> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.logbook.co.uk/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Mandatory Hygiene Rating Display in England Is Now on the FSA's Plan: Dates and What to Record - URL: https://www.logbook.co.uk/fsa-mandatory-food-hygiene-rating-display-future-of-food-regulation-2026/ - Published: 2026-10-12T09:32:01.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-12T09:32:01.000Z - Description: The FSA Board's September 2026 plan includes mandatory hygiene rating display in England and online UK-wide, with proposals to Ministers in January 2028. What is changing, and the records to keep. - Author: Jamie Dawson - Tags: Food Safety Logbooks, News & Updates On 16 September 2026 the Food Standards Agency Board, meeting in Swansea, considered a programme paper that for the first time puts mandatory display of food hygiene ratings in England on a dated plan. The paper sets "greater transparency about food hygiene" as one of six programme outcomes, including "mandatory Food Hygiene Rating Display" online across the UK and in-store in England. Nothing changes for a food business today. Display in England remains voluntary, and the earliest a proposal reaches Ministers is January 2028\. But the path now has dates, and the records that will matter when it arrives are the ones you should already be keeping. ## What was put to the Board The Future of Food Regulation report (FSA 26/09/07, updated 15 September 2026) is the second substantive paper on a programme the Board set up in March 2026\. It responds to a UK Government request for a consistent national approach to regulating large food businesses in England, and the Board extended its scope to cover local delivery as well, so it is framed as whole-system reform covering England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The paper asked the Board to agree six intended outcomes and to agree that two of six candidate frameworks for national regulation of large retailers go forward into detailed design: - **Framework 3, FSA Direct Assurance.** Large businesses submit company-wide data and audit evidence to the FSA, which runs a national assurance function. Local authorities remain the competent authority and use the FSA's assurance to inform their own work. - **Framework 5, FSA as Competent Authority.** The FSA becomes the direct regulator for applicable large businesses. The paper calls this the only option that delivers full structural reform. The other four frameworks (a national targeted monitoring strategy, FSA-approved assurance schemes, enhanced Primary Authority and FSA as Primary Authority) were not taken forward. The paper says the assessment focused on "strategic outcome alignment rather than ease of implementation". Food Safety Magazine reported on 21 September 2026 that the Board agreed to move the programme into detailed design. As of 12 October 2026 the minutes of the 16 September meeting had not been published on GOV.UK; the latest minutes available are for 17 June 2026\. Treat the Board's agreement as reported rather than minuted until they appear. ## The six outcomes | Outcome | What the paper says | What it means for a business | | --------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Enhanced registration for all | Better visibility of businesses, help quantifying risk, no re-registration to appear as a new business, sustainable funding | Expect registration details to be checked more closely and changes of operator to be visible | | Triaged regulatory pathways | National oversight of the largest businesses; most businesses keep local scrutiny and advice | Most SMEs stay with their local authority | | Data and intelligence sharing | An intelligence-led, risk-based national and local model | Your compliance history travels further than one council | | Improved guidance hub | Tools and guidance for regulators and businesses | One place for the expectations inspectors apply | | Revised enforcement framework | Updated tools and powers, "a clearer hierarchy of enforcement action", proportionate sanctions | A more predictable ladder from advice to formal action | | Greater transparency about food hygiene | Mandatory FHRS display online across the UK and in-store in England | The sticker and the online listing stop being optional in England | ## The dated path to mandatory display The paper's governance annex gives a timetable. The dates are the FSA's planning assumptions, and the paper itself gives slightly different ranges for the design phase in different places (September or October 2026 to February or March 2027). The milestones are consistent: | Date | Milestone | | -------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | | March 2026 | Board approves programme start | | 16 September 2026 | Board considers framework recommendations (this paper) | | October 2026 to March 2027 | Detailed design | | December 2026 | Programme update in the Chief Executive's report | | March 2027 | Board approves consultation recommendations | | June 2027 | Board approves consultation scope; consultation published | | July to September 2027 | Consultation open | | October to December 2027 | Analysis; Board discusses post-consultation findings in December | | January 2028 | Submission to Ministers and review of the proposed regulatory model | | From January 2028 | Testing, piloting and implementation planning, duration to be confirmed | Mandatory display in England needs legislation. The paper says the FSA intends to "put proposals to Ministers in all three governments, while recognising that they may choose to take different approaches". So the January 2028 date is when a proposal reaches Ministers, not when a sticker becomes compulsory in Leeds. The realistic position as of 12 October 2026 is that mandatory display in England is unlikely before 2028 and could be later. ## What is not changing yet The rules in force today are the ones in the FSA's guidance for businesses, last updated 30 June 2026: - **England:** display is optional. Your rating is published online regardless, at ratings.food.gov.uk. - **Wales:** display has been a legal requirement since 28 November 2013 under the Food Hygiene Rating (Wales) Act 2013\. The sticker must be "in a visible place at or near each customer entrance". - **Northern Ireland:** display has been a legal requirement since October 2016 under the Food Hygiene Rating Act (Northern Ireland) 2016, at or near each customer entrance, and the rating must be given verbally if asked. The safeguards are also unchanged: a written appeal within 21 days of notification, a right to reply at any time until the next inspection, and a re-visit request once improvements are complete (not usually within the first three months in England, and some English councils charge). Ratings of 5 are published as soon as uploaded; ratings of 0 to 4 are published three to five weeks after inspection to allow for an appeal. Two things are outside the current proposals: online-only platforms without UK premises, which are in a separate discovery exercise due back at the Board next year, and sectors beyond large retail, where a discovery phase began in September 2026 with findings due in 2027. ## Why the public case is strong On 29 September 2026 the FSA published the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme report from wave 11 of its Food and You 2 survey (fieldwork May to August 2025). Among adults in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 91% had heard of the scheme, 92% had seen the sticker, and 55% had checked a rating in the previous 12 months. Of those who checked, 86% did so by looking at the sticker on the premises, 27% on the business's own website and 16% on the FSA site. Among people who had heard of the scheme, 28% had avoided a business in the past year because it did not display a sticker, and 94% agreed businesses should be required by law to display their rating. ## The inspection backlog, and why your own records matter more On 28 September 2026 Food Safety Magazine reported an analysis by Virtual College of more than 600,000 public FHRS records across 14 business types. It found 14.5% of food manufacturer and packer records (1,746 of 12,039) awaiting inspection, 27.2% of importers and exporters, 24.7% of farmers and growers and 17% of distributors and transporters. "Other catering premises" had the largest raw number waiting, at 11,238\. The same report cites 2025 figures of more than 95,000 overdue inspections, including 871 high-risk businesses. A business that has not been inspected has no current rating to display, mandatory or otherwise, and no recent independent check of its food safety management. The paper's stakeholder annex records one local authority view bluntly: "Nothing beats an independent unannounced official control." That is the context in which an enhanced registration system and a risk-based national model are being designed. Businesses that cannot show a documented, working system will be the ones the data points at. The practical consequence is that your self-kept records carry more weight while the gap persists. The [HACCP folder](https://www.logbook.co.uk/haccp-records-uk-food-business-complete-guide/), the [temperature log](https://www.logbook.co.uk/temperature-logbook-food-business-uk/), the [cleaning schedule](https://www.logbook.co.uk/cleaning-schedule-logbook-food-business-uk/) and the [allergen matrix](https://www.logbook.co.uk/food-safety-allergen-records-uk/) are the evidence an officer will use to score "confidence in management" when the visit finally comes, and they are what a re-visit request stands or falls on. ## What a food business should record now None of this needs a new system. File the documents you already receive, with dates. - **The rating certificate and sticker.** Keep the letter or email notifying the rating, with the date you received it. The 21-day appeal clock runs from that notification. - **The inspection report.