THE manager of a cafe in Oxford city centre has been told to make major improvements in food hygiene after a council inspec- tor found a dead fly in a cake stand.

High Street Cafe has received a grade one rating in its recent food hygiene report, the second lowest score a business can receive.

A city council inspector made a planned visit last month and judged the cafe in High Street on its food hygiene and safety procedures, structural requirements and confidence in management.

Overall, they gave the business a rating of one, which means it requires “major improvements”.

The highest score an eaterie can receive is five, which means its hygiene standards are “very good”.

The manager of High Street Cafe, who refused to reveal his name, insisted his business was clean. He said: “A place can be spotless but if you don’t have the paperwork then you are only at a grade two.

“We’ve been open since the beginning of May and we’ve been doing well.

“We have five staff and our place is clean and tidy.”

The council inspector’s report said none of the cafe staff had any food hygiene training, which they should be given.

The report also noted that there was no antibacterial spray to clean food surfaces and that there was a large amount of cardboard in the basement, which could attract pests. A number of flies, including a dead one in the cake stand, were also spotted around the cafe.

The report stated that food must be protected from contamination.

When asked about the flies, the manager of High Street Cafe added: “That’s rubbish.

“Maybe there was a fly in there but it [the cake counter] is hot and sweet.

“If there were lots of flies then they would shut us down. We try to minimise them but flies are everywhere.

“I have been in the food business for a long time and I know how people get food poisoning.”

The inspector also pointed out that members of staff were not dating potentially “high-risk” foods, which was particularly important for sandwich fillings like tuna, chicken and smoked salmon.

Despite it being a planned inspection, which a business is always forewarned about, the manager said he did not know an inspector was coming. He said: “The council came so early.”