Compliance records by industry
What UK small businesses have to record, how often, and who comes to check. Pick your sector for a plain guide and the digital compliance logbooks that cover it.
Every business that serves food, employs staff or lets the public in has records to keep. The rules come from different places: food hygiene law enforced by your council's environmental health team, fire safety law enforced by the fire and rescue service, health and safety law, and sector regulators such as Ofsted for nurseries and the General Pharmaceutical Council for pharmacies.
What they share is simple. An inspector wants to see that you check the right things, at the right times, and act when something is wrong. A tidy record of those checks is the quickest way to show it. Missing or patchy records are one of the most common reasons for a lower food hygiene rating and for follow-up visits.
The guides below set out the records for each type of business, the regulator for each, and the free templates you can print today. If you would rather not chase paper, the same logbooks run on any phone, tablet or computer in LogBooks Hub.
Restaurants & Cafes
What UK cafes and restaurants must log, how often, and how records shape your food hygiene rating. Plain guidance and digital compliance logbooks for kitchens.
Records guide for restaurants & cafes →
Pubs & Bars
Cellar checks, line cleaning, refusals logs, food safety and fire records for UK pubs and bars. Who inspects you, what to log and how often, in plain English.
Records guide for pubs & bars →
Hotels & B&Bs
What UK hotels, guest houses and B&Bs must log: legionella flushing, fire doors and alarms, breakfast food safety. Who inspects you and what records to keep.
Records guide for hotels & b&bs →
Childcare & Nurseries
The records a UK nursery must keep under the EYFS: accidents, medicines, sleep checks, attendance, food and allergens. Who checks them, and how to go digital.
Records guide for childcare & nurseries →
Pharmacies
Fridge temperatures, the Responsible Pharmacist record and CD register rules for UK community pharmacies, plus the daily checks a GPhC inspector expects to see.
Records guide for pharmacies →
Beauty Salons
COSHH, patch tests, tool hygiene and licensing for UK hair and beauty salons, barbers and nail bars. What the law says, what is good practice, how to log it.
Records guide for beauty salons →
Gyms & Fitness
Equipment inspections, cleaning, defibrillator checks, pool tests and RIDDOR for UK gyms and fitness centres. What to log, how often, and who checks it.
Records guide for gyms & fitness →
Retail
Date checks, chiller temperatures, refusals registers and fire tests for UK convenience stores and food shops. What to log, how often, and who inspects you.
Records guide for retail →
Butcher Shops
E. coli O157 controls, raw and ready-to-eat separation, chiller temperatures and cleaning records for UK butchers. What to log, how often, and who inspects you.
Records guide for butcher shops →