4

Lower Common Road Stores food hygiene rating

Retailers - other · Test Valley

Lower Common Road Stores holds a 4, meaning hygiene standards at the shop are good. It is a solid result, the inspector found nothing serious, though a 5 was just out of reach.

The rating: 4 - Good

The rating dates from 18 December 2024, 18 months ago. That is getting on for the longest gap councils usually leave, so the score may not reflect how the business is run today.

Address: Lower Common Road, West Wellow, Romsey, SO51 6BT

How it compares in Test Valley

In Test Valley, 88% of rated places manage a 5, so Lower Common Road Stores sits behind roughly 858 nearby businesses. 8% of the borough shares its 4.

Every rated food business in Test Valley
5 out of 5 858 88%
4 out of 5 79 8% ← Lower Common Road Stores
3 out of 5 22 2%
2 out of 5 10 1%
1 out of 5 2 <1%
0 out of 5 0 0%

A further 110 businesses in the area are awaiting inspection or exempt, so are not counted above.

What the inspector found

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 Lower Common Road Stores none of the three raised a concern, the overall rating is only ever as strong as its weakest area, so a clean sweep is what produces a high score.

Food hygiene ratings nearby

The closest food businesses to Lower Common Road Stores, nearest first, so you can see how it compares to its neighbours.

Business Distance Rating Inspected
New Forest Family Butchers Retailers - other 86 yards away 5 - Very good 10 June 2026
West Wellow Food Market And Butchers Retailers - other 286 yards away 5 - Very good 19 May 2025
The Honesty Box Other catering premises 0.3 miles away 5 - Very good 13 September 2024
Wellow Lunch Club Other catering premises 0.3 miles away 5 - Very good 10 February 2025
The Red Rover Pub/bar/nightclub 0.4 miles away 5 - Very good 3 March 2025
Coffee Corner Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 0.4 miles away 5 - Very good 21 January 2025
Aspens Services Ltd At Wellow Primary School School/college/university 0.7 miles away 4 - Good 23 January 2026
Carlo's Ices Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 0.7 miles away 4 - Good 10 December 2025

Questions about Lower Common Road Stores

What is Lower Common Road Stores's food hygiene rating?

Lower Common Road Stores has a food hygiene rating of 4 out of 5 (good), given by Test Valley Council on 18 December 2024.

Is Lower Common Road Stores safe to eat at?

The rating covers hygiene standards found at inspection, not the food itself. At 4 out of 5, the inspector found hygiene standards at this shop to be good, the top end of the scale.

When was Lower Common Road Stores last inspected?

Lower Common Road Stores was last inspected on 18 December 2024, 18 months ago. Food hygiene inspections are unannounced, and the rating is published by Test Valley Council rather than by the business.

What did the inspector find at Lower Common Road Stores?

The inspector scored three areas. Hygienic food handling was rated "very good", the cleanliness and condition of the building "generally satisfactory", and confidence in the management of food safety "very good". Lower concern in all three is what earns a high overall rating.

How does Lower Common Road Stores compare to other places in Test Valley?

88% of the 971 rated food businesses in Test Valley hold the top rating of 5, while Lower Common Road Stores holds a 4. 79 places in the area share that rating.

Who decides the rating?

Test Valley Council inspects Lower Common Road Stores 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 Lower Common Road Stores 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 →

Understanding this rating

More food hygiene ratings near here

Lower Common Road Stores is one of 217 rated food businesses in Romsey. See every hygiene rating in Romsey

Test Valley inspects and rates 1,081 food businesses across its whole area. See every food hygiene rating in Test Valley

The official record is held by the council: http://www.testvalley.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 →