Latest blog articles

Last Chance to Register for Nisbets Live 2026!

Last Chance to Register for Nisbets Live 2026! Bristol, UK – With less than a...

Member Spotlight: Smokey Joe’s

From the first time he stepped into a bustling kitchen at the age of ten,...

Meet the Team: Scott Darnley

Here at NCASS, there’s a passionate team working behind the scenes every day to make...

High-footfall retail locations now available for your F&B brand

If you’re an independent food and beverages business thinking about your next step, a new...

Before You Sign That Event Contract… Read This.

March is when the emails start flying. 📣 “Pitch opportunity – Summer Festival 2026.” 📣...

Five reasons caterers should attend The UK Food & Drink Shows

From 13 – 15 April at the NEC Birmingham, businesses from across the hospitality, grocery,...

Meet the Team feature: Becky Gordon

Here at NCASS, there’s a passionate team working behind the scenes every day to make...

Member Spotlight: The Black Sheep Grill

From delivery driver to festival favourite, the journey behind The Black Sheep Grill is one...

WHAT'S COOKING?

✍ NCASS member mentioned in the House of Commons

Hi there! Big news – one of our members, Kelly’s Coffee Ltd, was just mentioned in the House of Commons. It shows what a difference speaking up can make. If you haven’t already, take a minute to use our template to WRITE TO YOUR MP – it helps get our sector heard

🌮 Member Spotlight: El Piloto

Hey! Loved spotlighting El Piloto in our newest article – from passion project to thriving taco business. If that kind of story inspires you, give it a read & feel free to share it with others in your network

❗A statement about the use of Gozney Pizza Ovens

Hey! Just wanted to flag our latest update around Gozney pizza ovens and indoor use in mobile catering. It’s crucial info if you’re using or planning to install one. Check it out & let us know if you need help working thru safety or compliance

Sustainability Awards: Nominations Open

London September 28

This free-to-enter Award is designed to celebrate street food traders who go the extra mile to operate sustainably. Simply let the BSFA team know what you’ve done, and it could change your business forever.

LPG Safety in the Spotlight: Essential Gas Guidance for All Caterers

New

At NCASS, we’re committed to helping everyone – members and non-members – stay safe and informed about LPG in catering. From checking flame failure devices and pressure regulators to managing safe connections and ventilation, we constantly share the latest insights and best practices in our ‘LPG Safety in the Spotlight’ series. Explore our latest guidance now and stay ahead of gas safety with NCASS.

Join Us at the UK’s Premier Street Food & Catering Show

ExCeL London, 30 Sept–1 Oct 2025  

We’re excited to be part of the Street Food Business Expo at ExCeL London on 30 September – 1 October 2025. Come and connect with the NCASS team, discover the latest in street food and catering, and be inspired by industry experts. Secure your free ticket today!

NCASS in the Spotlight: Sky News & FT  

July

NCASS has been featured in both Sky News and the Financial Times, shining a spotlight on the growing challenges our members face – from rising costs to red tape. We’re proud to be raising the voice of independent food businesses across the UK. Check out the articles, share your thoughts, and let us know if you have any questions.

New NCASS Partnerships

New

We’ve teamed up with SpaceandPeople, Amazon Business, and The Digital College to bring you even more value as an NCASS member.

Whether you need a stand in a busy shopping centre, discounted business supplies, or a certified alcohol licence, our latest partners have you covered.

Check out the Rewards page to explore the latest deals and stay up to date with new NCASS discounts and opportunities.

Important: Changes to Your Food Safety Risk Assessment Tool  

May

We’ve made big improvements to the NCASS Food Safety Risk Assessment Tool. It’s now easier to tailor to your business, quicker to complete, and built around feedback from both members and EHOs.

