The Uttoxeter Racecourse is delighted to announce that following a score of 86% from Visit England in the Quality Assured Racecourse Scheme, they have made the top 12 racecourses in the country for visitor experience. Racecourse Association (RCA) have today confirmed that the quality of the visitor experience across Great Britain’s racecourses is higher than ever before as assessed independently by VisitEngland and VisitScotland through the annual Quality Assured Racecourse Scheme.
The Quality Assured Racecourse Assessment objectively assesses the visitor experience of a day at the races. Encompassing all aspects of the raceday, from pre-raceday telephone calls and social media audits to the racecourse itself and the quality and cleanliness of facilities, an experienced assessor conducts the assessment during a ‘mystery shop’ visit.
VisitScotland issue Scottish racecourses with a star rating and Marque, whilst VisitEngland provides English and Welsh racecourses with a Quality Marque (licenced by VisitEngland) for racecourses reaching the pass mark of 60%, which equates to 'good'.
A record 34 racecourses were awarded a score of 80% or higher which equates to ‘excellent’ while once more every single racecourse achieved a rating of ‘good’ or better with the lowest scoring mark in 2017 being 68%, the highest it has ever been since the scheme was launched in 2012.
This year the top 12 racecourses in England & Wales (in alphabetical order) were:
Aintree, Ascot, Bangor-on-Dee, Beverley, Cheltenham, Chester, Haydock Park, Newbury, Newmarket July, Ripon, Uttoxeter and York.
In Scotland, Ayr and Musselburgh demonstrated excellence of the highest order by securing 5* ratings from VisitScotland.
Paul Swain, RCA Brand & Experience Manager, said: “It is fantastic to see the racecourse experience continue to improve across the board at all racecourses in 2017. It is testament to the level of investment that racecourses have made in facilities and staff training that we are seeing the higher levels of quality in terms of customer experience than ever before.
“Through the Raceday Experience Programme, Showcase & Awards, and our dedicated ‘Year of Service’ workstream we have been able to provide racecourses with the tools and examples of best practice to help them match the very finest customer experiences available in the sport and leisure market.
“Racecourses have sustained this drive for improvement and we’re committed to supporting them to continue to raise the bar.”
David MacDonald, Executive Director at Uttoxeter Racecourse, said: “I am delighted with the news that we have received yet another accolade for our work here at Uttoxeter. Over the last 2 years we have upped our game and continued to improve the experience quality for our customers.
“Making the top 12 racecourses in the country, and the only Midlands tracked to be named, is a real credit to the team who I cannot thank enough for their work. I am extremely excited to see the results that we will deliver in 2018, especially next weeks Betfred Midlands Grand National which is set to be biggest meeting that we’ve had in years.”
In addition to the general assessment there were Excellence Accolades for racecourses that recorded outstanding scores in specific areas of the assessment. These were awarded at the 2017 Showcase & Awards and Uttoxeter were also awarded an accolade for Visitor Information and Signage following their rebrand in March 2017. The awards were as follows:
Lovely Loos
Musselburgh, York
Visitor Information & Signage
Aintree, Ascot, Chepstow, Chester, Huntingdon, Musselburgh (Scotland), Newbury (England), Royal Windsor, Uttoxeter
Quality Café/Restaurant
Musselburgh—Café 1816, Ripon—Club Dining Room
Fast Food Outlet
York—Knavesmire Court
Staff Customer Service
Aintree, Bangor-on-Dee, Beverley, Chelmsford City, Cheltenham, Newbury, York
