VisitEngland
Awards for Excellence 2014
Visitor Attraction of the Year
This award is for Visitor Attractions and covers venues that can be visited within its
published opening times and offers tours and other activities as part of its overall visitor
experience. Attractions will be judged on the overall quality of the experience they
provide.
This year will see a new exciting VisitEngland Awards for Excellence ceremony to
recognise the outstanding work done by all sectors of the tourism industry.
The benefits of being shortlisted or being a winner in the Awards for Excellence are
extensive, in terms of business profile and in generating direct business and customer
confidence.
VisitEngland want to recognise the huge commitment that you have shown to the
industry and to showcase your product to help raise standards across the whole
industry.
Visitor Attraction of the Year
Who can enter?
This category covers visitor attractions of all kinds, including attractions that offer pre-booked
tickets, museums, interpretation centres, theme parks, historic houses and castles. Venues that
are open on specific days of the year for special events may enter, but sporting events such as
race days cannot be classified in this category.
It is expected that entrants will be signed up to the National Code of Practice for Visitor
Attractions (www.visitengland.org/busdev/accreditation/attractions/codeofpractice). Participants
of the Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Scheme (VAQAS) or the Place of Interest Quality
Assurance Scheme (PIQAS) are encouraged to use their report as evidence to support their
application (www.vaqas.org.uk).
Previous Awards Winners and Finalists
Previous Award Winners and Finalists are no longer excluded from entering the following year’s
competition. Applicants will be required to give full details of all Awards received, on the
application form.
Judging (Not Stars Awards Judging Process)
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The first stage of judging is based on evaluations of the written applications and evidence
which must be submitted on-line only.
A shortlist of entrants (normally five for each category) is selected from the written
applications, who may then receive a judging visit.
Depending on the category being assessed, the judging of the shortlisted businesses may
include announced visits. Announced visits may not be undertaken to all finalists if the
judges deem the written submission is sufficient to determine the level of the Award. Finalists
should therefore note that the lack of a visit does not mean that they are not still in the
running for a major Award. Some categories may also be mystery shopped by telephone
and/or email.
It should be noted that for some categories such as ‘Tourism Event or Festival’ which may be
retrospectively submitted for consideration, the assessment will be a desk based exercise.
Businesses will be notified in early April, 2014, if they are a finalist. Please note that all
finalists will receive either a Gold, Silver, Bronze or Highly Commended Award at the
discretion of the National Judges.
Judges will be looking for evidence of excellence and best practice in all areas of the
business operations.
A word limit has been set for each section/question and it is strongly recommended you keep
your entry to the stated word count.
Any claims made in applications must be substantiated and may be subject to testing by
judges.
Judges and Judging panels will comprise of national tourism representatives, appointed for
their extensive experience and knowledge of the tourism industry.
Supporting evidence
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Whilst it is not a requirement of entry, we encourage you to provide supporting material and
evidence to help the judges fully understand and assess your application.
All applications and supporting material should be supplied on-line and there is a
helpline available if you have any questions in regard to this.
Evidence must be clearly referenced to the appropriate question. Evidence that is poorly
presented or not clearly referenced will not be considered.
Consider providing relevant supporting evidence such as photographs, extracts of marketing
initiatives/collateral, brochures, menus, training plans & awards, press cuttings, examples of
customer letters, examples of feedback forms, staff newsletters, access/green policies,
access statement, etc. providing that they can be supplied electronically. All support material
must be attached using common Microsoft formats or as PDFs.
Please do not overdo the amount of information you provide, and do not upload DVDs, CDs,
Videos etc. The judges will not consider these at the initial judging stage. We may, if
appropriate, ask for these at a later stage.
Next Steps
Complete the application form and return to us on-line with any supporting information by
following the submit instructions on the website no later than Monday 16th September 2013
(Note: You will be able to update or amend your submission at any time up to this
deadline)
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Visitor Attraction of the Year
Contact Details
Contact Name:
Business/Property Name:
Business Type:
Address:
Telephone:
Mobile:
Email:
Website
PR Contact Details
(if different from above)
Business Details
Are you a current participant of VAQAS or
PIQAS
How long has the business been operating
(Yrs & Months)
How many Staff do you employ: (Show
proprietors/owners + Full + Part time)
Give details of any periods the
property/business is closed:
Give Visitor Number details
These figures are used to give a full
years figures
Total Visitor Numbers:
Peak Season Visitors (Apr to Sept)
Low Season Visitors (Oct to March)
Last 12 Months
Previous 12 Months
(i.e. April 11 to March 12)
(i.e. April 10 to March 11)
Give a brief history of your business/service (max 200 words)
Finalists will demonstrate exceptional commitment to excellence in quality,
customer care and business practices in the following areas:
1: Your Commitment to Excellence (max 300 words):
Describe your values, philosophy and commitment to excellence, and tell us what you think
puts you above the competition and at the top of your sector of the industry. What is the
unique selling point of your business and how do you communicate that to your visitors?
Previous Awards:
Please list all Awards since 2011
Title of Award
Level (e.g. Gold)
Awarding
Organisation
Year
2: Outstanding Customer Service (max 300 words):
Describe your customer care values and philosophy and give examples of how you believe
that your service is outstanding. Include how you handle enquiries, visitor welcome and
arrival, the visit itself (including service at meal times) and departure. Also describe how you
deal with complaints. Please give examples, remember that your VAQAS or PIQAS report is
relevant evidence for this section.
3: Staff Training & Development (max 200 words):
1. Please detail your training values and philosophy for your business. How do you ensure that
you and/or staff remain motivated, feel part of the team and gain the correct knowledge to
ensure that the customer receives high quality service? What investment has been made in
staff training and development in the last 2 years and give examples how this has improved
the experience of visitors to your attraction?
4: Quality Improvements & Developments (max 300 words):
Give details of any specific Quality Improvements and Developments that you have made to
your business to enhance your visitors experience within the last two years. May include for
example, refurbishments, addition of new facilities or services etc. What impact did this have
on your business? For example, increase in business, increase in positive customer
comments. Please give examples.
5: Innovative Marketing and Promotion (max 300 words):
2. Give details of your target market(s) and describe how your product fits the audience you are
targeting. Have you carried out any research into these market(s) and explain briefly how
you attract new and/or repeat business and any innovative marketing and promotional
campaigns you have carried out. What impact did this have on your business? For example,
increase in business, increase in positive customer comments. Please give examples.
6: Accessibility (max 200 words):
Give details of how your business / service is accessible to all visitors, particularly people
with impairments and others with physical and sensory access needs. Give examples of;
a. Customer service including disability awareness training
b. Accessibility information provision and promotion (provide a copy of your Access
Statement)
c. Access facilities and services
7: Sustainability (max 300 words):
7.1: Sustainability. Give specific examples of how your business is embracing
sustainability. In particular in the following areas (note; all areas must be covered)
 The local economy (local purchasing, local produce. Employing local people,
supporting other local businesses)
 Residents and visitors (forging links, local community groups or schools, connecting
with charities, encouraging access for all in employment and or visitors)
 The environment (managing energy, waste or water consumption)
7.2: Sustainability. Please describe how you communicate your efforts to make your
business more sustainable and how you encourage guests and employees to get involved.