West Cumberland Hospital violates food hygiene rules 19 times

Basic food safety standards have been broken a total of 19 times at West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven, inspectors from Copeland Borough Council found.

The breaches were confined to the kitchen, although the hospital was also ordered to improve on general upkeep and maintenance following two spot checks, the latest in March this year, the News and Star reports.

Inspectors from the authority's food safety team carried out routine checks as part of their 'Scores on the Door' initiative but found no other major failings across the region's other hospitals.

Alan Davidson, director of estates and facilities management at North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust, which administers West Cumberland Hospital, said the major failings of the two inspections had now been "addressed".

He added that this would be "demonstrated at the next scheduled inspection", which the hospital "envisage being in September 2011".

Last year, the percentage of establishments broadly compliant with the Food Safety Act in Copeland Borough Council was 85.41 per cent - excluding unrated and outside ones - according to data supplied to the Food Standards Agency.