The Midlands city was found to have the highest proportion of restaurants that scored badly under the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) hygiene rating system, with 11% of it restaurants and takeaways having low ratings of only one or two stars.
Under the FSA five-starred ranking system, premises with a one-star rating require major improvements with several food hygiene breaches recorded and lack of staff training while those with a two-star rating are also required to improve with some concerns around handling practices.
The second worst city was Southend-on-Sea, where 7% of places have a one or two star rating followed by the City of Westminster, Dudley, Islington, Liverpool and Manchester (6%).
Croydon, Newport and Mansfield complete the top 10 with 5% of restaurants with that rating, according to the data from facilities management company Direct365.
In contrast, Ipswich is most hygienic place to eat out with 100% of its restaurants and takeaways achieving a high four or five star hygiene rating, according to the data.
Other cities found to be the cleanest for food hygiene include Southampton, Crawley, and Swindon, with 99% of restaurants having a four of five star rating, and Nottingham, Milton Keynes, Belfast, Leeds, Coventry and Preston (98%) also in the top 10.
“If you’re fortunate enough to be in one of the highest-ranking towns for excellent food hygiene, be aware that standards are much higher than average.
You can’t be competitive without your own four- or five-star rating,” says Karl Bantleman, head of digital at Direct365.
“There are a few simple things food establishments can do to improve their rating, including storing food properly, good record keeping, using the right cleaning products, and managing waste properly.”
Direct365 focused on the 45 most populated cities and towns in England and Wales for the survey with the results determined by which places have the highest percentage of zero, one and two-star food outlets, and which locations have the highest percentage of three, four and five-star rated restaurants.