Jamie Oliver's restaurant in Bath has been fined £8,500 for breaching health and safety regulations after a chef was hospitalised for 10 days when a colleague spilt boiling hot cooking oil over her feet.

Jamie’s Italian, in Milsom Place, pleaded guilty to three health and safety charges after the incident which occurred on October 4 last year, just before the restaurant officially opened.

Chef Angie Hodgkinson-Day had been reaching the end of her evening shift during the pre-opening training period when she told one of her kitchen workers to drain away two 25-litre containers of hot oil, which had been emptied from a deep fat fryer.

One of the pans slipped as it was being moved and spilled over Ms Hodgkinson-Day’s feet and she was rushed to the burns unit at Frenchay Hospital in Bristol.

She spent 10 days in hospital being treated and had to receive skin grafts to her left foot.

Roger Pope, representing Bath and North East Somerset Council’s health and safety team at Bath Magistrates Court, said Jamie’s Italian had failed to provide adequate training and supervision at the restaurant.

He said: “The company must take responsibility for the injuries suffered by the employee.”

The court heard that Ms Hodgkinson-Day was a chef with 13 years' experience, but had only just arrived at the Bath restaurant, having spent the previous two weeks at the chain's Oxford branch.

She had told the council that she would usually leave hot oil to cool overnight before a kitchen porter drained it away in the morning, but this had not been the case at the Bath restaurant.

She also said she had not received any health and safety training and had not seen a risk assessment before the accident.

Ms Hodgkinson-Day returned to work at Jamie’s Italian in December last year, but has since left the restaurant, partly because of her accident.

Christopher Russell, representing Jamie’s Italian, said the company sent its sincere apologies to the victim.

He said: “Can I first express public regrets on behalf of the defendant for this accident and send apologies to the court and apologies to the employee in question.”

He added that the company’s managing director Simon Blagdon had attended the court hearing to show how seriously the firm was taking the case.

Mr Russell said that at other Jamie Oliver restaurants, the procedure was for deep fat fryers to be drained in the morning after the oil had time to cool.

The fact that the fat was being drained too quickly after kitchen service had been a mistake and the head chef had assumed the oil had cooled sufficiently.

Mr Russell said Jamie’s Italian had now put in place extensive health and safety policies and training, and the incident at the Bath restaurant had been a one-off.

He said: “This is the only blot on the company copybook and the defendant is working very hard to ensure it's the last such blot.”

The court also heard Ms Hodgkinson-Day had left the company on good terms and had stated in her exit interview that it was a good employer.

As well as the £8,500 fine, the firm was ordered to pay £3,910 legal costs.

Senior council environmental health officer David Carter welcomed the fine.

He said: “Avoidable accidents involving deep fat fryers are regrettably far too common in the catering industry.

“Emptying and cleaning fryers should only be carried out when oil has cooled to 40C, which can take six to seven hours.

“It should be done as the first task of the day rather than last thing at night.

“This prosecution should serve as a warning to other employers of the consequences of failing to comply with their health and safety responsibilities.”