Whether you’ve already completed a risk assessment, are part-way through one, or haven’t started yet, the update will affect how you manage things going forward. We’ve broken down exactly what’s changing and what you need to do next, based on your where you are with your Food Safety Risk Assessment. Find out more here Your Food Safety Risk Assessment Tool Is Changing – Here’s What You

New NCASS Podcast – Why Independents Matter

Listen Now

What does it really take to start and grow an independent hospitality business? In our latest NCASS Podcast episode, we chat with three legends of Birmingham’s food and drink scene – Jack Brabant (Digbeth Dining Club), Tom Maher (Original Patty Men), and Henry Poultney (Grace + James).

INDEPENDENT HOSPITALITY WEEK

May

Thank you so much to all of the independent hospitality businesses who got involved in Independent Hospitality Week 2025. It was a huge success!

It’s clear to see how much love and respect there is for independent  food & drink businesses  – let’s please continue to raise the profile of these amazing businesses by downloading the assets and displaying them at your premises.

Stay tuned for Independent Hospitality Week 2026!

new level 2 course

April

Our brand new, revamped and updated level 2 Food Hygiene course is coming soon, ready to take your compliance and training to whole new standards and ensure you remain at the forefront of current industry knowledge and practice. 

Fire Safety

March

If you are the responsible person in your business then you will need to record both your fire risk assessment and fire safety arrangement in full, regardless of the size or purpose of the business or premises.

Top Tips for Implementing a Social Media Strategy into your Food Business

January

The guide features a handy checklist and top tips for tone of voice, in addition to advice from NCASS members who have accumulated thousands of followers online. Learn how you can utilise these free marketing tools into your business.

Gas Engineer Partners

September

We have launched an LPG Gas Safety Partnership scheme for mobile & outdoor event caterers in an effort to eliminate potential safety hazards or illegal practices in the industry.

The partnership scheme currently features LPG approved gas engineers across the nine government regions of England and areas of Wales and we hope to roll the scheme out in Scotland and Northern Ireland in the near future. If you would like to talk to us and learn more about the planned services or make arrangements to enable better mobile LPG and gas safety awareness within your business, event or local authority, please contact [email protected] and speak to one of the team.

New Health and Safety course

New health & safety course

July

Our brand new Health and Safety course is coming soon – containing everything you need to know to operate safely and surely

Coming Soon: The NCASS Digital Safety Management System

The NCASS Digital Safety Management System

May 2024

Manage your safety online with our new system built for NCASS members – our brand new, innovative Digital Safety Management System (DSMS).

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INDEPENDENT HOSPITALITY WEEK

May 2024

This is a week for everyone to back independents, share food and drink experiences and back the businesses that make our cities, towns and villages what they are. We’re asking businesses to join IHW and for their customers to shout about how much their local bars, cafes, restaurants pubs, street food traders, event & festival traders mean to them. Collectively we want to make as much noise as possible about how important these wonderful food and drinks businesses are.

Read More

Making Winter Downtime Count

November 2023

Our comprehensive new guides features helpful advice and resources to get you planning through the quiet winter period for a successful 2024.

Members Non-members

SFBB or SMS? Let’s see them side by side

November 2023

We have created a comparison guide to help food & drink businesses understand the key differences between the NCASS food safety management system and the FSA’s system. This guide shows what, how and why the NCASS system works for our members and how it can work for you. 

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podcast

NCASS Podcast

September 2023

Effective Allergen Management with Ani – part two

Listen here
New HACCP Training Course

HACCP Training Course

June 2023

Our brand new, revamped HACCP course is here – get ahead of the game with NCASS

Training Page

New Learning Management System

June 2023

We are excited to announce the launch of our new training platform. We have migrated all training courses and users to the new and improved system and we are sure that these upgrades will significantly enhance your training experience. 

The Guild of Caribbean Cuisine

 2023

The Guild of Caribbean Cuisine has been launched with support from NCASS, in order to push forward Caribbean cuisine, chefs and food businesses.

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New Safety Management System

January 2023

Our Safety Management System has been developed to assist food and drink businesses to comply with and exceed all Food Safety and Hygiene, Health and Safety (H&S) and Fire Safety requirements.

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