Overview
Build the food safety system, do not just follow it
Every food business in the country has to run a food safety management system based on the principles of HACCP. That is not a recommendation, it is the plain requirement of Regulation (EC) 852/2004. Most food handlers work inside such a system. This course is for the people who build it, keep it current and answer for it, the head chef, the food business manager, the technical or quality lead. It takes you from a working knowledge of good hygiene into the structured method that finds a hazard before it reaches a customer and proves, on paper, that your controls hold.
HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point. Over eight modules you will work through the prerequisite programmes that HACCP sits on, the five preliminary steps that get a plan ready, and all seven principles in order, from a full hazard analysis through critical control points, critical limits, monitoring, corrective action, verification and documentation. You finish by putting the plan to work, training the team, reviewing it when something changes, and choosing a system that fits your business, whether that is a full bespoke plan or Safer Food, Better Business for a smaller kitchen.
The course is fully online and self paced. Most learners complete it in six to eight hours across several sessions, and you keep access for twelve months from enrolment. Pass the closing assessment and your CPD certified certificate is generated straight away, dated and named, ready to download and print.
Fully Online
Level 3 · HACCP
Catering · Retail · Manufacturing
What you’ll learn
What you’ll be able to do
By the end of this course you will be able to:
Explain what HACCP is, why Regulation 852/2004 requires it, and how prerequisite programmes underpin it.
Assemble a HACCP team and work through the five preliminary steps before the principles begin.
Construct and verify a process flow diagram that covers every step of your process on site.
Carry out a hazard analysis covering biological, chemical, physical and allergenic hazards at each step.
Use the CCP decision tree to tell a critical control point from a control point or a prerequisite.
Set validated critical limits, decide what, how, when and who monitors, and plan corrective action in advance.
Verify and validate the system, and keep the documents and records that prove due diligence.
Implement, train, review and maintain the plan, and choose the right system for the size of your business.
Course content
Eight modules to work through
Each module builds on the last and ends with the material you need for the final assessment. Work at your own pace and return to any module during your twelve month access window.
1Introduction to HACCP and Food Safety ManagementWhat HACCP is, why the law requires it, and the prerequisite programmes it stands on.⌄
- What HACCP means and the plain questions it asks of your process
- Regulation (EC) 852/2004 and the duty to have a documented, HACCP based system
- Prerequisite programmes: cleaning, pest control, personal hygiene, maintenance
- Supplier control and other PRPs that hold the ground steady beneath HACCP
- Why HACCP fails when the prerequisites are weak
2The Five Preliminary StepsThe groundwork that has to be done before principle one begins.⌄
- Assemble the HACCP team and bring in the right knowledge
- Describe the product, its ingredients and how it is stored
- Identify the intended use and consumers, including vulnerable groups
- Construct a process flow diagram covering every step
- Confirm the flow diagram on site by walking the process
3Principle 1: Conduct a Hazard AnalysisFinding every hazard at every step, then deciding which ones matter.⌄
- The four hazard types: biological, chemical, physical and allergenic
- Listing hazards at each step of the flow diagram
- Judging likelihood and severity to rank the risk
- Identifying a control measure for each significant hazard
- Recording the analysis so the reasoning is clear
4Principle 2: Determine the Critical Control PointsUsing the decision tree to find the steps where control is essential.⌄
- What makes a step a critical control point
- Working through the CCP decision tree, questions one to four
- Telling a CCP from a control point and from a prerequisite
- Worked examples: cooking, chilling and metal detection
- Keeping the number of CCPs realistic and defensible
5Principles 3 and 4: Critical Limits and MonitoringSetting the measurable line and checking you stay the right side of it.⌄
- Setting measurable, validated critical limits such as a 75°C core
- The difference between validation and a limit plucked from the air
- Monitoring: what, how, when and who
- Real time monitoring versus retrospective checks
- Recording monitoring at the point it happens
6Principle 5: Corrective ActionDeciding in advance what to do the moment a limit is breached.⌄
- Why corrective action is planned before, not during, a problem
- Dealing with the affected product: hold, reject, rework or destroy
- Correcting the process so the deviation does not repeat
- Finding out how far back the problem reached
- Recording the deviation and the action taken
7Principles 6 and 7: Verification, Validation and DocumentationProving the whole system works and holding the paperwork that shows it.⌄
- Verification versus validation, and why they are not the same
- Reviewing records, auditing and independent checks
- The documents a HACCP system needs to hold
- The records the system generates day to day
- How long to keep records and why they are your due diligence
8Implementing and Maintaining the PlanTurning a written plan into daily practice and keeping it current.⌄
- Training the team so the plan is understood, not just filed
- Building a food safety culture that holds the plan up
- Review triggers: a new product, process, supplier or complaint
- Choosing a system, from a full bespoke plan to Safer Food, Better Business
- Keeping the plan alive rather than letting it gather dust
Who it’s for
Is this course a good fit?
This course is written for the people who own the food safety management system rather than simply work inside it. If you build, run or answer for HACCP in your business, this is the level you need.
Head chefs & kitchen managers
The people who design the process and set the controls a kitchen runs to.
Food business managers
Owners and managers named as responsible for the food safety system.
Technical & quality staff
Those who write, audit and maintain HACCP plans and specifications.
Manufacturing & production leads
Line and shift leaders who own CCPs such as cooking and metal detection.
Retail & catering supervisors
Anyone running a food area who has to keep the system current on the ground.
New HACCP team members
Staff joining a HACCP team who need the method and the language fast.
Assessment
How it’s assessed
The course is assessed by a single online multiple choice test taken after the modules. It can be retaken as many times as you need at no extra cost.
End-of-course assessment
Study details
You can pause and resume at any point, and your progress is saved automatically. There is no time limit on the assessment itself.
Certification
Your CPD-certified certificate
Level 3 Principles of HACCP, CPD Certified
On passing the assessment, your CPD certified digital certificate is available to download and print immediately, with your name, the course title and the completion date. For a food business it is dated, named evidence that the people who build and run your food safety management system are trained in the method, the kind of record that supports your due diligence defence and helps at inspection. We recommend refresher training every three years, or sooner if your process, products or the law change.
Instant download
Supports due diligence
Refresher recommended every 3 years
FAQs
Questions people often ask
Is this the same as a Level 3 qualification?⌄
Do I need a food hygiene certificate first?⌄
Does this course write my HACCP plan for me?⌄
How long do I get to complete it?⌄
Can I train my whole team?⌄
What other training pairs well with this?⌄
Download the following working templates in Word format and adapt them for your own workplace:
