Ship And Castle food hygiene rating
Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen · Portsmouth
Ship And Castle holds a 1: major improvement is necessary. The inspector found significant problems at the restaurant and the business is legally required to address them.
The rating: 1 - Major improvement necessary
The rating dates from 10 March 2026, 4 months ago. Councils typically re-inspect higher-risk businesses every six months to two years, with well-run, low-risk places visited least often, so this is a normal gap.
Address: The Ship & Castle, 90 Rudmore Road, Portsmouth, PO2 8DR
How it compares in Portsmouth
A 1 is rare: only 53 of 1,535 rated places in Portsmouth score this low, about one in 29. By contrast 64% of the borough holds a 5, so this is well below what the council's inspectors normally find.
| 5 out of 5 | 976 | 64% | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 out of 5 | 311 | 20% | ||
| 3 out of 5 | 125 | 8% | ||
| 2 out of 5 | 68 | 4% | ||
| 1 out of 5 | 53 | 3% | ← Ship And Castle | |
| 0 out of 5 | 2 | <1% |
A further 268 businesses in the area are awaiting inspection or exempt, so are not counted above.
What the inspector found
- Hygienic food handling Improvement necessary
- Cleanliness & condition of the building Improvement necessary
- How well they manage food safety Major improvement necessary
An inspection scores three things: how food is handled, the physical condition of the premises, and how much the inspector trusts management to keep standards up. At Ship And Castle the inspector recorded concerns over how food is handled, the condition of the premises and confidence in management. Because the overall rating is only ever as strong as its weakest area, that is what holds the score down.
Food hygiene ratings nearby
The closest food businesses to Ship And Castle, nearest first, so you can see how it compares to its neighbours.
| Business | Distance | Rating | Inspected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bento Box Takeaway/sandwich shop | 391 yards away | 5 - Very good | 15 May 2026 |
| Aldi Gamble Road, Portsmouth Retailers - supermarkets/hypermarkets | 0.3 miles away | 5 - Very good | 13 August 2025 |
| Amuri Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen | 0.4 miles away | 5 - Very good | 5 January 2026 |
| Another Coffee Shop Other catering premises | 0.4 miles away | 5 - Very good | 4 September 2025 |
| Admiral Other catering premises | 0.5 miles away | 5 - Very good | 9 July 2026 |
| Bucharest Shop Retailers - other | 0.5 miles away | 5 - Very good | 9 October 2024 |
| Afro Cart Foods Retailers - other | 0.5 miles away | 5 - Very good | 11 May 2017 |
| British Queen Public House Pub/bar/nightclub | 0.6 miles away | 5 - Very good | 2 October 2019 |
Questions about Ship And Castle
What is Ship And Castle's food hygiene rating?
Ship And Castle has a food hygiene rating of 1 out of 5 (major improvement necessary), given by Portsmouth Council on 10 March 2026.
Is Ship And Castle safe to eat at?
A 1 means the inspector found problems the business is required to fix. The restaurant is not shut down, a rating is not a closure order, but standards were found to be below what the law expects at the time of inspection.
When was Ship And Castle last inspected?
Ship And Castle was last inspected on 10 March 2026, 4 months ago. Food hygiene inspections are unannounced, and the rating is published by Portsmouth Council rather than by the business.
What did the inspector find at Ship And Castle?
The inspector scored three areas. Hygienic food handling was rated "improvement necessary", the cleanliness and condition of the building "improvement necessary", and confidence in the management of food safety "major improvement necessary". Lower concern in all three is what earns a high overall rating.
How does Ship And Castle compare to other places in Portsmouth?
64% of the 1,535 rated food businesses in Portsmouth hold the top rating of 5, while Ship And Castle holds a 1. 53 places in the area share that rating.
Who decides the rating?
Portsmouth Council inspects Ship And Castle and sets the rating; the Food Standards Agency publishes it. Neither the business nor this site can change a rating, a business that disagrees can appeal to its council, and can request a re-inspection once it has fixed the problems.
Tell me when this changes
The Food Standards Agency publishes only a business's rating today, not what it scored before, and not when it moves. We check every UK rating each night. Watch Ship And Castle and we will email you the morning after its rating changes.
Free, for three businesses, forever. No password, we send you a link. How rating alerts work →
Is this your business?
A rating of 1 is public, and most customers look. Only 18% of people say they would order from a business rated 2 or below, against 94% from one rated 4. Delivery platforms may decline to list you.
We cannot change this rating, and nor can you. It was set by an environmental health officer at Portsmouth, and it stands until they inspect again. What you can do:
- Fix what the inspector found, then ask the council for a re-inspection. Most charge between £120 and £316, and will not re-visit within three months of the original inspection.
- If you believe the rating is simply wrong, you have 21 days from being notified to appeal to the council. That is 21 calendar days, not working days.
- You may submit a right to reply at any time. It is published alongside the rating, here, and on the FSA's own site.
What a low rating means → · How re-inspections and appeals work →
Your council: Portsmouth
Understanding this rating
More food hygiene ratings near here
Portsmouth inspects and rates 1,803 food businesses across its whole area. See every food hygiene rating in Portsmouth →
The official record is held by the council: http://www.portsmouth.gov.uk
Rating from the Food Standards Agency under the Open Government Licence. Ratings reflect standards found at the time of inspection and can change. If you think a rating is wrong, the official record is held by the FSA and the local authority; corrections there flow through here. How ratings work →