Local Authority Recovery Plan Assurance Assessment: Key Findings

This report summarises assurance assessments of eleven local authorities across England, Wales and Northern Ireland on their implementation of the COVID‑19 Local Authority Recovery Plan. Authorities began recovery from different starting points, reflecting varied pandemic impacts, resourcing levels and service pressures. Most made strong progress in prioritising new food businesses, planning interventions, and meeting Phase 1 and Phase 2 milestones using a risk‑based, intelligence‑led approach. The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme continued to operate effectively across all three nations. Authorities highlighted effective cross‑agency collaboration but also identified areas needing strengthening, including internal monitoring and re‑establishing proactive food sampling. Overall, local authorities broadly delivered expected controls and contributed to maintaining consumer protection during the recovery period.