What share of UK schools, colleges & universities have a 5-star food hygiene rating?

92% of UK schools, colleges & universities hold the top 5-star Food Standards Agency hygiene rating — 28,719 of 31,216 rated premises in England, Wales and Northern Ireland — with an average rating of 4.9 out of 5. That is above the all-business-type UK average of 78.2%. Data as of 2026-06-12.

How many UK schools, colleges & universities have a low (0 or 1 star) hygiene rating?

0.1% of rated UK schools, colleges & universities (36 premises) score 0 or 1 star, the FSA's lowest bands. A low share here means most lower-rated premises sit at 3–4 stars, not at the bottom.

What do UK schools, colleges & universities score worst on at inspection?

Across the FSA's three inspection components — Hygiene (food handling), Structural (cleanliness and condition) and Confidence in Management — UK schools, colleges & universities score worst, relative to each band, on cleanliness & structure. Lower component scores are better; this reflects where inspectors most often note room for improvement, not unsafe food.

UK Schools, colleges & universities Food Hygiene Ratings 2026

Quick answer

92% of UK schools, colleges & universities hold the top 5-star food hygiene rating.

Across 31,216 rated schools, colleges & universities, 28,719 (92%) carry the maximum 5-star Food Standards Agency rating and the average rating is 4.9 out of 5. That is above the all-business-type UK average of 78.2% (+13.8 percentage points). 0.1% (36) score 0 or 1 star.

Rating distribution

Every one of the 31,216 rated schools, colleges & universities, by their 0–5 Food Hygiene Rating.

5 — Very good

28,719 (92%)

4 — Good

2,056 (6.6%)

3 — Generally satisfactory

313 (1%)

2 — Improvement necessary

92 (0.3%)

1 — Major improvement necessary

35 (0.1%)

0 — Urgent improvement necessary

1 (0%)

Where schools, colleges & universities score worst

The FSA scores three things at every inspection. Each bar is the mean sub-score for schools, colleges & universities — lower is better (0 = no issues found). Computed over 31,059 rated premises that carried all three sub-scores.

Hygiene (food handling, storage, cooking)1.9 / 25

Structural (cleanliness, layout, condition)3.1 / 25

Confidence in management (record-keeping, controls)2.4 / 30

For schools, colleges & universities, the component dragging ratings down most — relative to its own scoring band — is cleanliness & structure. A higher sub-score there means more inspections flagged that area for improvement. It does not mean the food is unsafe: only 0.1% of rated schools, colleges & universities sit at 0–1 star.

Compare

UK Food Hygiene by Business Type 2026 — all 14 categories ranked, restaurants vs takeaways and more.
The State of UK Restaurant Hygiene 2026 — national pass rate, best and worst local authorities.
UK Food Hygiene Ratings Directory — search the full dataset by local authority and postcode.
GeraCompliance — food safety and regulatory checks for businesses.

Methodology

Figures are computed directly from the Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) public register, restricted to premises the FSA classifies as "School/college/university" in England, Wales and Northern Ireland that carry a published 0–5 rating (31,216 premises). Percentages are over rated premises only. Scotland's separate FHIS pass/fail scheme is excluded so the five-star metric stays comparable. The average rating is the count-weighted mean of the 0–5 ratings. The three component sub-scores are the FSA's own Hygiene (0–25), Structural (0–25) and Confidence-in-Management (0–30) bands, where a lower score is better; the means shown are count-weighted over premises carrying all three. No figures are estimated or modelled. Food hygiene data © Crown copyright, Food Standards Agency, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data as of 2026-06-12.