Contents
1: Membership application (Bylaws 3 and 4)
2: Membership Subscriptions (Bylaw 7)
3: Membership – disciplinary actions (Bylaw 8b)
4: Membership – appeals (Bylaw 8c)
5: Membership of the Board (Bylaws 15 and 18)
6: Co-options to the Board (Bylaw 17)
7: Board members – disciplinary actions (Bylaw 20)
8: Board members – appeals (Bylaw 21)
9: Election of President (Bylaw 25)
10: Signing Documents (Bylaw 29)
11: Meetings of the Board (Bylaw 33)
12: Procedure for ballots (Bylaw 49)
13: Registration Authority – membership (Bylaw 51)
14: Committees (Bylaw 52)
15: Registration Authority - duties (Bylaw 71)
16: Registration Authority – quality assurance (Bylaw 71)
17: Requirements for application for a licence (Bylaw 72)
18: Requirements for the award of a licence (Bylaws 73 and 75)
19: Maintenance of licence (Bylaw 75)
20: Licensed Bodies – licensing fees (Bylaw 73)
21: Chartered Scientists – Disciplinary Action (Bylaw 77)
22: Licensed Bodies – Disciplinary Action
23: Chartered Scientist – the Register (Bylaw 80)
24: Chartered Scientist – qualifying standards (Bylaw 83)
25: Registrants – fees (Bylaw 88)
26: Certificate of Chartered Registration (Bylaw 82)
1. Membership application (Bylaws 3 and 4)
1.1. Any Organisation considering applying to become a Member Body of the Science Council shall be sent the criteria for membership. All of the criteria must be fulfilled for an application to be progressed, the defined criteria for membership being that
- the profession represented by the Organisation shall be based on a recognised body of learning of a scientific nature,
- the Organisation is an independent UK body which exists for the collective pursuit of professional aims and objectives in science as set out in a Royal Charter or Memorandum and Articles of Association incorporated under the Companies Acts or formally registered in some other way,
- the Organisation has, among its objectives, the practice of the profession in the interest of the public as well as that of its members,
- admission to full membership of the Organisation shall be based on standards of competence as attested by an appropriate degree or equivalent qualification, as well as relevant professional practice, provided that if an Organisation does not have strict entry standards for its members it must be able to demonstrate that the majority of its members are so qualified,
- the Organisation recognises its responsibility to advance and extend the body of learning on which the profession is based, and
- the Organisation recognises its responsibility to concern itself with facilities, methods and provision for educating and training future entrants to the profession and for enhancing the knowledge of present practitioners.
1.2. Every application for membership shall be forwarded to the Chief Executive of the Science Council who shall circulate
- the name of the applying Organisation, and
- details of its aims and objects
to the existing Member Bodies. After a minimum of 21 days the Chief Executive shall lay the application before the Board of the Science Council together with evidence of fulfilment of the criteria for membership and any comments received.
1.3. When an applying Organisation has been offered membership, the Chief Executive shall give the Organisation notice thereof, but the name of the Organisation shall not be added to the Register of Member Bodies of the Science Council until the requisite resolution and subscription have been received.
1.4. The requirements of the resolution of the governing body of the applying organisation shall be
- that the Organisation applies for membership of the Science Council, and
- that the Organisation agrees to be bound by the Charter, the Bylaws of the Council and regulations made under the said Charter and Bylaws.
1.5. When an Organisation has been offered membership, that Organisation will be invited to attend all meetings open to Member Bodies but will have no vote in General Meeting until the requirements for inclusion in the Register of Member Bodies have been fulfilled.
1.6. If the said Organisation has not fulfilled the requirements for inclusion in the Register of Member Bodies within 12 months of being offered membership, the offer of membership shall be withdrawn.
2. Membership Subscriptions (Bylaw 7)
2.1. At the beginning of each financial year of the Science Council, the Chief Executive shall require the Member Bodies to submit returns of their membership numbers at the end of their last financial year.
2.2. The annual subscription shall be based on a per capita charge on the UK membership less any student membership of the Member Body as at the end of their last financial year.
