How to Start & Run a B&B BandBED2eBook-1 | Page 93

Four Star
• 50% of guest bedrooms to be en-suite or with private facilities (from 1
January 2008)
Five Star
• All guest bedrooms to be en-suite or with private facilities (from 1 January
2008)
There are five levels of quality rating, from One to Five Star. To obtain a higher star
rating you will need to provide enhanced quality standards across all areas with
particular emphasis in five key areas:
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•
•
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Cleanliness
Hospitality
Breakfast
Bedrooms
Bathrooms
Cleanliness is given great emphasis in the Common Standards, which state “cleanliness
is of paramount importance to guests in every type of establishment so a high standard
of cleanliness must be achieved and maintained throughout the property:
• Bathrooms and shower rooms should be clean and smell fresh with particular
attention paid to fittings and sanitary ware, plug-holes, shower curtains,
flooring, mirrors, extractor fans and towels.
• You will also need to pay special attention to wherever guests have direct contact
– seating, crockery, cutlery, glassware, beds, bedding and linen.
• All bedrooms and bathrooms should be cleaned and checked daily to ensure a
very high standard of cleanliness.”
We have not space here in this book to reproduce all the detailed criteria within the
“Common Standards” document. Much of it is basic common sense and fairly obvious
– for example, the requirement for the proprietor or staff to be on duty during arrival
and departure periods and at meal times, and the requirement to describe your
amenities and facilities fairly to all enquirers.
Much detail is devoted to spaciousness of rooms, and adequacy of lighting, heating and
ventilation, but here you can be guided by your own standards and your expectations
when you stay in a B&B or hotel.
We will mention a few of the less obvious or more specific requirements, as this may be
helpful:
Bedroom Sizes
Bedrooms smaller than the following sizes are unlikely to meet the minimum
requirements:
Single room:
5.6sq.m
60sq.ft
Double room:
8.4sq.m
90sq.ft
Twin room:
10.2sq.m
110sq.ft