HOW TO HIRE · EVENTS & ENTERTAINMENT

How to hire a caterer in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

Caterers need no licence, but they are food businesses. Here is how to check registration, allergens and hygiene, and what the quote must say.

  • Search and compare — no account needed
  • Nearest to you first
  • One score from Google, Trustpilot and Locufy reviews

THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a caterer in five steps

  1. Check the hygiene ratingAsk the caterer for its rating and inspection date and look it up. A 4 or 5 is what you want serving your guests.
  2. Confirm council registrationEvery caterer is a food business and must register with its local authority, home kitchens included.
  3. Send the allergies in writingCollect every guest's allergy and diet early and send one list. Ask for an allergen sheet back for each dish.
  4. Ask what the venue needsKitchen, power, water, outside-caterer fees, approved-supplier lists. The venue's answer shapes the caterer's quote.
  5. Get a per-head quote with every lineFood, staff, crockery, linen, service charge and VAT shown separately, and a deadline for final numbers.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

No register or licence applies to caterers as such in any UK nation, and no cookery qualification is required by law. What does apply is food law: a caterer is a food business, so the checks below are about registration, allergens and hygiene, not a trade card.

Ask the caterer which council they are registered with and for a recent reference from a host.

Food business registration and hygiene rating for the caterer

Anyone cooking, preparing or selling food as a business — a home kitchen, a van or a stall included — must register with their local authority, at least 28 days before trading in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland a caterer registers with the local authority too, with advice from Food Standards Scotland. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, council food safety officers inspect food businesses and give a rating from 0 to 5 under the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme; it is set in law in Wales and Northern Ireland and voluntary to display in England. The caterer is rated like any other registered food business; a 5 means very good hygiene, and anything under 3 needs explaining.

Ask the caterer for the name of the council it is registered with, then check with that council if in doubt. Ask the caterer for their rating and the inspection date, and look it up on the Food Standards Agency ratings site. gov.uk →

Allergen information from the caterer

Food law names 14 allergens — celery, cereals with gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, lupin, milk, molluscs, mustard, peanuts, sesame, soya, sulphites and tree nuts — and a registered food business has to say when any of them is in what it serves, and manage them safely. For food served loose at your event, the caterer can give it in writing or by a clear notice saying how to ask.

Send the guests' allergies in writing and ask the caterer for an allergen list for every dish or item. gov.uk →

Trader status and cancellation terms

Booking a caterer who does this for a living means dealing with a trader: the Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies, including the duty of reasonable care and skill. What usually does not apply is a cooling-off period — regulation 28 of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 takes services for leisure activities or catering on a fixed date outside it — so read how the caterer handles cancellation and deposits.

Get the caterer's terms on cancellation, date changes and illness on one page before you commit. legislation.gov.uk →

VAT

Food prepared and served at your event is supplied in the course of catering and is standard-rated at 20%. Caterers whose taxable turnover passes £90,000 must register, charge VAT and show it as its own line on the quote and invoice.

Ask the caterer for the VAT number and whether the per-head price, service charge and staff are each shown before the 20%. gov.uk →

“What is your food hygiene rating, and when were you last inspected?”

A good answer: A number and a date the caterer gives without hesitation, and that matches the Food Standards Agency site. Under 3 needs an explanation.

“Which council are you registered with as a food business?”

A good answer: The council name straight away. A caterer that is not registered should not be cooking for your guests.

“How do you handle the 14 allergens, and will dishes be labelled?”

A good answer: An allergen sheet for every dish, separate preparation for a guest with a severe allergy, and serving staff from the caterer who can answer at the table.

“Have you catered at my venue, and what does it provide?”

A good answer: A caterer who knows the kitchen, or will visit. A marquee or barn without a kitchen means the caterer brings ovens, power and water.

“How many staff will serve, and for how long?”

A good answer: A number of the caterer's chefs and waiting staff tied to the guest count and the service style, with their hours stated.

“Is crockery, linen and glassware included, or hired on top?”

A good answer: A clear yes or no for each, with the hire priced on the caterer's quote, and who washes and returns it.

“Can we have a tasting before we sign?”

A good answer: A tasting offered, free or at a stated price that comes off the final bill.

“What happens if final numbers change?”

A good answer: A date for final numbers, a per-head rate for additions, and how far numbers can drop without paying for the missing guests.