2.3. The Board may set maximum and minimum subscriptions for Member Bodies provided that in the first instance the level shall be set by a resolution from the Board passed at an Annual General Meeting or at an Extraordinary General Meeting called for that purpose and thereafter in accordance with the requirements of Bylaw 6.
2.4. Subscriptions from new Member Bodies shall become due from the date on which the Board offers membership or the date on which the prospective new Member Body has its resolution for membership accepted by the Chief Executive, whichever is the later.
2.5. The first subscription of any new Member Body shall be apportioned according to the number of remaining full quarters of the Council’s financial year but if any such subscription falls due in the last quarter of the Council’s financial year the subscription then due shall be a full annual subscription for the following financial year of the Council.
2.6. The Board may at its discretion offer a reduced subscription to a new Member Body or to an existing Member Body that has demonstrated to the Board a case for such reduction provided that any such reduced subscription shall be not less than fifty per centum of the calculated subscription for that Member Body or of the minimum or maximum subscription applicable at that time and that there shall be a planned revision of the annual subscription for that Member Body to attain the appropriate full subscription over a maximum period of three years.
3. Membership – disciplinary actions (Bylaw 8b)
3.1. In the event that a complaint is received against a Member Body in relation to the undertaking made by that Body on becoming a Member Body of the Council, the Chief Executive shall write to the complainant requesting a specific statement of the complaint with supporting evidence. The complainant shall be required to reply within 28 calendar days of the date of the letter from the Chief Executive or its complaint shall be forfeit. The grounds for the complaint shall be that either the Body no longer fulfils the criteria set out in Regulation 1.1 or the Body has acted in a manner detrimental to the welfare of Science Council. At its first meeting after the complaint is received, the Board shall call for an initial response from the Member Body which should be produced within 28 calendar days. The Board shall consider the complaint and the response at its next meeting and shall consider the information presented. If it is decided that there is no case to answer or the matter is considered trivial, then the Board shall instruct the Chief Executive to write to the complainant informing it of the decision and that decision shall be final provided that, at the Board’s discretion, the matter could be reconsidered in the light of new information being presented at a future occasion. If the Board decides that the matter should proceed, a date and time shall be set for a hearing. A minimum of 28 calendar days notice shall be given to all parties.
3.2. The complaint shall be heard by a panel set up for the purpose by the Board . The panel will comprise a minimum of three members. There shall also be a non-voting secretary who may be the Chief Executive.
3.3. The panel shall appoint a Chair from its members who shall have a second and casting vote in the event of a tie.
3.4. The findings of the panel shall be reported to the Board and shall comprise at least a recommended conclusion together with any recommended actions. The Board shall consider the recommendations and confirm or determine the disciplinary action to be taken, the decision being given to the relevant parties in writing within 14 calendar days of the Board meeting at which the decision was made.
3.5. The decision of the Board shall take one of four forms, namely:
- dismissal of the complaint,
- a reprimand with or without recommended action(s),
- suspension of membership pending fulfilment of required action(s) agreed between the panel and the Member Body, or
- termination of membership.
If the decision of the Board is termination of membership, then the requirements of Bylaw 8(c) shall apply.
3.6. Any additional rules established for the preparation and execution of grievance hearings and disciplinary actions shall be appended to the notice of the hearing together with the relevant regulations.
4. Membership – appeals (Bylaw 8c)
4.1. In the event of an appeal against a disciplinary action or termination of membership, the Chief Executive shall write to the appellant Member Body requesting a statement with supporting evidence of the specific grounds for the appeal. The appellant Member Body shall be required to reply within 28 calendar days of the date of the letter from the Chief Executive, or the appeal shall be forfeit.
The grounds for the appeal shall be either:
(i) additional information, which could not reasonably have been presented at the time of the hearing in Regulation 3.2, is available, or
(ii) proper procedures have not been followed.
In the case of (i) above, if the Board considers there to be grounds for appeal, it shall direct the panel to reconvene. In the case of (ii) above, if the Board considers there to be grounds for appeal, it shall convene a new panel in accordance with Regulation 3.2 which shall rehear the complaint.
