The animal activity star rating system explained

When your council licenses your pet-care business, it also gives you a star rating from one to five. The rating affects how long your licence lasts and how much it costs over time. This guide explains what the stars mean, how they are decided, and how to put yourself in the best position, honestly.

What the stars mean

The rating runs from one to five stars, the higher the better for welfare:

• One star (requires improvement): not meeting all of the minimum standards.
• Two or three stars (good): meeting all of the minimum standards.
• Four or five stars (excellent): meeting the minimum standards and the higher standards as well.

How the rating is calculated

Councils use a scoring matrix that combines two things: the welfare standards your business adopts (minimum, or minimum plus higher), and a risk score based on factors such as your past compliance and experience. A new business with no track record carries more risk, which is why first licences are often shorter even when the standards are good.

Why the rating matters

A higher rating earns a longer licence: two or three years instead of one. That means you pay the council fee and go through inspection less often, which lowers your cost and admin over time. It is also a signal customers can see.

How to reach the higher standards

Each activity has a defined set of required and optional higher standards (for example staffing ratios, exercise or enrichment plans, ventilation, and out-of-hours checks). Meeting all of the required higher standards and at least half of the optional ones is what moves you into the four-to-five band, alongside the inspector’s assessment of your premises and risk.

We are careful here: we never promise a specific star result, because it also depends on your premises and the inspector. What our Higher Standard pack does is give you the documents that evidence those higher standards, so they are not the thing holding your rating back.