Domino’s pizza takeaway given improvement notice

A branch of Domino’s Pizza in Bridgend has been served with an Improvement Notice by enforcement officers after staff were found to be preparing food while not wearing face coverings.

Shared Regulatory Services visited Domino’s at Parc Plaza, on Waterton Road, on Saturday, November 21 and raised concerns that social distancing wasn’t being enforced.

An officer also noted that three members of staff preparing food or in the food preparation area were without any face coverings, including one staff member whose covering was around their chin and not over their mouth and nose.

Cllr Dhanisha Patel, Cabinet Member for Wellbeing and Future Generations, said: “Welsh Government regulations require those who are responsible for premises to take all reasonable measures to ensure a two-metre distance can be maintained and take other reasonable measures to minimise the risk of exposure to Covid-19.

“If Domino’s makes the required improvements within 48 hours of the Premises Improvement Notice being issued, the notice will be lifted. All businesses in Bridgend county borough must ensure they are meeting their responsibilities to keep their customers and staff safe during the pandemic.”

Shared Regulatory Services officers have been proactively visiting premises across the county borough and offering support to help them comply with the rules.

The regulations require businesses to ensure a two-metre distance can be maintained between people who are on the premises or waiting to go in, and to provide information to anyone entering or working there about how to minimise the risk of exposure to coronavirus.

They must also take other reasonable measures to minimise the risk of exposure, primarily by improving hygiene and minimising face-to-face interaction, especially in situations where two-metre distancing isn’t possible.

Premises Improvement Notices specify the measures that need to be taken to meet the regulations within a certain time limit, usually 48 hours. If the business fails to comply, enforcement officers can issue a Premises Closure Notice, requiring the premises, or part of it, to be closed for up to 14 days.

In some circumstances, enforcement officers can close the premises immediately without having served an improvement notice, but this would only be where there has been a serious breach of regulations.