Getting the quote right

  • The menu by course, the service style (buffet, plated, sharing) and the guest numbers it is priced for
  • Waiting staff and chefs: how many, for how many hours, and the rate for extra time
  • Crockery, cutlery, glassware and linen — included or hired, and any breakage charge
  • Service charge, and whether the per-head figure includes it
  • The caterer's VAT number, with VAT shown apart from food, staff and service charge
  • The deposit, the date for final numbers and the balance, and the cancellation terms
  • What the venue charges an outside caterer, if anything, and who pays it
  • Who actually attends: the chefs and waiting staff, how many, and whether they are employed or subcontracted

Walk away if

  • The caterer cannot tell you which council it is registered with
  • A low or very old food hygiene rating it will not discuss
  • No allergen information, or 'just avoid the nuts' as the allergy plan
  • A per-head price with staff, crockery and VAT left vague
  • No written contract, or a deposit demanded before any terms are sent
LOW
£15
TYPICAL
£40
HIGH
£100

What a caterer costs: £15–£100 per head

Caterers price per head, with staff, hire items and service charge often added as separate lines. A per-head figure only compares with another once both cover the same things. Caterer price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Caterers near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. Menu and tastingThe caterer agrees the menu, the service style and every guest's dietary need weeks before, ideally after a tasting.
  2. Final numbersThe guest count and allergy list are fixed by the agreed date; the caterer confirms staff and quantities in writing.
  3. Set-up at the venueFood arrives chilled or hot-held, the kitchen or field kitchen is set up and the service area is laid before guests sit down.
  4. ServiceDishes go out on the agreed timings, with allergen-free plates marked and served to the right guests.
  5. Clear-downServing equipment, waste and hired items are cleared, and the caterer leaves the kitchen as the venue requires.

Per head
The price for each guest; check whether it covers staff, crockery and VAT or only the food.
Wedding breakfast / main meal
The sit-down meal after a ceremony, whatever the time of day.
Field kitchen
A temporary kitchen a caterer brings to a marquee or venue with no kitchen of its own.
Corkage / outside-caterer fee
What a venue charges when you bring in your own drinks or caterer.
Food hygiene rating
The 0 to 5 score given after a council inspection in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The 14 allergens
The allergens food law requires businesses to declare, from celery and gluten to sesame and sulphites.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the contract and final invoiceWith the final guest numbers and the menu actually served — your evidence if anything is disputed.
Settle any hire returnsCrockery and linen counted back; any breakage charge should match the quote's terms.
Report illness quicklyIf guests fall ill, tell the caterer and the council food safety team where it is registered, with dates and what was eaten.
Leave the reviewReviews on Locufy come only from booked jobs, so yours on the caterer helps the next host. If the caterer got something wrong, the make-it-right step comes first: they are asked to put it right before your review is published.

STEP 1Put it to the caterer in writingExplain in writing what fell short — cold food, late service, missing dishes, staff short of what was agreed — and whether you want part of the fee back or the work redone. Section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 builds reasonable care and skill into the contract; for a one-off occasion, a reduction in price is the usual remedy.
STEP 2Use the make-it-right step on LocufyRate the caterer below four stars and you are asked whether to send the problem to them first; we follow it through, then your review is published.
STEP 3Food safety, or a trader who will not engageIf you suspect food poisoning, see a doctor and report the caterer to the food safety team at the council where it is registered. For anything else, no regulator oversees caterers. If the trader will not engage, Citizens Advice (0808 223 1133) covers England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland (0808 800 9060) covers Scotland, and Consumerline (0300 123 6262) covers Northern Ireland; each can pass a complaint about caterers to Trading Standards.
STEP 4Money the caterer will not returnWithout a solicitor, a refund from the caterer can be pursued up to £10,000 on the small claims track in England and Wales, up to £5,000 under simple procedure in the sheriff court in Scotland, and up to £5,000 in the small claims court in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a caterer: questions people ask

The caterer needs council registration as a food business rather than a licence. Licensing only comes in for alcohol, or for serving hot food or drink late at night (after 11pm) at an unlicensed place in England and Wales.

Search the caterer's business name on the Food Standards Agency ratings website, or ask them for the score and inspection date; ratings exist for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

£15 to £100 per head, typically around £40. See the caterer price guide for what moves the figure, or search your town above for caterers nearby.

Give you allergen information for every dish, manage the 14 allergens in the kitchen and train staff to answer questions. Send severe allergies by name and table.

Only if the venue allows it. Many have an approved list or charge an outside-caterer fee; ask before you book either.

Usually, yes, once final numbers are confirmed. The contract should say the deadline and how much leeway there is.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in events & entertainment

How to hire: Wedding CatererHow to hire: Buffet CateringHow to hire: Canapé CateringHow to hire: BBQ CateringHow to hire: Hog RoastHow to hire: Food Truck HireHow to hire: Event PlannerHow to hire: Mobile Bar HireAll 701 hiring guides →

Caterers near you

Caterers in LondonCaterers in ManchesterCaterers in BirminghamCaterers in GlasgowCaterers in BelfastAll caterers on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. gov.uk — food business registration
  2. Food Standards Agency (GOV.UK) — allergen guidance for food businesses
  3. Food Standards Agency (GOV.UK) — the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme
  4. gov.uk — Temporary Events Notice
  5. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 28 — contracts the cancellation right does not cover
  6. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  7. gov.uk — make a court claim for money: court fees
  8. mygov.scot — make a court claim for money
  9. nidirect — small claims process
  10. Citizens Advice — more help with a consumer issue (England)
  11. Catering, takeaway food (VAT Notice 709/1) — 1.3 Supplies in the course of catering are standard-rated; 2.1 Ordinary meaning of catering
  12. GOV.UK — VAT rates
  13. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register