4.2. The findings of the panel shall be reported to the Board and shall comprise at least a recommended conclusion together with any recommended actions. The Board shall consider the recommendations and decide on the outcome of the appeal, the decision being given to the relevant parties in writing within 14 calendar days of the Board meeting at which the decision was made. The decision of the Board shall be final.
4.3. Any additional rules established for the preparation and execution of appeals shall be appended to the notice of the appeal hearing together with the relevant regulations.
5. Membership of the Board (Bylaws 15 and 18)
5.1. Not less than 6 months before the proposed date of the Annual General Meeting at which the Board is to be reconstituted, the Board shall decide the minimum threshold number, above which a Member Body is entitled to appoint a member to the Board (Bylaw 15).
5.2. Following the decision on appointments as described in regulation 5.1 and not later than 5 months before the proposed date of the Annual General Meeting at which the Board is to be reconstituted, the Chief Executive shall send a notice to the Member Bodies. The notice shall list those Member Bodies who have been selected for the appointment of members to the Board together with a request for the names of the representatives of such Member Bodies who will serve on the Board. The notice shall also request nomination for election to the Board from those Member Bodies with membership numbers below the threshold number as described in regulation 5.1. The notice shall also indicate the remaining number of places available for election on the new Board, the indication being the same as the number of appointed places proposed under regulation 5.1.
5.3. Nominations for election to the remaining places on the new Board shall be on the prescribed form available from the Chief Executive. The nominee Member Body may propose itself and the proposal shall be supported by two other Member Bodies. The nomination for election shall include the name of the proposed representative to the new Board. Nominations must be received by the Chief Executive within 3 months of the proposed date of the Annual General Meeting.
5.4. Not less than 6 weeks before the proposed date of the Annual General Meeting at which the Board is to be reconstituted, the Board shall consider the nominations received for election to the new Board. If insufficient nominations for election have been received, the Board may nominate additional Member Bodies to appoint a representative to the new Board, selected such as to maintain an adequate representation of scientific expertise. If the Board receives nominations in excess of the previously stipulated number and more nominations than it wishes to accommodate then a ballot will be held.
5.5. In the event that a vacancy occurs on the Board, the Chief Executive shall contact the Member Body from which the vacating member of the Board was appointed, provided that the vacancy did not occur as a result of the removal of that Member Body from membership, to seek a replacement Board member.
6. Co-options to the Board (Bylaw 17)
6.1. If, after the Annual General Meeting at which the Board has to be reconstituted, the Board considers that it does not have an adequate representation of scientific expertise, it may request additional Member Bodies to nominate representatives for co-option as full voting members to the Board provided that the maximum number of such co-options shall be two (i.e. one representative per Member Body) members to the Board during the three year term and that these co-options shall be made for no other reason than to ensure adequate representation of scientific expertise. Any such co-opted members shall have the right to remain as members of the Board until the next Annual General Meeting at which the Board is to be reconstituted.
6.2. In the event that a Member Body ceases to be a member of the Council or if after a period of 3 months or at the following meeting of the Board, whichever is the longer period of time, a nomination has not been received, the Board may co-opt a new member to the Board but in making an appointment the Board shall consider the need to maintain an adequate representation of scientific expertise.
6.3. Provided that the Board has acted in accordance with these regulations, the decision of the Board shall be final.
7. Board members – disciplinary actions (Bylaw 20)
7.1. In the event that a complaint is received against a member of the Board, the Chief Executive shall write to the complainant requesting a specific statement of the complaint. The aggrieved party shall be required to reply within 28 calendar days of the date of the letter from the Chief Executive the complaint will be forfeit. The grounds for complaint shall be that the member of the Board has:
- failed to attend 3 consecutive Board meetings or has otherwise failed to discharge his/her responsibilities as a Board member without adequate reason; and/or
- acted in a manner discreditable to the Science Council
7.2. The Board shall set up a panel for the purpose of enquiry comprising a minimum of three members, all of whom shall be past Board members or former Presidents of the Member Bodies provided that none of the members of the panel shall be members of the same Member Body or Member Bodies as the complainant or shall they be members of any Member Body of which the complainant is or has been an Officer or an employee. There shall also be a non-voting secretary who may be the Chief Executive. The panel shall consider the information presented. If the panel shall decide that there is no case to answer, it shall instruct the Chief Executive to write to the aggrieved party informing the said party of its decision and that decision shall be deemed to be a decision of the Board and shall be final provided that, at the Board’s discretion, the matter could be reconsidered in the light of new information being presented at a future occasion. If the panel decides that the matter should proceed to adjudication, a date and time shall be set for a hearing and the complainant shall be asked to withdraw from the Board until that date. A minimum of 28 calendar days notice of the hearing shall be given to all parties.
