Food Safety Readiness Score (Free Self-Assessment)

Free food safety self-assessment — answer 10 questions about your temperature, cleaning, records, training and traceability and get a readiness score with recommendations before a council inspection.

How to use the Food Safety Readiness Score

  1. Answer the questions about your controls, records, training and corrective actions.
  2. Review your readiness score and the areas it flags as strong or needing work.
  3. Read the tailored recommendations for improving your weaker areas.
  4. Download the free PDF and use it as an action plan to close the gaps.
  5. Re-take the assessment after making changes to track your improvement over time.

Frequently asked questions

What is a food safety readiness score?

It is a quick self-assessment result that rates how prepared your business is across areas like temperature control, cleaning, training and records. Rather than listing legal requirements, it gauges how well you are meeting good practice and highlights where to improve, giving you a simple snapshot and an action list.

How is this different from the compliance checker?

The Compliance Checker tells you which legal requirements apply to your business, such as whether you need a Food Safety Supervisor or a program. The Readiness Score instead measures how well you are actually meeting good practice across your controls and records, so the two tools complement each other.

Does a high score mean I will pass a council inspection?

Not automatically. A high score suggests your practices and records are in good shape, which makes an inspection more likely to go well, but the outcome depends on the officer's assessment on the day and your specific council's requirements. Use the score to prepare, and confirm obligations with your council.

What areas does the readiness assessment cover?

It typically covers temperature monitoring of cold and hot food, cleaning and sanitising, personal hygiene, staff training and Food Safety Supervisor arrangements, record keeping, and how you handle corrective actions. These are the areas that most influence whether food is kept safe and whether you can demonstrate it.

How often should I check my readiness score?

Re-taking the assessment periodically, for example quarterly or before an expected inspection, lets you track whether your practices are improving and catch any slippage. Re-scoring after you act on the recommendations is a good way to confirm the gaps you identified have actually been closed.

Can FoodSafety HQ help me improve my score?

Yes. The assessment points to your weaker areas, and FoodSafety HQ can run the underlying systems digitally, including temperature logs, cleaning schedules, training records and corrective actions, so you can close the gaps it identifies and keep the evidence in one place for inspections.

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