Ealing has the lowest average food hygiene rating of 30 London boroughs analysed in a new study, with almost one in three food businesses in the borough receiving a rating of three or below.
The analysis of Food Standards Agency (FSA) data downloaded in June 2026 by online training provider High Speed Training found 1,232 premises in Ealing had an average food hygiene rating of 3.91 out of five, putting the borough 30th among those included in the London analysis.
Ealing also performed worse than all five neighbouring boroughs. Hammersmith & Fulham recorded an average rating of 4.56, followed by Brent at 4.49, Hounslow at 4.48, Harrow at 4.30 and Hillingdon at 4.12.
Across London, 83.66% of premises analysed received ratings of four or five, compared with 69.16% in Ealing. The London-wide average was 4.39, based on 36,804 premises.
Ealing’s average has fallen slightly from 3.93 in 2025 to 3.91 this year, while London’s increased from 4.38 to 4.39.
The figures show 30.84% of Ealing businesses included in the analysis received ratings of zero, one, two or three.
Of the 1,232 Ealing premises analysed, 27 received the lowest possible rating of zero, 77 were rated one and 105 were rated two. A further 171 received a three, while 245 were rated four and 607 achieved the top rating of five.
Under the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, businesses are graded from zero to five, with five meaning standards are “very good” and zero meaning “urgent improvement is necessary”. A rating of two means “some improvement is necessary”, while one means “major improvement is necessary”.
Recent inspections have also seen several well-known Ealing businesses receive low ratings. A branch of Wenzel’s in Ealing Broadway was given a zero following an inspection in February 2026, while a Papa Johns Pizza outlet in North Acton received a zero in January. Odeon Luxe Acton was given a rating of two following a February inspection.
Ealing Council has also taken enforcement action against businesses over food hygiene breaches. Last month, it successfully prosecuted SAI20 Limited, trading as Abi Fast Food in The Broadway, Southall, following what the council described as serious and repeated food hygiene failures.
The company was ordered to pay £6,800 after admitting six offences, while its director was ordered to pay a further £2,020.70. The takeaway had received a zero food hygiene rating following an inspection in January 2026.
Ealing Council’s Food Safety Service Plan for 2026/27 also acknowledges that the borough has historically experienced “higher-than-average levels of food business non-compliance compared with many other London authorities”. The plan reviews the council’s performance during the 2025/26 financial year, although the document itself does not state when it was published.
During 2025/26, the council completed 1,988 food hygiene interventions, representing 97% of those estimated to be due.
It also recorded 61 temporary closures — 56 Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notices and five voluntary closures. The council says emergency prohibition notices are used where there is an imminent risk to public health, typically caused by rat, mouse or cockroach infestations or gross contamination of food.
The council successfully concluded 16 food safety prosecutions during 2025/26, more than double the seven in the previous financial year. These resulted in fines exceeding £300,000, alongside £95,000 recovered in council costs.
The council’s report puts Ealing’s overall food business compliance rate at 88%, unchanged from the previous two years.
Takeaways and sandwich shops had the highest proportion of lower ratings among the types of business analysed by High Speed Training, with 37.74% receiving a rating of three or below.
Of those, 47 takeaways received a rating of three, representing 18.29% of the takeaways included in the analysis.
Restaurants, cafés and canteens also had a relatively high proportion of ratings of three or below, at 31.08%, while the figure for pubs, bars and nightclubs was 17.65%.
Hotels, bed and breakfasts and guest houses performed better, with 88.89% receiving a rating of four or five and 11.11% rated three or below.
Ealing has remained towards the bottom of the ratings during the five years covered by High Speed Training’s analysis. Its average was 3.85 in 2022, rising to 3.97 in 2023 before falling to 3.92 in 2024 and reaching 3.93 last year.
Of Ealing’s neighbours, Hammersmith & Fulham ranked ninth in London with an average rating of 4.56, followed by Brent in 12th at 4.49, Hounslow in 13th at 4.48, Harrow in 20th at 4.30 and Hillingdon in 26th at 4.12.
Hillingdon recorded the biggest fall in the London rankings, dropping nine places from 17th in 2025 to 26th this year as its average fell from 4.24 to 4.12. Harrow was the only one of Ealing’s five neighbours to improve its average, rising from 4.23 to 4.30.
At the other end of the table, Kensington and Chelsea ranked first with an average rating of 4.81.
High Speed Training analysed FSA data covering restaurants, cafés and canteens; takeaways and sandwich shops; pubs, bars and nightclubs; and hotels, bed and breakfasts and guest houses. Businesses without a current rating or inspection result were excluded.
High Speed Training director of learning Dr Richard Anderson said: “Food safety and robust hygiene practices should be of paramount importance to food businesses, and to the customers who use them.
“Over the last 5 years, we have seen trends broadly improve across the whole of the UK, which is a really positive sign. These ratings are a direct reflection of how safely and hygienically that establishment operates, and we urge businesses and customers to take them seriously.
“For businesses that perform well, a high rating is a real selling point. However, establishments with a low hygiene rating can be extremely off-putting for customers, and may have a significant impact on reputation and profitability.”
He added: “We would urge customers to always check the food hygiene ratings of establishments they wish to dine at, as it allows them to make an informed decision when choosing where to eat.”
