Silver success for Telford venue!

A Shropshire events venue is celebrating after achieving a coveted tourism accreditation at its very first attempt.

The International Centre, Telford, has received a Silver Award from the Green Tourism Business Scheme after a tough audit from official assessors.

Operations Director, Diane Austin, said: “This is incredible news for our entire team, as without the commitment of our staff, we would never have achieved such an excellent result at our first audit.

“We’re extremely proud to have been accredited with a Silver Award, and now we’ll be working hard towards going for gold at the next audit in two years’ time.”

The auditors measured Tic’s performance as a sustainable tourism operation against a challenging set of criteria and were pleased with the efforts the venue had made.

“Much of this initial success reflects the hard work and enthusiasm shown by the staff and company towards responsible business practices,” said the auditors.

“Highlights from the visit include regular green team meetings, corporate support of good causes, lots of sensor lighting, some good waste reduction and recycling practices, and a shuttle bus to the local train station.”

They said The International Centre already had generally good levels of environmental commitment, but there were several areas they should consider before the next audit if they wanted to achieve a higher status.

Suggestions including going further to meet the scheme’s mandatory measures including paper products in housekeeping, and hazardous waste disposal; as well as replacing old boilers with more efficient models, and ensuring all toilets were low flush.

The venue will also be working towards developing a totally green events package, and encouraging staff to get involved in local conservation work.

The Green Tourism Business Scheme (GTBS) accredits a range of different types of accommodation providers on their efforts to reduce their environmental impact

Each business is assessed every two years against rigorous criteria, covering areas like energy efficiency, waste minimisation and recycling, use of local produce, and support of public transport.

Pic:    Celebrating the Silver Award are, from left, Diane Austin - Operations Director, Wendi Hughes – Food & Beverage Operations Manager, Nita Winkless – Housekeeping Manager