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asked June 20th 2013

Local environmental health inspection

Hi All
This isn’t a question as such but I know some of us all have been nervous about registering with our local health department and having an inspection. I certainly was but had my first today and it was great. The officer was so helpful and really friendly and I was given a 5 which I’m so happy about. So message to everybody who is waiting or considering it it really isn’t anything as terrible an experience as I had imagined. She even looked at my facebook business page and picked the handbag cake from Pauls tutorial as her favourite ha ha 🙂

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Hi All
This isn’t a question as such but I know some of us all have been nervous about registering with our local health department and having an inspection. I certainly was but had my first today and it was great. The officer was so helpful and really friendly and I was given a 5 which I’m so happy about. So message to everybody who is waiting or considering it it really isn’t anything as terrible an experience as I had imagined. She even looked at my facebook business page and picked the handbag cake from Pauls tutorial as her favourite ha ha 🙂

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Hi Scarlet
I have been nervous about this also. I don’t mean to sound stupid but what did they look at….just the general hygene aspect like do you have to have a separate fridge etc and some one at work told me that your washing machine should be in a utility room and not within the kitchen area where your baking is this true? I live in Scotland but surely the basic rules apply all over the uk?
Lynn
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Hi Lyn
It’s not stupid at all, I was exactly same as you about what they were going to look at. I was asked a few questions first about what foods I use, and if I use any high risk foods such as soft cheese etc. I was asked if I had any training in food safety (I completed an online course so have a certificate). She then looked at my kitchen but never even mentioned anything about a washing machine. Asked about what cleaning products I use and how I wash cleaning cloths. I don’t actually use cloths I always use paper towels or something disposable which she said is ideal. I do have a small separate fridge which she checked the temperature of . She asked what everything was in there as well. I always label stuff to show when it needs to be used by as I have the memory of a goldfish at times. Asked who my food supplier was and where I buy things. Looked at my sink and if I had adequate hand washing facilities and that was it really. A tip for you which she told me is to eep a little book for yourself of the temp in your fridge and write it in there every time you check it (twice a week she said to me) and that was basically it. Took about 20 minutes all in all. Don’t hesitate to ask anything else if you need to. I was really nervous the night before it so know exactly how you feel x

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Hi Scarlet
Thanks for that. I haven’t booked a visit yet but it’s good to get an idea of what they look at. I just do my cakes part time as I still work fulltime!!….sometimes I’m up till all hours trying to finish a cake.I work in my local hospital and have my food hygene certificate so no probs there and I have to keep up with infection control as part of the hospitals mandatory training so that all helps as well.I would love to cut my hours and do more of my cakes but at the moment I just get orders by word of mouth at work and family and friends. Do you find your getting enough work?…or are you just setting up a business?.I’m not looking to set up an empire but it would be nice to think I could make a not too bad living at it.
Lynn
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Hi Lynn
It sounds like you’ve got everything covered for an inspection visit. Like you I also work but part time as I have a 2 yr old daughter so pretty busy. I’m getting loads of work but I also know I’m not charging enough for my cakes if that makes sense. I would love to do this full time as again like you I’m often up all hours of the night and I’m pretty shattered a lot of the time. I have set it up as a proper business but it is only small due to my other commitments. I’m now beginning to charge more for my cakes (still not quite as much as i would if i had to rely on it for an income) but at the moment don’t feel confident enough to give up my other job yet. I think if you charged the right prices for your cakes from the outset you will know within a certain amount of time whether you could reduce your hours. I think if you’re determined to make it work you could Lynn. I have my own business page on Facebook where I get a lot of business from www.facebook.com/Themixingbowlcakery. Do you have a page Lynn? Hope this has helped a little?

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Hi Scarlet
I feel exactly the same….everyone at work keep telling me how good my cakes are but as you say I don’t have the confidence to give it a go! and I certainly don’t charge as much as I should but I don’t feel I can if I’m not a business..It must be hard for you when you have a little one to look after as well as working partime and doing your cakes!!!,my girls are grown up infact my eldest is 36yrs this coming Saturday 29th June!,She is a big Bon Jovi fan so I’m going to try and make her a cake with the Bon Jovi logo,,,,don’t know if you’ve ever seen it but it’s a bleeding heart with a dagger thro it….sounds awefull I know but hopefully she will like it!! I don’t have a facebook page but my daughter keeps telling me I should set one up so I think I will….just so I can see what others like ourselves are doing.I will get my daughter to show me your face book page and hopefully I will set up my own soon!.Thank you so much for the advice it has really helped.
Lynn x

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Hi Lynn
I have seen the logo and that would look brilliant. I would love to see a pic of the finished result. I have a friend who is mad on Him too and she would love that idea. It is hard balancing it all out as I also have 2 older grown up daughters and a grandson. Haven’t quite got the right balance yet but I’m sure I will eventually. Let me know how you get on as its always nice to chat with other cakey people. It’s a bit difficult in my area as there’s a lot of competition and dare I say it a lot of negativity between cake decorators for some reason, I keep myself to myself which is why I love this site x

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