A free pre-inspection self-check covering what council environmental health officers commonly examine — temperature, cleaning, hygiene, pests, records and training. Free PDF.
An environmental health officer typically checks temperature control of potentially hazardous food, cleaning and sanitising, hand-washing facilities and hygiene, pest management, food storage and separation, structure and maintenance, and your records. This checklist mirrors those areas so you can prepare for each before the visit.
Walk through your venue as an officer would, checking fridges are at or below 5C, hot food is at or above 60C, surfaces are clean, hand basins are stocked, there is no pest evidence, and your temperature and cleaning records are up to date. Fix any gaps before the visit.
It varies. Many routine inspections are unannounced, while some are arranged in advance, and follow-up or complaint-driven visits can happen at any time. Because you may not get notice, the safest approach is to stay inspection-ready every day rather than only preparing when a visit is expected.
Common problems include potentially hazardous food in the temperature danger zone of 5C to 60C, inadequate cleaning, poor or unstocked hand-washing facilities, cross-contamination between raw and ready-to-eat food, missing temperature or cleaning records, and signs of pests. This checklist targets each of these so you can address them first.
Officers commonly ask for temperature logs, cleaning schedules, your food safety plan or program, corrective action records and evidence of Food Safety Supervisor and staff training. Having these current and easy to find makes the inspection go smoothly and shows you manage food safety systematically.
A self-audit is a broad internal review of your whole system, often done monthly. This checklist is framed specifically for inspection-readiness, focusing on the things an officer is most likely to examine on the day, so you use it just before an expected visit to catch last-minute gaps.