Level 2 Award in Food Safety and Hygiene – RSPH
Comprehensive food safety and hygiene training for catering — available as an online self-paced course, live webinar, or on-site at your premises. Covers food safety procedures, hazards, personal hygiene, cleaning, contamination prevention, temperature control, and your legal responsibilities.
Suitable for all food handlers working in restaurants, cafés, hotels, pubs, takeaways, and any food business in the UK.
Unlimited Fines
for non-compliance under the Food Safety Act 1990
BSc (Hons) Food Scientist
lead trainer & RSPH Centre Manager
Rating of 5
training mapped to EHO inspection criteria
What You Will Learn
- Food safety procedures and safe food handling behaviour
- The 4 types of food safety hazards: physical, chemical, microbial, and allergenic
- Key bacteria including Salmonella, E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Norovirus
- The 14 allergens and why allergen management saves lives
- Your legal responsibilities under the Food Safety Act 1990
- Effective personal hygiene and handwashing techniques
- Cleaning, disinfection, and the 6-step cleaning method
- Pest control measures and how to spot pest activity
- Temperature control: the danger zone, cooking, cooling, reheating, and hot holding
- Stock control, FIFO, and understanding use-by and best-before dates
Who Is This Course For?
This course is designed for anyone who handles food in a catering environment. Whether you are starting your first kitchen job or refreshing your knowledge, this qualification demonstrates your commitment to food safety.
- Chefs, cooks, and kitchen assistants
- Front-of-house staff who serve or handle food
- Café, pub, and takeaway workers
- Food delivery and catering event staff
- Anyone starting a new food business
Why Choose This Course?
- Legal requirement — UK law requires food handlers to be trained to a level appropriate to their role
- Boost your Food Hygiene Rating — trained staff contribute towards achieving a Food Hygiene Rating of 5
- Protect your customers — learn how to prevent the food safety failures that cause illness and business closures
- Instant certificate — pass the assessment and download your certificate immediately
- Flexible learning — complete online in 2–3 hours, or book instructor-led training for your team
- Includes 12 FSA video demonstrations — real-world food safety in action, not just theory
Supervisors and managers are recommended to study at Levels 3 and 4 in Food Safety.
Course Syllabus & Accreditation
Download PDFThis course is available in two formats. Both use the same 30-question multiple-choice assessment with a pass mark of 20 out of 30, but the syllabus structure, accreditation, and certificate differ:
On-Site & Webinar
Delivered through Kitchen Tonic, an RSPH-registered centre. The exam is provided and marked by RSPH. Your certificate is issued directly by the Royal Society for Public Health and is recognised by Environmental Health Officers nationwide.
Online Self-Paced
Meets training criteria under Retained Regulation (EC) No 852/2004
Food safety training in the UK does not legally require formal accreditation or external exams, but staff must be trained, supervised, or instructed in food hygiene to a level commensurate with their job. Our online courses meet the training requirements of Retained Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs, the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013, and the Food Safety Act 1990.
Learn at your own pace with unlimited assessment attempts. Your KitchenTonic certificate includes a unique verification code and is valid for 36 months.
Which should I choose? If your employer or EHO requires an Ofqual-regulated qualification, choose the on-site or webinar option for an RSPH certificate. The online self-paced course is ideal for flexible learning and covers the same assessment content, but the certificate is issued by KitchenTonic, not RSPH.
RSPH Syllabus — Learning Outcomes
The following learning outcomes are from the official RSPH specification (603/2395/4) and apply to the on-site and webinar delivery of this course.
1. Understand food safety hazards
- 1.1 Contamination and cross-contamination hazards to food safety
- 1.2 How contamination of food can cause illness or injury
- 1.3 The importance of personal hygiene and behaviour to food safety
- 1.4 The legal responsibilities of food handlers and food business operators
2. Understand how to control food safety hazards
- 2.1.1 Preventing or minimising the risk of cross contamination
- 2.1.2 Temperature control
- 2.1.3 Dealing with stock and deliveries to customers
- 2.1.4 Work flow, work surfaces and equipment
- 2.1.5 Keeping the work area and equipment clean and tidy
- 2.1.6 Dealing with hazards and potential hazards
- 2.1.7 Food spoilage and waste
- 2.1.8 Pest prevention
Online Course Module Breakdown
Food Safety Procedures
2 lessons · 15 min
Food Safety Hazards
6 lessons · 30 min
Legal Responsibilities
3 lessons · 15 min
The Importance of Personal Hygiene
1 lesson · 10 min
Effective Personal Hygiene
4 lessons · 25 min
Keeping Work Areas and Equipment Clean
4 lessons · 20 min
Pest Control
2 lessons · 10 min
Food Contamination and Spoilage
3 lessons · 15 min
Safe Food Handling and Temperature Control
5 lessons · 25 min
Stock Control Procedures
2 lessons · 10 min
Note: The RSPH classroom/webinar syllabus follows the official RSPH specification learning outcomes. The online modules above are structured for self-paced study but cover the same assessment content.
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Essential Food Safety Knowledge
The legal minimum every food handler in the UK must know.
Under the Food Safety Act 1990, every person who handles food must be trained to a level appropriate to their role. This Level 2 course covers the core knowledge that Environmental Health Officers expect every food handler to demonstrate.
Temperature Control Mastery
The danger zone (5°C–63°C) is where bacteria multiply rapidly. This course teaches you the critical temperatures for cooking (75°C for 30 seconds), hot holding (63°C minimum), chilled storage (8°C or below), and frozen storage (−18°C or colder) — plus the 4-hour and 2-hour display rules.
Cleaning and Disinfection
A visually clean surface can still harbour thousands of bacteria. Learn the 6-step cleaning and disinfection method, the difference between detergents, disinfectants, and sanitisers, and why contact time is critical. Includes FSA video demonstrations.
Allergen Management
Allergen failures have caused deaths in the UK. This course covers all 14 legally declared allergens, Natasha's Law requirements, cross-contact prevention, and your duty to communicate allergen information accurately to every customer.
What You Will Learn
Complete Level 2 food safety checklist
This course covers every topic in the Level 2 Award in Food Safety and Hygiene syllabus. Each module includes FSA video content to bring the theory to life with real-world examples.
Designed by a BSc (Hons) Food Scientist Who Has Trained EHOs
This course was developed by a degree-qualified Food Scientist and RSPH Centre Manager with over 15 years of experience in the food industry. The content is mapped directly to what Environmental Health Officers check during inspections — so you learn exactly what matters.
Trusted by Hundreds of UK Food Businesses
Kitchen Tonic has helped restaurants, cafés, pubs, and takeaways across the UK achieve and maintain 5-star Food Hygiene Ratings. Our training is practical, engaging, and built around real EHO inspection criteria — not textbook theory.
Untrained staff are the number one reason businesses lose marks at inspection. This course gives your team the knowledge they need.
Protect Your Business. Train Your Team Today.
Level 2 food safety training is a legal requirement for food handlers. Train online in 2–3 hours, book a live webinar, or request on-site training at your premises.
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