7.3. The panel shall conduct the adjudication and shall appoint a Chair from its members who shall have a casting vote in the event of a tie.
7.4. If the panel finds against the Board member on whom the complaint was laid it will determine appropriate disciplinary action either immediately following its judgement at the end of the hearing or, not later than 7 days from the date of the hearing. The disciplinary action shall take one of three forms, namely:
- a reprimand with or without recommended action(s),
- suspension of Board membership pending fulfilment of required action(s) agreed between the panel and the Board member, or
- termination of Board membership.
If the decision of the panel is termination of membership, then the requirements of Bylaw 21 shall apply.
7.5 The decision of the panel shall be deemed to be a decision of the Council.
7.6 Any additional rules established for the preparation and execution of disciplinary actions shall be appended to the notice of the hearing together with the relevant regulations.
8. Board members – appeals (Bylaw 21)
8.1. In the event of an appeal against a disciplinary action or termination of membership of the Board, the Chief Executive shall write to the appellant Board member requesting a statement of the specific grounds for the appeal, which shall be:
(i) that additional information, which could not reasonably have been presented at the time of the hearing in Regulation 7.2 is available or
(ii) proper procedures have not been followed.
In the case of (i) above, if the Board considers there are grounds for appeal, it shall direct the panel to reconvene. In the case of (ii) above, if the Board considers there are grounds for appeal, it shall convene a new panel in accordance with Regulation 7.2 and whose members have served on the first panel, which shall reconsider the complaint. The appellant Board member shall be required to reply within 28 days of the date of the letter from the Chief Executive or before the date of the next Board Meeting, whichever is later, or the appeal shall be forfeit.
8.2. The decision of the panel shall be deemed to be a decision of the Council and shall be final.
8.3. Any additional rules established for the preparation and execution of appeals shall be appended to the notice of the appeal hearing together with the relevant regulations.
9. Election of President (Bylaw 25)
9.1. Not less than 6 weeks before the proposed date of the next Annual General Meeting at which the Board is to be reconstituted, the Chief Executive shall send notice to all Member Bodies of the Board’s nomination for President together with the prescribed form for nominations to be made by Member Bodies.
10. Signing Documents (Bylaw 29)
10.1. The Board shall determine the names of persons empowered to sign cheques and other documents on behalf of the Council.
11. Meetings of the Board (Bylaw 33)
11.1. The President may and, on the request of three members of the Board, the Chief Executive shall, at any time, summon a meeting of the Board by notice served upon the several members of the Board. When a meeting is convened at the request of three members the notice of meeting shall state the nature of the business to be discussed and any resolution to be voted on. Only business of which notice shall be so given shall be considered at the meeting.
11.2. The members for the time being of the Board may act notwithstanding any vacancy in their body; provided always that in case the members of the Board shall at any time be, or be reduced in number to, less than the minimum number prescribed by or in accordance with the Bylaws, it shall be lawful for them to act as the Board for the purpose of admitting Organisations to membership of the Council, filling up vacancies in their body, or of summoning a General Meeting, but not for any other purpose.
12. Procedure for ballots (Bylaw 49)
12.1. In the event that a vote by ballot has to be taken at the Annual General Meeting or at an Extraordinary General Meeting, the Chief Executive (or a person appointed to fulfil that role) shall prepare ballot papers containing sufficient information where appropriate to enable the voting members to vote on the matter.
12.2. Each voting representative shall be offered a ballot paper for which said representative will sign against his or her name on a list containing the names of all voting representatives and their Member Bodies present at the meeting.
12.3. The President or Chair of the meeting shall inform the voting representatives of the options available and how to mark their ballot papers.
