A CAFE and supermarket in Headington has bounced back from a one-star hygiene score and the threat of a fine by achieving the highest possible rating.

Madeira Supermarket on the Headington roundabout was criticised for dirty surfaces, a lack of staff training and potentially dangerous cod when Oxford City Council inspectors visited in May.

Less than six months later the team have been rewarded a five star ‘Very Good’ rating after inspectors revisited at the end of October.

Cafe manager Maria Ramos told the Oxford Mail the improvements they made were ‘simple things’ and that she had been confident of a high score before the visit.

The business operates both as a small supermarket in one half and a cafe serving hot drinks and lunches in the other.

The management were also hit with a legal notice demanding they make improvements, which could have led to a fine or two-year imprisonment.

Council officers have since revealed the cafe complied with the legal notice and completed the other works as requested.

The initial report in May found a range of problems, including high-risk ready-to-eat food being stored at 19C - well over the maximum 8C, and redundant material in the yard that could attract rats and mice.

While no evidence of pests was found at the premises in Roundway, officers were concerned vermin could be roaming around in the back yard, which was full of building material, household furniture and refuse.

Inspectors also discovered that some members of staff had not received formal good hygiene training ‘for many years’.

High-risk food was also not labelled by date and there was no ‘reliable’ method of stock rotation.

But improvements were made within the given two-month window and the staff avoided a fine and possibly imprisonment.

The third and final visit - conducted on October 27 - brought the team the good news that they had earned the highest possible rating of five stars.