ADCH Minimum Welfare & Operational Standards

ADCH is the major force in raising the standards of animal welfare across the sector.

One fundamental aspect of this is the ADCH Minimum Welfare and Operational Standards, which have been approved by Trustees and Members. These form the basis of Membership, and decisions on admission of new Members.

Members want their Minimum Standards to:

• Safeguard animal welfare.
• Safeguard the reputation of the member organisation, ADCH and the sector at large.
• Be proportionate and realistically achievable.

With these aims in mind the ADCH Minimum Standards are accompanied by guidance notes to help organisations interpret the requirements of the standards.

Please note, a revised set of Minimum Welfare and Operational Standards came into force on 1 August 2023

ADCH Minimum Welfare & Operational Standards

Following the introduction of licencing of our sector in Scotland, ADCH worked hard to update our Minimum Welfare and Operational Standards. At the same time we also reviewed the Standards following feedback from members, our assessors, and developments in our sector.

Following consultation with members a revised set of Minimum Welfare and Operational Standards has been produced and will apply to all members and applicants from 01 August 2023.

You can find the Minimum Welfare and Operational Standards in our booklet here.

How we apply our Minimum Welfare and Operational Standards, and the underpinning principles to our standards and assessment programme, are available here.

Our Standard Operating Procedures

The following documents detail the processes we follow for accepting new member applications and when carrying out assessments.

SOP1: New Member Applications

SOP2: Existing Member – Self Assessment

SOP3: Existing Member – External Assessment

SOP4: Assessments for Multi-site Members

SOP7: Non Compliance with Minimum Standards