Pet grooming businesses must comply with various legislation regarding animal welfare, hazardous substances, general health and safety, fire safety, employment, and disability discrimination. This includes ensuring the welfare of animals in their care, following COSHH regulations for chemicals, implementing a written health and safety policy for employees, conducting a fire risk assessment, complying with minimum wage and working time law, and making reasonable adjustments to accommodate disabled customers and workers. Advice on all relevant UK legislation can be found on websites run by DEFRA, HSE, local authorities, and equality commissions.

1. Industry Sector: Pet Grooming
Legal matters
Some of the key areas where legislation is likely to affect your grooming business are listed
below. The list is not intended to be exhaustive.
Animal welfare legislation
You should be aware of animal welfare legislation that is designed to protect animals. The
Animal Welfare Act brings together and modernises previous welfare legislation and ensures
greater protection for all animals under human care or supervision in England and Wales.
You will be responsible for the welfare of any animals you groom while they are in your care.
Dog and cat welfare codes of practice exist to provide animal owners and keepers with
information on how to meet the welfare needs of their animals, as required under the Act.
Similar animal welfare legislation applies in Scotland and Northern Ireland. You can get
further information on animal welfare legislation throughout the UK from:
the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) in England and
Wales
the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) in Northern Ireland
the Scottish Government Rural Affairs and Environment Department
Hazardous substances
As you may be using harmful chemicals, such as organophosphates and carbamates, you
should be aware of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH).
The Health and Safety Executive's interactive COSHH Essentials website gives you practical
advice to help you control the health risks from chemicals.
Be aware that even relatively mild substances like shampoos and sprays can cause
sensitisation and dermatitis over time if used regularly.
General health and safety
You must also make sure that you comply with health and safety legislation. This covers all
aspects of work place health and safety. Employers have a duty to ensure the health and
safety at work of all their employees and those with more than five employees must prepare a
written health and safety policy statement. You should contact your local authority
environmental health department for advice and guidance.
Further information and guidance leaflets on all aspects of health and safety are available on
the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Health and Safety Executive Northern Ireland
(HSENI) websites.

2. Fire safety
You should be aware of your responsibility to comply with fire safety regulations - this
means carrying out a fire risk assessment at your premises and putting in place fire precaution
measures. These could include fire alarm systems and extinguishers as well as clearly signed
escape routes. If you have five or more employees your fire risk assessment must be written
down. You're responsible not only for the safety of your staff but also of anyone who might
be on your premises, like customers or suppliers. The Department for Communities and
Local Government (CLG) has produced several helpful guides for businesses. You can
download these from the Communities website. Information about fire regulations in
Northern Ireland is available on the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service website.
Employment legislation
Anyone employing staff must comply with employment legislation. Major pieces of
legislation that you must be aware of include:
The National Minimum Wage Act
The Working Time Regulations
The Employment Rights Act
You can get many helpful booklets on employment issues from your local Jobcentre.
The employment section of the Business Link website includes information and guidance on
all aspects of employment legislation. Information for businesses in Northern Ireland is
available on the NI Business Info website.
There is also some guidance on employment legislation available on the Department for
Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) website.
Disability discrimination law
Anti-discrimination legislation gives rights to disabled people in the following areas:
employment. You must make sure that you do not treat a disabled employee or job
applicant less favourably than someone else
accessing goods and services. You must make sure that disabled people are not treated
less favourably and that they can access any services you provide. You may need to
make physical changes to your premises to ensure this
The Equality and Human Rights Commission and Equality Northern Ireland websites contain
further information on your legal duties.
More information and guidance on legal matters
The Law Society operates the 'Lawyers for Your Business' scheme, which offers a free initial
consultation with a participating legal firm.

3. Websites
www.defra.gov.uk | www.dardni.gov.uk | www.scotland.gov.uk | www.coshh-
essentials.org.uk | www.communities.gov.uk | www.nifrs.org | www.hse.gov.uk |
www.hseni.gov.uk | www.lfyb.lawsociety.org.uk | www.bis.gov.uk |
www.businesslink.gov.uk | www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk | www.equalityhumanrights.com |
www.equalityni.org