A BED and breakfast in Oxford was issued a one star rating after failing to provide paperwork, and now the owner is considering closing the business as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Oxford Coach and Horses is a bed and breakfast in St Clement's built on the site of an old coaching inn dating from the eighteenth century, said to be the last in Oxford before the road to London.

The bed and breakfast has a five star rating on Trip Advisor with 237 reviews rating it excellent. However, the eight-bedroom family-owned business that offers a full English and continental breakfasts scored a food and hygiene rating of one star.

On December 6, 2019 the bed and breakfast was inspected by Oxford City Council and the Oxford Mail has recently obtained the information from this visit.

The main reason for the low hygiene score was because at the time of the inspection the managers were unable to provide a copy of the daily temperatures or the Safer Food, Better Business (SFBB) pack records.

The SFBB pack includes the information on cross-contamination, cleaning, chilling, cooking, management, how train staff and comply with hygiene regulations, it also is there to show what the business does to make food safely.

Read also: Oxford University to keep slave trader statue

On the visit the hygiene inspector did ask if the managers could search for the records and warned the owners that if the records were not found the business would be given a default rating of one star.

In the report the hygiene inspector wrote: “The owner was reluctant to let me look for it and as also reluctant to look for it, therefore, I had no choice but to give a rating of one.”

Despite not having any records to view, the hygiene inspector did observe good practices and good pest control checks.

However, the business has not had an inspection since December 2019 and the one-star rating coupled with the consequences of lockdown has led the owner of Oxford Coach and Horses to consider closing the business.

The owner of the bed and breakfast who does not wish to be named, said: “I have not had any more inspections since. I have been closed since lockdown and my business is over.

“I think I might close my business because of lockdown and the restrictions, I have not had anybody stay here since the lockdown started last year in March.”

Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

For news updates straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.

Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on news@nqo.com or 01865 425 445.