RESTAURANTS and shops got a surprise visit today from environmental inspectors during a clampdown on unhygienic businesses.

The Guardian was invited to shadow nine inspectors, including two health and safety inspectors, who descended on Walthamstow High Street on Wednesday.

They checked businesses for evidence of pest infestations, poor food handling and unacceptable standards of cleanliness.

Within one hour, a take away shop was closed after an inspector found mouse droppings, dirty areas and no running hot water due to a broken boiler.

Senior environmental health officer, Pip Broad, firmly informed the owner at Moon Pizza, which already had poor council rating for hygiene, that he had failed to follow previous instructions to get rid of the mouse infestation and that the shop could not remain open without hot water.

Throughout the day, 20 businesses were visited and 16 warning letters were issued advising owners on improvements to make.

Inspectors say most of the food premises in the borough are safe. But they carry out 500 spot-check visits a year and are conducting two days of checks as part of a clamp down to try to raise the standards.

Food safety manager Alison Cockerill said: “We are clamping down because we feel it is very important to do so to protect the public. Anyone can open a food premises. And we want to raise the standard ahead of the Olympics.

“The turn over of owners in this area is very high, which can make it hard for us to keep track. But we target those with high-risk produce or those which have had problems in the past and we try to help them make improvements.”

Ms Cockerill explained that businesses with poor hygiene may be issued with an improvement notice by inspectors, which gives the owners a specified time in which to make the necessary improvements.

But those which are deemed to pose a risk to public health can be closed immediately by inspectors, who then have three days to present the evidence to the Magistrates' Court for the closure to be formalised.

She said inspectors will then decide, referring to the prosecution code of practice and the council's own check list, whether the owner's of the business should be prosecuted - taking into account issues such as whether the company has a history of poor hygiene.

If successfully prosecuted, Magistrates may choose to fine the business and its owner and ask for costs, both of which will be paid back to the council.

Al Balal halal butchers was also inspected by senior environmental health officer Phil Keighley, who asked for evidence of the source of the meat to ensure the produce was from a legal slaughterhouse and was traceable.

The shop was found to have acceptable levels of hygiene and the owner was given advice for improvements to be made.

The owner of Moon Pizza is due to appear at Walthamstow Magistrates' Court on Friday.

Click here to follow the Waltham Forest Guardian on Twitter