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View Full Version : Registering as a food business - help please!



kellyb
05-01-2009, 10:34 AM
Hi everyone, hope youve all had a good christmas and new year.

Can anyone help me please?

Ive not been given any info about the above - how do I register as a food business? Who do I need to contact and what do I need to do?

Ive only just been told by someone we have to do this???

Any help would be great as the NCMA line is constantly engaged

rickysmiths
05-01-2009, 11:00 AM
Just seen your cry for help. Prob depends on where you live but ring your local environmental health dept through your local council office and they will send you a form to fill in.

A tip given to me by them. your name and address will be added to the list of food premisis in you area and it will identify you as a childminder on the list which is posted on the net for anyone to access. I pointed out that this could be a child safeguarding issue and I didnot want my address included. Not posss. To avoid you give yourself a business name pref unrelated to childminding and then your name won't appear nor the fact you are a childminder, just your buisness name and your address.

I'm on the East Region NCMA forum and will be highlighting this issue then.

Hope that helps clarify.

nell57
05-01-2009, 11:13 AM
They sent my form automatically being registered as a childminder, so not sure what happens to anyone just registering sorry.

I registered as food business over 12 months ago and they got in touch just before xmas to arrange a date to visit and they're coming this Thurs:panic: .

Thanks for the tip rickysmiths another thing to add onto my list of questions for them to answer:D

kellyb
05-01-2009, 11:27 AM
How very odd, well ive been a childminder for 4 years next month, and Ive never had anything at all, also when I mentioned it to our network coordinator, she said we didnt have to do it...

So Ive no idea!

Ive just emailed my local council to find out some info

Thanks very much for your help, much appreciated.

What sort of thing do you have to do when registered as a food business??
Ive been told we have to write down fridge and freezer temps daily, is there anything else?

loocyloo
05-01-2009, 01:11 PM
hi , i rang ( well emailed ! LOL! ) our local environmental health lady through the council, and she sent me a form to fill in, and came out to visit me.

she checked i had temperature gauges in fridge and freezer, and although i do keep a daily record of temps ( NCMA best practice ) she said i didn't have to, just keep an eye on them! she wanted to know/see that i know where to store all my foods correctly in fridge ( ie raw meat at the bottom ) and how/often/etc i cleaned worktops etc in the kitchen. she asked about chopping boards ( i have the different colour ones ) and also asked what i cooked/how i stored it/cooled/re heated etc etc. i told her i had done a food safety course, and was booked on another to update it.

she gave me a booklet to keep, and fill out each term on what i was doing re food safety etc and said she wouldn't see me again, unless there was a complaint/food safety issue. ( she said she didn't think she really need to inspect childminders! )

yet, i have heard of childminders having 'spot checks'!

HTH xxxx

Jen4Kids
05-01-2009, 07:59 PM
Hi, i got a form to fill out when i had my first briefing meeting, this was included in the big pack which had all the application forms in

I found up a checklist which was included which says:
Register with Environmental Health as a food business operator, phone your local District Council Environmental Health Department and ask for a registration form. Registration is free. It is recommended you should have training to complete a Food Hygiene Certificate every 3 years :thumbsup:

roseybev
05-01-2009, 10:56 PM
us up in scotland were all reg as a food business last year some of us got visits some never we were all told go on food hygeine courses ive been doing this for 19 years and only got a visit last week this lady came out asked some questions checked my fridge temp and left .and from what ive heard that is whats happening up here.:)

rickysmiths
06-01-2009, 09:23 AM
KellyB you dont say where you are. different local authorities dealt with childminders differrently. eg buckinghamshire has reg for years and cm have to record fridge freeezer temps food cooking temps keep records of where all food is purchased so it can be traced they also have a visit when they first reg from environmental health to go through all the proceedures.

