Green Accreditation
What is it?
In response to increasing consumer awareness of and demand for 'environmentally friendly' or 'sustainable' products, Tourism South East (TSE) have delivered two distinct green accreditation pilot programmes for tourism businesses - in the New Forest and the South Downs & Kent Downs. The pilot programmes addressed a range of measures that analyse the environmental performance of the tourism sector.
The pilots (as detailed below) differ in terms of the level of environmental engagement they require from participants. Both have resulted in logos being awarded to businesses that successfully take part, offering the consumer a simple way of choosing those that are committed to sustainable development and practices.
General Entry Pilot
TSE worked with the New Forest Tourism Association on a 'general entry' scheme to replace the 'Little Acorns' scheme already in place there. The scheme, whilst a valuable means to ensure that tourism businesses undertook measures to protect the environment, needed a re-vamp. The updated scheme, still identifiable via the 'Little Acorns' logo, involves engaging tourism businesses to undertake a series of wider practical environmental measures and demonstrating a commitment to the local environment and environmental good practice, than had previously been the case.
Two workshops (in November 04 and January 05) were held to highlight the updated scheme to tourism businesses, and further promotional activity was undertaken before launch. TSE are continuing to work with the New Forest with a view to ensuring that up to 150 businesses will have signed up in 2006 - still identifiable by a 'Little Acorns' logo. More information...
'Full' Scheme with the GTBS
The second pilot ran in the Kent Downs & South Downs (including East Hampshire AONB) and was done using the Green Tourism Business Scheme (GTBS), one of the world's largest national tourism ecolabels and the most widely recognised and used of its kind in Britain. The GTBS pilots represent a 'full' scheme that result in 'full' accreditation, as opposed to the less rigorous, general entry scheme that is being run in the New Forest. TSE was supported in this work by Green Business UK Ltd (who administer the GTBS), the South Downs Conservation Board, East Hampshire AONB and the Kent Downs AONB.
Four workshops were run in the autumn of 2004 and 50 tourism businesses (ranging from B&B, Hotel, Hostel, Self-Catering, Holiday Parks and Visitor Attractions) signed up. The pilot studies have been completed and successful businesses will be identifiable by the GTBS logo awarded at either gold, silver or bronze level (see below).
What now?
Businesses that successfully completed the 'full' scheme pilots were awarded at two events (one in Sussex and one in Kent) in June 2005. The events also served to launch the scheme more widely across the south east region. TSE subsequently held a further seven seminars in partnership with the GTBS and the majority of the region's Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs)
TSE anticipates over 100 businesses will be signed up to the GTBS following the coming round of grading visits as a result of the recent seminars and expressions of interest. Watch this space for further details or visit Tourism South East.
