These terms are not final
A UK legal adviser must review and complete this draft before the public service opens. We have not invented the organisation name, registered address or rules about which courts apply.
1. About Bars.co.uk
Bars.co.uk is an independent venue directory and responsible venue service. It is not the Food Standards Agency, a council, licensing authority, regulator or public list of premises licences.
Showing data from an official source does not mean that source approves Bars.co.uk.
2. Directory information
The directory uses current records that the Food Standards Agency classifies as Pub/bar/nightclub. This information is about food hygiene. It does not prove that a venue sells alcohol, has a current premises licence, is open or meets every legal rule.
Check facts that can change quickly with the venue or the right public body. We label official data, venue statements and Bars.co.uk calculations separately. The original provider must correct official data before Bars.co.uk can show it as corrected.
3. Accounts and venue claims
You must give accurate information, protect your sign-in details and only act for a venue when you have permission. Claiming a page does not give you ownership of its public record.
We may ask for more proof, limit a claim while a venue identity changes or remove access when we can no longer confirm your authority.
4. Responsible Community Venue Standard
The standard is private and optional. Self-certified means an authorised venue representative completed the published questions and declarations. It does not mean Bars.co.uk checked every answer.
Audited means an independent reviewer checked the stated sample on the date shown. The standard is not government approval, a food hygiene rating, a premises licence, legal advice, insurance or a promise of safety or future behaviour.
A result can expire. We may review it after a major change or suspend it through a recorded fair process. Payment never buys points or rank.
5. Leaderboards and widgets
Rankings use the dated method and published entry rules. A position can change as venues enter or leave the comparison group. Audited and self-certified venues stay in separate groups.
Do not remove the source, date, status, accessibility text or main Bars.co.uk record link from a widget. Do not suggest that the Food Standards Agency approves the widget. Do not change a badge to claim a different level.
6. Mediation
Mediation is free for both sides. It helps people talk and agree practical steps. It is not an emergency service, legal representation, a regulator's investigation, formal arbitration or a court. We may pause or redirect a case when an official or safeguarding service is more suitable.
A case number does not unlock a case. You need a verified access link or a secure signed-in session. Do not share another person's link, upload unlawful material, threaten or harass anyone, discriminate, pretend to be someone else or try to hide a valid safety report.
The mediation privacy notice and deletion rules apply to private case information.
7. Acceptable use
Do not disrupt the service, avoid rate limits, collect data in a way that harms the site, identify protected people or add harmful code. Do not use public data to build a hidden complaint or reputation score.
When you publish information based on our data, keep the required source credit and explanation. We may limit public API use to protect the service and meet data licence rules.
8. Intellectual property and licences
Public sector information keeps its provider's licence and required source credit. The Open Government Licence does not automatically cover official marks, logos or some material owned by others.
Bars.co.uk owns its original design, explanations, venue standard, calculations and marks, subject to any reuse terms we publish.
9. Corrections, suspension and ending access
Use the correction page for a wrong fact. Use the appeal page for a venue standard or audit decision.
We may limit access after suspected misuse to protect people, evidence and the service. Where suitable, we will explain the decision and offer a review.
10. Availability and responsibility
The service may be unavailable during maintenance, a data-source problem or a security incident. Where the law allows, Bars.co.uk does not promise that access will never stop or that every fact from another provider is correct.
These terms do not exclude any responsibility that the law says we must keep.
11. Changes
We date important changes. If a change affects an active venue, standard result or mediation case, we will use a suitable way to tell the people involved.
Each event keeps a record of the venue standard and mediation policy versions that applied at the time.