** The officer's written findings, including the three element scores (hygienic food handling, structure, confidence in management). - **Action taken.** A dated note of each finding, what you did, when, and who did it, with receipts or photographs where relevant. This is the core of any re-visit request. - **Appeal, right to reply and re-visit correspondence.** Copies of what you sent, the date, and the reply. If you paid a re-visit fee, the receipt. - **Registration details.** Your food business registration with the local authority, the date, the registered operator and the trading name. If the operator or address changes, the updated registration. Enhanced registration is the first outcome on the FSA's list, and re-registration to appear as a new business is specifically named as something the programme will close down. - **Online listing.** A dated screenshot of your entry on ratings.food.gov.uk after each inspection, so you can show what the public saw and when. Our guide to [food hygiene ratings and record keeping](https://www.logbook.co.uk/food-hygiene-rating-record-keeping-uk/) covers how the confidence in management score is built; our [retention guide](https://www.logbook.co.uk/how-long-must-uk-food-businesses-keep-records-haccp-retention/) covers how long each record should be kept. ### Records you must keep - ✓Food business registration, with date and registered operator, and any change notifications - ✓The rating notification and inspection report for every inspection, dated - ✓A dated action log for each inspection finding, with evidence of completion - ✓Copies of any appeal, right to reply or re-visit request and the local authority's response - ✓Your food safety management system (HACCP or Safer Food Better Business) with its diary entries and review dates - ✓Temperature, cleaning, delivery and allergen records covering the period since your last inspection - ✓Staff food safety and allergen training records ## Frequently asked questions ### Is displaying my food hygiene rating compulsory in England now? No. As of 12 October 2026 display in England is voluntary. The FSA Board has agreed to design proposals that include mandatory in-store display in England and mandatory online display across the UK, with submission to Ministers planned for January 2028\. Legislation would follow. ### Does the September decision change anything for a small café? Not yet. Most businesses stay with local authority regulation under every framework considered. The practical change on the horizon is mandatory display and stronger registration checks, both of which reward businesses whose records are already in order. ### My business has not been inspected for years. Should I do anything? Keep your food safety management system and daily records current, check that your registration details are accurate, and keep evidence of staff training. The backlog is the local authority's to manage; the state of your records when the visit happens is yours. ### Can I still appeal or ask for a re-visit under the current rules? Yes. Appeal in writing within 21 days of notification. A right to reply can be submitted at any time until the next inspection. A re-visit can be requested once you have completed the improvements; timing and any fee depend on your nation and local authority. ### When will the FSA consult the public? The paper plans for the Board to approve consultation scope in June 2027, with the consultation open from July to September 2027. ### Primary sources [**Food Standards Agency**Future of Food Regulation: report to the FSA Board, September 2026 (FSA 26/09/07, updated 15 September 2026)](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/food-standards-agency-september-2026-board-meeting/future-of-food-regulation-report-to-the-fsa-board-september-2026?ref=logbook.co.uk) [**Food Standards Agency**Food Standards Agency Board meeting takes place today, 16 September 2026](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/food-standards-agency-board-meeting-takes-place-today?ref=logbook.co.uk) [**Food Safety Magazine**UK FSA Board decides to advance sweeping food system regulatory reforms, 21 September 2026](https://www.food-safety.com/articles/11847-uk-fsa-board-decides-to-advance-sweeping-food-system-regulatory-reforms?ref=logbook.co.uk) [**Food Standards Agency**Food Hygiene Rating Scheme: Food and You 2 report, wave 11, 29 September 2026](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/food-hygiene-rating-scheme-fhrs-food-and-you-2-report-wave-11?ref=logbook.co.uk) [**Food Safety Magazine**High proportions of UK food businesses awaiting FSA hygiene inspection, 28 September 2026](https://www.food-safety.com/articles/11869-high-proportion-of-uk-food-manufacturers-awaiting-fsa-hygiene-inspection?ref=logbook.co.uk) [**Food Standards Agency**Food Hygiene Rating Scheme: guidance for businesses, updated 30 June 2026](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/food-hygiene-rating-scheme-fhrs-guidance-for-businesses/food-hygiene-rating-scheme-fhrs-guidance-for-businesses?ref=logbook.co.uk)