Sussex’s food hygiene performance exceeds the national benchmark, though a notable divide separates the eastern and western regions, according to research published this week.

The study, conducted by Cairn Catering Engineers, assessed local authorities by examining the proportion of establishments receiving ratings of two or lower – the point at which the Food Standards Agency indicates remedial action is needed.

West Sussex placed 29th from the bottom among 56 administrative areas in England and Wales for food hygiene, with approximately one in 40 inspected venues achieving two stars or worse.

East Sussex secured 52nd position, positioning it substantially ahead of its neighbouring county – with only Cumbria, Rutland, Dorset and Northumberland recording superior results across the two nations.

Within West Sussex, Worthing performed most poorly, with 3.33% of its food businesses falling into the lowest hygiene classifications.

Adur (3.10%), Mid Sussex (2.74%) and Arun (2.67%) similarly exceeded the county average of 2.53%.

Crawley (1.57%) and Horsham (1.37%) achieved better results, while Chichester recorded the county’s strongest performance at just 0.53%.

In the adjacent area, East Sussex’s 52nd-place ranking among 56 placed it among the higher-performing counties nationwide, with 1.45% of its 5,730 assessed establishments receiving two stars or below.

Lewes had the highest concentration of poorly-rated premises in East Sussex at 2.05%, followed by Eastbourne (1.59%), Brighton & Hove (1.53%) and Hastings (1.47%).

Wealden (0.46%) and Rother (0.30%) recorded the fewest substandard premises in East Sussex.

Food hygiene ratings are allocated by local authority environmental health officers following assessments of food preparation practices, facility condition and management systems.

In England, unlike Wales and Northern Ireland, establishments are not obliged to exhibit their rating publicly, meaning consumers must search scores independently via ratings.food.gov.uk.

Cairn Catering Engineers has also developed an interactive resource enabling diners to examine food hygiene ratings across various locations in greater depth.

Nationally, West Midlands ranked highest for poor standards, with 8% of venues receiving low ratings.

Greater London placed second worst nationally but has advanced by 8.7% since 2018 – the most substantial improvement seen in any region.

Northumberland achieved the distinction of being England’s and Wales’ cleanest county for food hygiene, with only 0.58% of its establishments requiring improvement.