Environmental health - commercial

There are new legal requirements for food businesses in response to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak. Islington Council is implementing Government instructions and legal requirements to help keep everyone safe.

The commercial environmental health team is responsible for ensuring that:

• food is safe to eat
• workplaces are safe and work activities are carried out safely
• smokefree public places legislation is enforced
• business premises do not cause a nuisance to their neighbours

To ensure that food is safe to eat, the team:

• works with businesses to ensure that all food sold, produced, stored or handled in the 2000 premises operating in Islington, is safe to eat
• inspects over 1000 food premises each year
• investigates complaints about food bought in the borough
• takes food samples for laboratory assessment
• provides training and advice to food businesses

To ensure that workplaces are safe and work activities are carried out safely, we:

• share enforcement responsibility with the Health and Safety Executive on the 5000 commercial premises in Islington
• work with employers to ensure that workplaces and work activities are safe
• visit approximately 400 workplaces each year to ensure that premises comply with health and safety at work requirements
• prioritise our work to contribute to the national priorities to reduce accidents and ill health caused by slips, trips and falls, lifting, carrying and other activities which cause a strain on the body; working at heights, stress, asbestos, exposure to chemicals and irritants causing dermatitis, occupational asthma etc; workplace transport
• investigate serious workplace accidents and complaints from employees and the public

To ensure that business premises don’t cause a nuisance to their neighbours, we:

• investigate complaints from neighbours about smells, putrescible waste and other public health hazards
• work with businesses to remedy the nuisance

To ensure that the smokefree public places legislation is enforced, we:

• have a lead officer available to provide expert advice
• work with the PCT

All complaints are investigated in accordance with the Regulators’ Compliance Code and Enforcement Concordat. There is also a Public Protection Enforcement policy which you can view in related documents below. 

Contact

Commercial Environmental Health Service
Public Protection Division, Islington Council, 222 Upper Street London N1 1XR

Tel: 020 7527 3816 Fax: 020 7527 3057

Email: commercial.envh@islington.gov.uk