12.4. Each voting representative may record his or her vote on the ballot paper and shall return it to the Chief Executive to be counted.
12.5. When the Chair of the Meeting has determined that no further voting papers will be returned, the Chief Executive shall count the votes for each option under the scrutiny of two persons appointed at the meeting and inform the Chair of the number of votes cast for each option, the number of ballot papers not returned and the number of spoilt papers.
12.6. The Chair shall announce the result of the ballot. In the event of a tie the Chair shall have a second and casting vote.
12.7. In the event that a ballot for the election of President is held, each voting representative shall mark a cross against the name of one candidate. If one of the candidates for President is chairing the meeting, he or she shall yield the Chair to one of the voting representatives present who shall be appointed by the meeting as temporary Chair for the duration of the ballot.
12.8. In the event that a ballot for the elected places on the Board has to be held, the Chair shall inform the voting representatives how many candidates they are required to vote for. Ballot papers with less than the permitted number of crosses shall be allowed, but those with more than the number permitted shall be deemed spoilt.
13. Registration Authority – membership (Bylaw 51)
13.1. In addition to the Chair the minimum number of the members of the Registration Authority shall be three members appointed by the Board from the Licensed Bodies in accordance with the Bylaws and four members appointed by the Board who shall be individuals with appropriate professional expertise.
14. Committees (Bylaw 52)
14.1. The Board shall prescribe the terms of reference, the membership and authority to vote of any committee, working group or other body that it sets up together with regulation of any aspects of the proceedings of such committee, working group or other body as it deems necessary.
15. Registration Authority - duties (Bylaw 71)
15.1. The Registration Authority, on behalf of the Board, shall carry out the following functions.
15.1.1. In relation to standards it shall
- develop and maintain standards of admission to the Register of Chartered Scientists, and
- set standards for the award of the designation “Chartered Scientist”.
15.1.2. In relation to quality assurance it shall
- license Member Bodies to award and remove the designation of “Chartered Scientist”,
- monitor the activities of Licensed Bodies with respect to the Council’s Chartered Scientist Register and give guidance, specify information required and give directions on the format of application documents,
- establish regulations for disciplinary procedures relating to the Register’s Code of Conduct and routines for the consideration of complaints of unprofessional conduct and a related appeals procedure, and ensure that Licensed Bodies adopt and pursue such routines and procedures,
- require arrangements to be made concerning the maintenance of professional conduct of registrants, and
- require arrangements to be made concerning the professional development of registrants.
15.2. The Registration Authority shall also carry out any other functions that may be prescribed by the Board from time to time.
15.3. The Registration Authority, on behalf of the Board, may set up committees or working groups to carry out any of the above.
16. Registration Authority – quality assurance (Bylaw 71)
16.1. The Registration Authority may specify in guidance documents the features required of quality assurance requirements of Licensed Bodies.
16.2. The initial licensing assessment of Member Bodies and monitoring of their activities in relation to retention of the licence shall be carried out by quality assurance assessors appointed by the Registration Authority.
16.3. The assessors shall maintain confidentiality of the details of any members of the Member Bodies to which they have access.
16.4. The assessor’s notes and the post-assessment letter written to the Member Body that has been assessed will be confidential to the assessors and to the Registration Authority with the exception of the final decision which will be available to any Member Body through the Chief Executive.
16.5. In the event of a disciplinary action or an appeal, any of the information detailed in regulation 16.3 and deemed relevant to that disciplinary action or appeal by the Registration Authority shall be made available to the Board and to the panel set up to hear the appeal.
16.6. Assessors shall not assess Member Bodies of whom they are members.
17. Requirements for application for a licence (Bylaw 72)
17.1. Member Bodies who wish to be licensed to award the designation “Chartered Scientist” shall contact the Chief Executive of the Science Council who shall send the Member Body an application form together with details of the criteria necessary to make an application.
17.2. The criteria for a Member Body to apply for a licence shall be:
- the Body is a member of the Science Council,
- the Member Body has at least one membership entry standard at graduate level,
- the Member Body has a minimum of 5 years experience administering that standard or has made approved arrangements with another Licensed Body to do so,
- the members holding the above standard are bound by a Code of Professional Conduct and the Licensed Body has disciplinary procedures, and
- the Member Body is able to monitor the professional development of it’s members.
