The Institute of Tourist Guiding, the regulatory body for professional tourist guiding in England, Northern Ireland and Jersey, announced the launch of a new and  enhanced photocard for qualified tourist guides.

Amongst others, the new photocard was presented to Sarah Cowling, Yorkshire and London  Blue Badge Guide by Lady Victoria Borwick, VisitEngland Chairman, at the Institute’s Annual  General Meeting (AGM) in London on 14 November. The photocard will be rolled-out to the  Institute’s more than1700 registered members throughout 2025, in Yorkshire and across the  rest of the country.

The new photocard is designed to further elevate tourism industry standards and provide  greater recognition for qualified tourist guides for the benefit of the general public and the  tourism and heritage sectors.

This innovative photocard bolsters security, with an up-to-date passport-style photo of the  qualified guide, a photocard validation expiry date, a guide’s guiding qualifications and the  languages and regions they are qualified to guide in. Contactless technology is available in  the form of a QR code, enabling the general public, the heritage and travel sectors to further

check a guide’s credentials on the Institute’s Register of Guides. This will streamline the  travel and heritage sector’s ability to check specific qualifications of Institute-accredited  guides and to ensure they have the right guide for the region, town, or site to be visited and  for clients’ specific needs e.g. a guide with particular language skills or a guide qualified for  coach guiding.

Commenting on this initiative Jackie Clare, Institute Co-President said: ‘We are grateful to  VisitEngland, for supporting this important initiative. This photocard provides a visual symbol  of the professionalism of qualified tourist guides and reassures visitors, the tourism and  heritage sectors and local communities that they are dealing with a qualified tourist guide,  building trust and confidence in the visitor experience. All guides have a mandatory duty to  abide by our Codes of Conduct which place customer care at the centre of the visitor  experience.”

She added: “ To give visitors the richest experience requires, knowledge, training and skill.  Our heritage needs not just physical preservation but also through what people hear. With  the Blue, Green and White Badge qualifications we can ensure that our visitors are with  expert ambassadors for our nation’s heritage and contemporary story.”

Lady Victoria Borwick said: ““Tourist guides are an extremely important part of our tourism  offer, contributing hugely to the experience that visitors have and often pivotal in people’s  overall enjoyment of their trip and in their decision to revisit a destination in the future.  Tourist guides’ expertise, enthusiasm and local knowledge is also really important for visitors  to get ‘under the skin’ of a place and often to boosting visits to other local businesses and  attractions, supporting the visitor economy.”

Anita McLaughlin, Institute Co-President said: “Qualified tourist guides were founded in  1950 in response to the anticipated increase in visitors to the Festival of Britain in 1951. We  are delighted to be launching our new photocard in time for another seminal national event  Railway200 in 2025. Qualified tourist guides will be at the centre of this celebration which  marks the 200th anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington railway line in  1825, an historic event marking the birth of the modern railway which revolutionised  transportation and society in the UK and across the world. Qualified tourist guides will be  telling the story of our railway past, present and future celebrating the significant milestones  and achievements of the railway industry, showcasing the importance of rail travel in  modern society, with an emphasis on its role in sustainability and connectivity, innovation  and technological advancements. “

Jackie Clare added:  “Cementing our collaboration with VisitEngland, we are delighted that  we have been able to tune in to preparations for the Railway200 national celebrations.  Institute members enjoyed a presentation from railway expert and author Christian Wolmar  delivered a talk on ‘Railways: the First 200 Years & Tracks to the Future’.”