What UK Animal Activity Licensing Star Ratings Mean
UK dog boarding operators in England are inspected and awarded a star rating from 1 to 5 under the Animal Activity Licensing framework. The rating reflects compliance with welfare standards at the time of inspection — not the quality of care or customer satisfaction. Here is what each level means.
The two tiers: Standard and Higher
All rated operators are placed in one of two tiers. Standard tier applies to operators who meet the minimum legal requirements. Higher tier applies to operators who voluntarily meet additional welfare criteria — covering things like enrichment, outdoor access, and staff training.
A 5-star Higher Standard boarding kennel has demonstrated compliance with the most demanding set of welfare criteria the framework provides for.
What each star level indicates
1 star: The operator meets minimum legal requirements but has outstanding issues to address.
2 stars: Meets requirements with some improvement actions.
3 stars: Fully compliant with the regulations at inspection.
4 stars: Compliant, with some evidence of meeting Higher standard criteria.
5 stars: Fully meets the Higher standard criteria at time of inspection.
What star ratings do not measure
Star ratings are not customer satisfaction scores. They are not updated between inspections. A 5-star kennel may have received that rating two years ago; conditions may have changed. Our Verification Score includes source freshness to flag when our data may be out of date.
Not all councils publish ratings
Publication of star ratings is not mandatory across all councils. Some publish only a list of licensed operators without ratings. Our licensing coverage dashboard shows which councils publish ratings and which do not.