Green Tourism Business Scheme Silver Award
Our Green Statement
We aim to include as much information about what we do, how we do it and why in information pack for our guests. This will include what type of stock we raise, the way we farm the land and how we strive to create a sustainable and successful business here at Tosside. We refurbished the house and put in a combination boiler to reduce energy and water usage and we provide Triple A Star appliances for their use.
We also intend to provide information on what the general wildlife is that they might encounter as well as the less well known types of birds, animals and smaller creatures they might not be so familiar with.
In and around the farmyard and cottage gardens are various bird boxes and bat roosting quarters which we do not wish to make too obvious in order to avoid them being disturbed. However, we hope our guests will appreciate the activities, particularly at dusk when a lot of activity can take place without our visitors realising it!
On this website we have links to the Forest of Bowland and many other sources of information and interest to the visitor. We have found that many people read up about the area and have specific destinations in mind when they arrive. We also provide quite a number of leaflets from various places of interest, activities, facilities and services which are available to us at Tosside. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to travel without your own transport here – the bus service is available but not very frequently and not outside the main village.
We do encourage our guests to recycle as much as possible – we put out lidded boxes for bottles, cans and plastics and also paper and cardboard. Whilst we are happy to remove “green” kitchen waste and compost it in our manure heaps we have noticed that sometimes cooked meat products (pies and pastries) are sometimes in it. Because of the risks we have to dispose of it via the binmen. We are contemplating how to be more specific on this issue to enable us to maximise the green waste recycling without detriment or hazard to our stock or to the land.
In recent years we have been working with the RSPB to open various ponds and scrapes for the visiting bird populations. We have put in 5 ponds on our land, in various locations and created a number of scrapes for lapwings, larks and curlews. These ensure that the nests, eggs and parent birds are safe when we mow for hay or silage as the machines pass over the scrape without damaging anything within it.
A copy of the Countryside Code is on the wall in the kitchen to enable our guests to be more aware of gates, paths and general information regarding the countryside. We want them to be safe at all times but not to be scared of going for walks, cycle rides, etc. We are very fortunate to have Gisburn Forest on our doorstep. This has been a great success for the village because of the new bridleways and cycle routes for visitors. We also supply a number of laminated maps for people who want to take a specific walk, ie: Malham Tarn. Some have been damaged or lost but we will keep replacing them as needs be.
We use no pesticides in the garden and plant to encourage beneficial insects for the bats and birds. We have kept outdoor lighting to the minimum so there is hardly any light pollution.
Most bulbs are low energy and will all eventually be low energy
We are happy to accept used batteries from you to take to the recycling centre.
We have an action plan of future improvements and developments and welcome feedback from our guests.
Click here for our Green Action Plan (PDF)
We are members of the Forest of Bowland Sustainable Tourism Business Network where tourism businesses work with the AONB to improve the sustainable development and management of tourism in this protected area.
Our web host 1&1 is proud to be the first large web host who relies solely on renewable energy. 1&1 now uses wind, water and solar power in accordance with the Renewable Energy Certification System (RECS).
The Green Tourism Business Scheme is the national sustainable tourism certification scheme for the UK. Originally developed in partnership with Visit Scotland, it is now the only certification scheme validated by Visit Britain, through the International Centre for Responsible Tourism (ICRT).
European Charter for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas
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