Various elements of health and safety legislation in independent hospitality operations in Lanarkshire

Your request was about the following information:

Under the Freedom of Information Act 2002, I would like to request the following information for my Dissertation.

This information will be used to aid me in my competition of my dissertation that looks to evaluate health and safety legislation in independent hospitality operations in Lanarkshire for my degree BA Risk management. 

If any part of this request exceeds the cost limit, I would be grateful if you could advise how, it may be refined 

Q1. For each year from 2019 to 2024, how many health and safety inspections were conducted in independent restaurant operations and takeaway premises within the Lanarkshire council’s areas? 

Q2. In the same time period, how many: 

• Improvement Notices 

• Prohibition Notices 

• Formal Warnings

Were issued to independent restaurant or takeaway premises for health and safety breaches. 

Q3. Please provide the number of prosecutions initiated relating to health and safety breaches in restaurant or takeaway premises for each year from 2019 to 2024. 

Q4. Where available, please provide reoccurring categories/themes that caused failure to comply with health and safety legislation from independent restaurant and takeaway premises during this period. 

Q5. Where recorded, please provide data on the number of repeat non-compliance cases identified in independent restaurant or takeaway premises during this period. 

Q6. For each year from 2019 to 2024, please provide the number of (full time) staff employed in health and safety enforcement relating to food service premises. 

Q7. Please provide the annual budget allocation for health and safety enforcement relating to food service premises for the same period 

Q8. Please provide the total number of independent restaurants and takeaway operations regulated by the council during the period of (2019-2024). 

Q9. Please provide details of any advisory visits, training sessions, workshops or compliance support offered to independent restaurant or takeaway SMEs between 2019 and 2024. 

Q10. Where available, please provide the number of voluntary or advisory (non enforcement) visits conducted in the same period. Q11. Please provide data of any guidance documents and checklists supplied to independent restaurant or takeaway operations to support compliance with health and safety legislation. 

Q12. Please provide any internal performance indicators or metrics used by the council(s) to assess health and safety compliance or enforcement effectiveness within food service premises.

Food Standards Scotland (FSS) has been able to provide information for part of your request, as outlined below. For the remaining information, it would be more appropriate to contact North and South Lanarkshire Councils, as this query predominantly falls within their remit. 

Questions 1-5 and 8-11:

FSS are unable to answer these questions as they relate to ‘independent’ restaurants and takeaways. We have no way to distinguish independent from others and are therefore unable to provide you with this information.

Question 6: 

FSS hold information in The Scottish National Database (SND) that relates to specific moments in time for some years however, we are unable to extrapolate that to the resources available throughout those years. Please see table below for the available information.

Question 7: FSS do not hold budget information for Local Authorities. 

Question 12: FSS do not hold the details of the Council’s internal performance indicators or metrics.