Local Council's are given food safety inspection targets, by the Food Standards Agency, which have to be met by the end of March each year.

At present it is becoming increasingly difficult to recruit experienced Environmental Health Officers into Food or Commercial Teams due to the high costs of relocation and housing acquisition.

One local Council contacted TIPS as its inspection figures were falling behind the internally set quarterly target to see if a consultant could be seconded for three months to rectify this shortfall.

TIPS was able to provide a consultant at relatively short notice to carry out 90 food safety inspections within the specified time frame in premises ranging from 'Inspection Categories B to F'.

This Council is now well on track to meet its FSA 'inspection target' for March 2005 which it would have otherwise failed to achieve but for assistance from TIPS.