How Blackburn's councils license dog boarders
Every one of the twenty-one dog boarders, day cares and kennels listed for Blackburn needs a council licence to operate: it is a legal requirement in England, not something a business can opt out of. Four councils cover the town's five areas, and their registers work very differently.
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council
Five listed businesses — Valley View Pet Services and Digs for Dogs (Rossendale) in Blackburn centre and Rossendale respectively, and The Collar Club, Carr Hall Boarding Kennels & Cattery and Barks Allowed in Darwen — are licensed by Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council. The council runs its own live register with a licence number, an expiry date and a star rating from 1 to 5 for every entry: Valley View is rated 4 stars, The Collar Club 5, Carr Hall 5, Barks Allowed 4, and Digs for Dogs (Rossendale) 5, even though its Haslingden address sits inside Rossendale borough rather than Blackburn with Darwen's own area — a boundary quirk in the council's own published list, not an error made here.
Rossendale Borough Council
Five listed businesses in the Rossendale area — PetStay - East Lancs & Bury, BowWowMiaow, Eat Sleep Walkies Repeat, Hazel Valley Hounds and Willows Wags & Whiskers — are licensed by Rossendale Borough Council, which publishes its own downloadable register with the same fields: licence number, expiry date and a star rating. PetStay is rated 3 stars, BowWowMiaow 4, Eat Sleep Walkies Repeat 3, Hazel Valley Hounds 5 and Willows Wags & Whiskers 5. Eat Sleep Walkies Repeat's licence runs to October 2026, so ask whether it has been renewed if you are booking close to that date.
Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Borough Councils
The remaining eleven listed businesses are licensed by Hyndburn Borough Council (Tailwaggers Kennels & Cattery, Bold Bark and Digs for Dogs (Blackburn & Darwen) in Blackburn centre; Aspen Valley Boarding Kennels & Cattery, Glencoe Kennels and Cattery, Lancashire Canine Academy and Sophie's Staycation in Accrington & Oswaldtwistle) or Ribble Valley Borough Council (Ribble Valley Kennels & Cattery in Blackburn centre; Mitton Hall Boarding Kennels & Cattery, The Bark Park and Just Dogs Ribble Valley in Clitheroe & the Ribble Valley). Neither council publishes a register of its own online; both are checked here through a shared third-party mirror site, which confirms a licence but gives no number, expiry date or star rating for any operator. No star is shown for any of these eleven businesses as a result.
What the star rating shows, where one is shown
Where a star rating does appear on this page, it is the licensing council's own inspection score, tied to how often the licence is reinspected, and it is not a customer review — treat it the way you would a food hygiene rating rather than a Google star. Where no star appears, that reflects the council's own register format, not a mark against the business; ask any of the eleven Hyndburn- or Ribble Valley-licensed businesses directly about their licence number and inspection history if a rating matters to your choice.