External Caterers at a Venue: 7 Things Venues Ask For

What do venues require from external caterers?

Venues that allow outside caterers commonly ask for seven things: public liability insurance (usually £5 million), the caterer's food hygiene rating, a risk assessment and method statement, a gas safety certificate for any LPG appliances, electrical safety checks on equipment, an allergen and food safety procedure, and agreement to the venue's rules on access, power, waste and finishing times. Many also charge a fee for using an outside caterer.

These are the venue's conditions, not all of them legal requirements, and they vary. Ask the venue for its written supplier requirements before you book either the venue or the caterer.

Public liability insurance

Almost every venue asks for it. The figure most often requested is £5 million of cover, and some larger venues and public sites ask for £10 million. It is not a legal requirement for a caterer without staff, but a caterer without it will struggle to work at most venues. Venues usually want a copy of the certificate before the event.

Food hygiene rating and registration

Venues increasingly ask for the caterer's food hygiene rating, and some set a minimum, commonly 4 or 5. The rating is published by the Food Standards Agency and shows the caterer is registered with a council. A caterer registered but awaiting its first inspection has no rating yet; some venues accept that and some do not.

Risk assessment and method statement (RAMS)

A written risk assessment covering the caterer's work at the venue: cooking equipment, hot surfaces, gas, electrics, manual handling, vehicle movements, fire precautions. Larger venues ask for a method statement alongside it describing how the job will be done. Established event caterers have a template they adapt for each site.

Gas and electrical safety

If the caterer cooks on bottled LPG, venues commonly ask for a current gas safety certificate for the appliances from a Gas Safe registered engineer qualified for LPG in catering. Many also ask for portable appliance testing (PAT) records for electrical equipment, and set rules on where gas bottles are stored and whether cooking is allowed indoors at all. Fire extinguishers and a fire blanket at the cooking area are a common condition.

Access, power, water, waste and time

When the caterer can arrive and must be gone, where vehicles park, what power is available and whether a generator is allowed, whether there is a kitchen and what is in it, where waste goes and who takes it away, and noise limits for generators in the evening. These practical conditions cause more trouble on the day than the paperwork does, so get them in writing.

What about a venue fee?

Some venues charge a fee for bringing in an outside caterer, sometimes called a kitchen fee, catering fee or corkage-style charge per head. It can be modest or large enough to change the choice of caterer, so find it out before you compare quotes.