Environmental health - commercial

We are responsible for making sure Islington businesses are safe to work at, meet strong food safety standards, remain smoke-free and do not cause nuisance to people who live nearby.

Food safety

To ensure that food is safe to eat, we:

• work with businesses so that safe food is sold, produced, stored or handled in the 2,000 premises operating in Islington
• inspect over 1,000 food premises each year
• investigate complaints about food bought in the borough
• take food samples for laboratory assessment
• provide training and advice to food businesses.

Safety at work

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

Nuisance

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

• investigate complaints from neighbours about smells, rotting waste and other public health hazards
• work with businesses to fix the problem.

Smoke-free

To ensure that smoke-free laws are enforced, we:

• have a lead officer that can provide expert advice
• work with the Primary Care Trust.

We investigate all complaints 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' at the bottom of the page. 

Contact

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

• Phone: 020 7527 3816
• Fax: 020 7527 3057
• Email: Commercial.EnvH@islington.gov.uk