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and ran the courses, in-house, in countries around the world. In other words, we used the same system that we had created in Scotland to expand around the world,’ said Ros.
As well as playing a major role in the development of world training, Scottish Blue Badge guides also had a major influence on the body formed to cover Europe. The European Federation of Tourist Guide Associations (FEG) was set up in 1986 in Paris with initially the main purpose to represent tourist guides at the European Commission, as the WFTGA was unable to do so, because the Institutions of the European Union would only take note of and act on the views of a European Organisation.
Some tour operators were trying to use the European Freedom of Movement and Recognition of Qualifications legislation to conflate the two separate professions of Tour Manager and Tourist Guide – often using the term Tour Guide to cover both professions. The STGA was an active member of FEG from the beginning and was heavily involved in this work.
Ros Newlands was the STGA representative on FEG, before she joined the World Federation Board.
‘I used to go to their meetings a lot because I was heavily involved with the setting up of the standard definition of a tourist guide for the European Union,’ she said. ‘It sounds really boring, but it was extremely important. The European Tour Operators Association was trying to fudge the difference between a tour manager, and a tourist guide.
‘Two definitions were set up in 2003 that affect our profession. One was for a tourist guide, and one was for a tour manager. And they stated, clearly, that they were two different jobs. The Definition of a Tourist Guide: was a "person who guides visitors in the language of their choice and interprets the cultural and natural heritage of an area, which person normally possesses an area-specific qualification usually issued and/or recognized by the appropriate authority". By contrast the Definition of a Tour Manager was a ‘person who manages and supervises the itinerary on behalf of the tour operator, ensuring the programme is carried out as described in the tour operator's literature and sold to the traveller/consumer and who gives local practical information"
‘Many tour operators strongly opposed that, and still oppose it, because they want to be able to use their tour managers everywhere, and allow them to guide everywhere,’ said Ros.
‘In the EU, because of freedom of movement, you can work anywhere. So, you could be a joiner in Scotland, and a joiner in France, and as long as you can speak French, I don't think it's going to matter much’ according to many tour operators. We were saying you can work anywhere as long as you get the appropriate qualification. But it's completely impossible for somebody to be a tourist guide in Paris, and arrive in London or Edinburgh, and immediately become a tourist guide in London or Edinburgh, because they don't know enough, and vice versa. ‘We were very, very clear, and these standards/regulations were really important for our profession, and it was Europe to start with.’
In 2003, at the Dunblane convention, the World Federation voted to adopt the European definition EN13809:2003 (which is now also ISO 18513:2003) ‘Tourism services – Travel Agencies and Tour Operator terminology’ which lists definitions of hundreds of terms used in tourism, among them tourist guide, tour manager, escort, even what a tour is. It then becomes an ISO, an international standard.
Meanwhile tourist guides in Europe led by those in the UK, Austria and Cyprus were agitating for a standard for tourist guide training to help with quality assurance and a better experience for visitors. Ros Newlands and Tom Hooper (from the Guild of Registered Tourist Guides and the Institute of Tourist Guiding) were appointed UK Experts by the British Standards Authority. From 2004 to 2007, meetings were held all over Europe and in 2007 a Standard was agreed: EN15565: 2008 Tourism services – Requirements for the provision of professional tourist guide training and qualification programmes.
The STGA Executive Board adopted the standard on March 19, 2009. The standard was confirmed after 10 years in 2018 and the STGA, represented by Ros Newlands informed the other UK Associations and FEG to remind them to ensure that their own standardising bodies voted for the confirmation. ‘Establishing this standard was challenging as there were huge variations in the length of courses and their content throughout Europe,’ said
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