Three Rivers where I live did nothing until mid last year when an E.C. ruling came in requiring all Local Authorities in the country to register all premesis where food is prepared that includes us so I would check with your local environmental health dept. Ignorance is Im afraid not a plee and it is against the law now not to be registed with a very hefty fine if you area wanted to prove a point. Sorry to be so gloomy

kellyb
06-01-2009, 10:32 AM
Im in Cheshire, I have to say I have never been given any information from anyone on anything to do with registering as a food business, when I found out from someone else, I asked our network co ordinator a matter of 6, maybe more months ago, and they said we didnt have to register, so as Ive never been told anything about it, not knowing where to start or what to do, none of the other childminders in my area knew about this till I told them last night, so hardly our fault if were not told anything, or sent anything in writing, Think its appaling that something so important has not been passed on, and that we have to find out about it on here.

rickysmiths
06-01-2009, 10:48 AM
Im in Cheshire, I have to say I have never been given any information from anyone on anything to do with registering as a food business, when I found out from someone else, I asked our network co ordinator a matter of 6, maybe more months ago, and they said we didnt have to register, so as Ive never been told anything about it, not knowing where to start or what to do, none of the other childminders in my area knew about this till I told them last night, so hardly our fault if were not told anything, or sent anything in writing, Think its appaling that something so important has not been passed on, and that we have to find out about it on here.

We were only told via a small article in a Herts Minding pub sent to all minders in Herts it was mostly word of mouth I urge you to contact NCMA or b
etter still you local environmetal health dept to confirm their requirements. This only happened in autumn 2008.

Bananabrain
06-01-2009, 11:15 AM
Hi, I'm in East region and have also been v. confused about what we have to do.Initially phoned local council some months ago,they told me I had got it wrong and didnt need to register[despite reading that I had to in cminding mag that morning]!!!To cut long story short,am now registered but silly me didnt take copy of forms so had to phone again to get copy for Ofsted purposes.spoke to lady in council before xmas to say I need a definitive list of exactly what I need to do[bloke in environmental health said I didnt need food probe as that was going too far!!!!Now it appears I do.:) Been told prob won't get a visit as they are understaffed ha ha and that 'we haven't decided what to do with cminders yet'!!!! I know that every job has stress but I just wish that if they are going to keep moving goalposts all time they would think it thru prop first because my life is busy enough!!! Hope you get it sorted it appears each area is different and I think you have to be persistant. If someone in 'authority' says I don't know,with a blank look on their face:) I always say 'well can you go and find out' I don't know doesn't help me:)

sarah707
06-01-2009, 06:42 PM
Im in Cheshire, I have to say I have never been given any information from anyone on anything to do with registering as a food business, when I found out from someone else, I asked our network co ordinator a matter of 6, maybe more months ago, and they said we didnt have to register, so as Ive never been told anything about it, not knowing where to start or what to do, none of the other childminders in my area knew about this till I told them last night, so hardly our fault if were not told anything, or sent anything in writing, Think its appaling that something so important has not been passed on, and that we have to find out about it on here.

If you are under Macclesfield, they will take your registration but not do a lot with you.

You can either ring the council offices direct or register with a form you print off from the internet here -

http://www.macclesfield.gov.uk/pdfs/form_reg_food_prem.pdf

Hth :D

madasahatter
06-01-2009, 06:57 PM
I'm registered with Bradford. The environmental health dept sent out a form which was very easy to fill in. They told me that whilst they recognised the fact that we had to register with them, they don't consider us to be food preparation businesses in the same way as a restaurant/take away etc. They don't even computerize childminders forms (which they do with other food businesses), they just file them incase there is ever a complaint or food poisoning case that could be linked to us. They also sent me a booklet and told me to keep an eye on fridge temeratures etc but that I don't need to record, also that I should go on a food hygiene course (which I already had done and renewed several times)

Donkey
07-01-2009, 03:52 PM
I have been told that we dont need to register in sheffield but with my first inspection looming, this is worrying me a lot.

will pick the brains of people again soon in my area

kellyb
08-01-2009, 06:57 PM
Hi everyone, well someone from my local council has got back to me, they are sending me a form to fill in to register, and she said thats all we have to do, nothing about checking fridge or freezer temps daily, or any of that! Thanks goodness! That was just another thing to add to my long list of things to do daily!