The applying Member Body shall also agree to be assessed by the Registration Authority and to pay any specified non-returnable application fee.
17.3. Completed application forms together with any other information supplied by the applying Member Body shall be passed to the Registration Authority.
18. Requirements for the award of a licence (Bylaws 73 and 75)
18.1. On receipt of an application for a licence, the Registration Authority shall consider the information submitted and provided that the applying Member Body appears to meet the criteria, the details shall be passed to the Board.
18.2. The primary function of the assessment shall be to examine the way in which the Member Body maintains and applies its own member entry standards and how it monitors the professional development of its members with a view to the Member Body demonstrating that it would be able to apply the standards set by the Board. Additionally, evidence of compliance to the other criteria will be sought.
18.3. The assessors shall present their findings to the Registration Authority. The decision of the Registration Authority shall be submitted in writing to the applying Member Body. One of the following three decisions shall be made, namely
- to award a licence,
- to award a licence subject to the fulfilment of certain conditions, or
- not to award a licence.
19. Maintenance of licence (Bylaw 75)
19.1. Licensed Bodies shall be periodically reviewed as stated in Bylaw 75. Reviews shall have the primary function of examining the Licensed Body to ensure that it is maintaining the standards for the award of the designation “Chartered Scientist” and that all other specified criteria are being fulfilled. Such reviews shall be conducted at a frequency determined by the Registration Authority but shall be at a minimum of every five years.
19.2. The reviewers shall present their findings to the Registration Authority. The decision of the Registration Authority shall be submitted in writing to the applying Member Body. One of the following three decisions shall be made, namely
- to renew the licence,
- to conditionally renew the licence subject to the fulfilment of certain conditions, or
- to recommend to the Board non-renewal of the licence.
20. Licensed Bodies – licensing fees (Bylaw 73)
20.1. The Board may set, and at its discretion vary, application and annual fees for licensing of Member Bodies provided that any such fees shall be determined in accordance with the procedures set out in Bylaw 6.
20.2. The Board may charge, at its own discretion and on the request of the Registration Authority, Licensed Bodies assessment fees for assessments that are carried out in addition to the usual scheduled assessments provided that the sum shall either be agreed between the Licensed Body and the Board or be set in accordance with the procedures set out in Bylaw 6.
21. Chartered Scientists – Disciplinary Action (Bylaw 77)
21.1. A complainant bringing a complaint against the conduct of a Chartered Scientist in relation to BL 72 (iii) shall be referred to the Chartered Scientist’s Licensed Body. The Licensed Body shall consider the complaint in accordance with the terms of the Licence. The Registration Authority shall act upon any recommendation from the Licensed Body in respect of the scientist’s registration .
21.2. Appeals against removal from the Register shall be considered in accordance with ByLaw 85.
21.3. Licensed Bodies shall inform the Science Council of the name and date of birth of any person who has been removed by them from the Register of Chartered Scientists for disciplinary reasons. With reference to Bylaw 80, this information shall be available on request by Licensed Bodies provided that the request is for purposes of processing an application for Chartered Scientist and for no other reason.
22. Licensed Bodies – Disciplinary Action
22.1 Complaints against a Licensed Body in relation to adherence to the terms of the Licence shall be considered in accordance with the requirements of Regulation 3. In addition to the provisions of Regulation 3.5, the Council may suspend or withdraw the Body’s Licence.
22.2 In the event of suspension or withdrawal of a Licence, individual Chartered Scientists shall not necessarily cease to be Chartered Scientists in accordance with Bylaw 87
23. Chartered Scientist – the Register (Bylaw 80)
23.1. The Science Council shall have responsibility for the maintenance of the Register of Chartered Scientist.
23.2. Each Licensed Body shall maintain a register of those Chartered Scientist who have been admitted by them to the Register.
23.3. The Register maintained by the Science Council and those maintained by the Licensed Bodies shall include information on each registrant, namely
- full name and titles,
- address (including e-mail address where appropriate)
- date of birth,
- gender,
- individual registration number,
- date of the award,
- date of renewal of award, and
- qualifying Licensed Body
- such other information as shall be required from time to time agreed by the majority of the Board present at a meeting of the Board after consideration of the views of the Licensed Bodies.
