As part of our ‘Are You Ready for Recovery?’ toolkit, we’ve created a guide to health and safety for small tourism businesses. The guide includes essential information about international standards, as well as a practical step by step process to help you identify, assess and minimize risks in your operation. Here, we give you a taster of the guide, with five health and safety tips.
1. Take health and safety seriously.
The importance of health and safety to your business cannot be overstated. Not only is it right to look after your staff and customers, it is also part of being a good business owner or manager. A good health and safety culture can boost staff morale, reduce risks, improve efficiency and avoid reputational damage.
2. Make sure you are complying with COVID-19 protocols
As tourism recovers, tour operators and tourists will want to ensure that businesses are meeting enhanced health and safety practices so make sure you are complying with local guidelines and protocols, as well as any additional requirements from tour operators selling your product. Hygiene and cleaning plans, capacity limits and health checks will all be key considerations for tourists over the coming year.
3. Demonstrate good practice
Health and safety covers transport, accommodation, facilities, food hygiene, personal safety of tourists, human rights and animal welfare. Demonstrating good practice across all these areas increases your chances of selling your product to the international tourism industry and to customers worldwide. Make sure that your staff and customers know what you are doing to keep them safe, as well as what is expected of them and put in place staff training where appropriate.
4. Think ahead and manage your risk.
It is essential to carry out regular risk assessments and put measures in place to mitigate or eliminate any risks identified. If you have not already got it, purchase public liability insurance and make sure you have a procedure in place for dealing with medical incidents including a first aid kit and someone trained to give first aid.
5. Treat people and animals with care and respect.
Tourists expect to see that people working for and with your business are treated fairly and with respect. All employees should have a fair wage and contract of employment and any local communities involved with your business should also benefit fairly. If your attraction includes animals, as a minimum you should comply with any regulations and guidelines (including from tour operators) relating to their care. Many tourists do not like to see wild animals in cages, even if welfare standards are adhered to.
To download the full ‘Are you ready for recovery?’ guide on health and safety, go to www.bigupsmallbusiness.org/resources
