, as if you look at other catering businesses rated on there the council have retained their previous assessments and historical scores so you can see which businesses have improved over time.
Appreciate your update. If you'd like to add any more details or run a story on this please either post something your self or email Editors@VisitScunthorpe.Com
Regards
P.
Having put a request through to the council yesterday evening, I received this response from a council spokesperson about half an hour ago which explains the current operation of the cafe and the confusion regarding the Scores on the doors.
Below is the statement on behalf of the council in full, many thanks for their prompt response to our inquiry:
Churchill Catering Limited operates the Nutshell café and The Pods café. They are looking into providing training opportunities for young unemployed people and are keen to work with Crosby Employment Bureau. They also currently employ people from Mencap.
Cloverleaf catering was only running the café on a temporary basis until the contract went out to tender. This was following rules and regulations to carry out a full procurement exercise.
When the owner or the management of premises change, the previous assessments don’t count and the history is taken off the system, and it starts again for the new management. Therefore the Nutshell café won’t have any previous history on the website.
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Can I please clarify that Cloverleaf Catering operated the Nutshell Cafe from October 2010 to June 2011 on a temporary contract. During this time Cloverleaf Catering was awarded 5 stars on Scores on the Doors for the Nutshell Cafe. They have also been awarded 5 stars at their cafe in Ashby Clinic and Children's Centre of which they are very proud!
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