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Leeds Live
Leeds Live
National
Samuel Port

Owner of zero-star Leeds cafe with dirty sponges 'didn't know' about issues

A Leeds café was told to make 'urgent improvements' after inspectors found multiple issues and was handed a level zero hygiene rating.

Food inspectors gave Olivers in High Street, Kippax, the lowest rating possible after inspectors found a number of issues when they visited last year.

A level zero means that “urgent improvement is necessary”.

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During their visit inspectors said that there was no wash hand basin at the cafe, dirty sponges and no written procedures for food safety measures.

When speaking to LeedsLive the café owner held their hands up, admitting they “didn’t know about these things” as it was their first time running a business when the inspectors visited on October 8.

The inspectors, working for Leeds City Council on behalf of the Food Standards Agency, found multiple issues during their visit.

They discovered there was no wash hand basin in the servery and advised to chuck away 'dirty cleaning sponges' discovered, daily.

They instructed the owner to make written procedures for food safety measures were and to put an allergen system in place.

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The owner was also told that they needed a new anti-bacterial cleaner.

Inspectors told the owner to move raw bacon from next to and above ready to eat food to the bottom of fridge and to wear an apron.

The owner was also told to train staff to level two.

The owner described the report as “fair” and made assurances that everything had been “sorted”.

The Olivers owner said: “Everything is sorted now there is nothing to report, I recently took it over it was my first time running a business and I didn’t know about these things.

“The sponge incident was just unfortunate timing really, I just cleaned a pan and it stained it.

“To some up if it was fair, it was and it helped me to get everything sorted.”

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