Quality Assurance (QA) was our official grading system for tourism businesses in Scotland.
It began in 1985 and helped businesses to meet and exceed the high standards their customers expected, as well as raising quality standards and driving investment in the tourism product across the country. The scheme was retired on 31 March 2025.
In this article:
Quality Assurance schemes
Quality Assurance star grading
Sector specific guidance to achieve a high standard of quality and experience for visitors and awarding this with a star rating.
Taste Our Best
Celebrated businesses who serve up quality food and drink using locally sourced, fresh, seasonal, local produce.
Welcome Schemes
Provided experiences and information for specific interest groups, for example anglers.
iKnow Partner Programme
Highlighted Scottish tourism businesses as a source of useful and inspiring visitor information.
The history of QA
From the introduction of “star” gradings (replacing the previous crown scheme) to introducing sustainability criteria and adding Taste Our Best into the fold, our schemes provided visitors with an independent, impartial, and trusted guide to standards in Scotland, delivered by a dedicated team of experts.
As consumer behaviour and the needs of businesses changed over time, the QA scheme adapted. Changes include:
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the QA scheme began as a crown-based grading system, it was replaced by a star system in 1996
- a food grading scheme was developed, initially called Champion of Scottish Produce. This was replaced with EatScotland, before becoming Taste our Best in 2013
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as a direct result of industry feedback, the visitor attraction QA criteria was updated to ensure it was fit for purpose and new categories added to be more inclusive of the industry
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Welcome Schemes were introduced to offer a set of defined criteria for businesses to adhere to when targeting a specific visitor market
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responding to changes in digital technology, the QA scheme integrated online reviews into its assessment process
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advice on being more sustainable was introduced, and later QA criteria was adapted to include sustainability measures
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we supported other countries to help improve their quality of visitor provision and share best practice
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most recently, in an increasingly digital world and changing visitor behaviour, it was announced that QA would be retired, and a free-to-access business support programme introduced to reach and support more businesses across Scotland, read the news article for more information