Additionally the Licensed Body shall retain records of the basis on which the award was made.
23.4. The Chief Executive shall request quarterly returns from each of the Licensed Bodies detailing information on
- new registrants,
- renewal of registrations,
- registrants who have not renewed,
- removal of registrants
For new registrants and renewal of existing registrants, the information required in regulation 23.3 shall be submitted with the return. For registrants who have not renewed their registration, the return should contain sufficient information to enable the Science Council to identify and remove them from the Register. In the cases of new applicants who have failed to achieve registration and of former registrants who have failed to achieve re-registration, the Licensed Body shall return the name, address, date of birth, date of failure, and date of original registration if applicable to the Science Council.
23.5 The Science Council may publish the Register of Chartered Scientists in whatever form it may decide.
23.6 The published Register shall include name, awarding Licensed Body and individual Chartered Scientist number.
24. Chartered Scientist – qualifying standards (Bylaw 83)
24.1. A Chartered Scientist shall be a person who is able to demonstrate a systematic understanding of knowledge and critical awareness of current problems or new insights, much of which is informed by the forefront of their field of study or area of professional practice. The benchmark route for achieving the standard required for registration shall be successful completion of a programme of study leading to a Masters degree or of a relevant programme of study that is judged as being at an equivalent level. Other means of achieving the required standard are through a combination of academic awards, vocational qualifications and experiential learning through work.
24.2. Applicants shall be also required to demonstrate that they are able:
- to deal with complex issues, both systematically and creatively, make sound judgements in the absence of complete data and communicate their conclusions clearly to specialist and non specialist audiences,
- to exercise self-direction and originality in solving problems, and exercise substantial personal autonomy in planning and implementing tasks at a professional level, and
- to continue to advance their knowledge, understanding and competence to a high level.
Applicants shall be also required to have at least four years’ postgraduation-level experience in the practice, application or teaching of science, of which two should be at an appropriate level of responsibility and, for a minimum of two years immediately prior to the application, have carried out appropriate professional development commensurate with the level of attainment required in regulation 24.1.
24.3. The Licensed Body shall ensure that applicants are in possession of any guidelines that relate to the criteria outlined in regulations 24.1 and 24.2.
24.4. Successful applicants will, on payment of the required fees, be entitled for a period of five years.to the use the designation Chartered Scientist after their name or the initials “CSci”
24.5. Chartered Scientists who wish to renew their registration may be required to demonstrate
- participation in appropriate professional development, and
- continuing practice such that scientific knowledge or practice at an appropriate level have formed the basis for the fulfilment of their role.
24.6. Once granted a licence, Licensed Bodies, that can to the satisfaction of the Registration Authority identify groups of members for which the current entry standard is at or above the level of demand for CSci, may offer grandparenting arrangements for a limited period to persons in those groups, irrespective of the admission criteria at the time the particular individual was admitted to the identified group of members. For renewal after five years, Chartered Scientists who were initially registered under this regulation shall be subject to the requirements of regulation 24.5.
25. Registrants – fees (Bylaw 88)
25.1. The Board shall set the annual fees for registrants to the Register of Chartered Scientists.
25.2. The amount decided for the registrants fee shall take effect from the date of the Annual General Meeting on which it is agreed or announced and will be collected through the Licensed Bodies to be paid quarterly with the returns required in regulation 23.4.
25.3. The Licensed Bodies may add an additional charge to the registrant’s fee and will be required to notify the additional amount to the Chief Executive on the quarterly return. The Chief Executive shallinform, on request, any Licensed Body of the average and the range of these additional charges.
26. Certificate of Chartered Registration (Bylaw 82)
On behalf of the Registration Authority, Licensed Bodies shall issue to registrants upon payment of a fee prescribed by the Council, a certificate certifying entry to the Register of Chartered Scientists. The fee shall be forwarded to the Council. The certificates shall remain the property of the Council. In the event of cessation of registration, the Licensed Body shall ensure that the certificate is returned by the registrant and forwarded to the Council.
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