Ealing Ranks Second for Low-rated Food Premises

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Over one in ten in the borough assessed as requiring improvement

343 businesses in the borough are rated 0-2 by hygiene inspectors

March 19, 2026

Ealing has emerged as one of the worst-performing boroughs in a new nationwide study of food hygiene standards, with more than 340 businesses rated in the lowest categories.

A report has found that the proportion of local businesses rated by the council’s hygiene inspectors were rated with the three lowest scores (0-2) was the second highest in the country behind only Newham. This means that they have been assessed as requiring improvement. The average ranking for the borough was the third worst.

The study, conducted by Copley Pest Solutions, analysed Food Standards Agency data from thousands of food businesses across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Under the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, businesses are inspected and scored from zero to five, with zero indicating “urgent improvement necessary” and five meaning hygiene standards are “very good”.

Ealing matched Bolton’s average score of 4.19 out of five, but recorded one of the highest raw numbers of poorly rated establishments in the country. Of the 2,949 food businesses inspected in the borough, 34 received a zero rating, 119 scored one, and 190 scored two — meaning more than 13 per cent of premises are currently rated in the lowest hygiene brackets.

Wenzel’s bakery near Ealing Broadway Station, which was given a zero rating last month after a mice infestation. The branch is one of only two across the chain’s 100-plus locations to receive the lowest possible score. The rating suggests serious failings in cleanliness, food handling or structural safety, and places the business at risk of enforcement action or closure if improvements are not made.

The findings raise questions about whether food hygiene standards among business owners in Ealing are falling short, or whether inspections in the borough are simply more rigorous than elsewhere. The council has been asked to comment, but has not yet responded.

London boroughs dominated the lower end of the rankings, with Newham recording the worst overall performance. Just over half of Newham’s 2,344 rated businesses achieved the top score of five, while 317 fell into the lowest categories. Waltham Forest had the highest number of zero-rated businesses, with 60 establishments receiving the lowest score.

The Nation's Worst Rated Local Authorities for Food Hygiene
Rank	Local Authority	Rated 0-2	Rrated 0	Rated 1	Rrated 2	Average Rating	Rated Establishments
1	Newham	13.5%	31	191	95	3.97	2,344
2	Ealing	11.6%	34	119	190	4.19	2,949
3	Waltham Forest	11.4%	60	126	30	4	1,902
4	Enfield	9.1%	11	98	88	4.23	2,160
5	Birmingham	9.1%	96	361	306	4.32	8,372
6	Bolton	8.9%	9	103	75	4.19	2,103
7	Camden	7.8%	36	98	128	4.24	3,340
8	Wigan	7.5%	6	58	106	4.21	2,271
9	Barking and Dagenham	6.6%	4	51	25	4.23	1,209
10	Walsall	6.5%	9	59	43	4.25	1,712
11	Barnet	5.5%	3	45	81	4.34	2,358
12	Blaenau Gwent	5.4%	1	16	14	4.21	576
13	Slough	5.3%	0	19	27	4.34	865
14	Merthyr Tydfil	3.0%	2	7	7	4.31	529

Outside London, Bolton, Blaenau Gwent and parts of the West Midlands and South Wales also featured among the poorest performers.

The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme is designed to help consumers make informed choices and encourage businesses to maintain high standards. Ratings are publicly available and displayed on premises and online. Any business scoring two or below is expected to make significant improvements, and those rated zero may face closure if they fail to comply.

 

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