It's important to review your front of house risk assessment every 12 months. Regular reviews help ensure that any changes in the restaurant environment or operations are accounted for, keeping your staff and customers safe.
Common misunderstanding: Once completed, a risk assessment is good indefinitely.
Risk assessments need regular updates to remain effective. Changes in layout, staff, or operations can introduce new risks that weren't previously considered.
Common misunderstanding: Annual reviews are only for large restaurants or bars.
All hospitality venues, regardless of size, should review their risk assessments annually to address any potential new hazards and ensure compliance with safety regulations.
An early review of your front of house risk assessment should be triggered by significant changes such as a new floor layout, introduction of new services like live music or dancing, customer accidents, the use of new equipment, changes in cleaning routines, or hiring new staff.
Common misunderstanding: Only major renovations require a risk assessment review.
Even minor changes, like rearranging furniture or altering service types, can significantly impact safety and should prompt a review.
Common misunderstanding: New equipment doesn’t affect existing risk assessments.
Any new equipment can introduce new hazards, necessitating an update to your risk assessment to include these changes.
To ensure you don’t forget to review your FOH risk assessment, set a recurring reminder in your calendar for an annual review. Additionally, using a management system like Pilla, which can automatically remind you, is an effective way to stay on top of this important task.
Common misunderstanding: Reviews are only necessary if there are obvious problems.
Regular reviews are crucial even if no immediate issues are apparent. They help identify potential risks that aren't always obvious but could still lead to accidents or non-compliance issues.
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A front of house risk assessment in hospitality is a thorough process to identify, evaluate, and address potential hazards in public-facing areas of venues like restaurants or bars.
Involving your team in the front of house risk assessment is important for understanding real-world risks and ensuring everyone knows their safety responsibilities.
To effectively manage risks in the front of house areas of hospitality settings, choose equipment designed for safety.
To accurately record a front of house risk assessment, choose between a table style layout or a listicle style document.
In a front of house risk assessment, consider all people who interact with the space, including staff, customers, and any other visitors.
To identify hazards in the front of house area effectively, walk through the space during actual service hours to observe interactions and movements of customers and staff in real-time.
To evaluate risks in the front of house of a restaurant, conduct walkthroughs during different service times to observe interactions between staff and customers.
Choosing the right control measures for front of house risks involves understanding the specific hazards and their potential effects on staff and customers.