|
Introduction
to licensing |
IRSE Licensing |
|
Topics on this page The IRSE licensing scheme What possession of a licence enables the holder to do Obligations on licence holders Appeals Complaints Confidentiality Checklist of phases for getting a licence Key Players in the Licensing Scheme |
Links to related topics on other pages Starting
and maintaining a logbook Process
for obtaining a licence Role of
employers and managers Obligations
for licence holders IRSE
Procedure LP1 (Licence Holders) IRSE
Procedure LP4 (Complaints and Appeals) IRSE
Procedure LP5 (Employers) |
|
The IRSE Licensing
Scheme The IRSE
Licensing Scheme was introduced in 1994 and provides a means of competence
certification for personnel undertaking work in the railway signalling and
telecommunications industry. An IRSE
Licence may be issued to any person who can satisfy the
requirements laid down in the Licensing Scheme competence standards.
Applicants for a
licence must satisfy the Institution that they have the
knowledge, skills and experience required for the competent performance of
work in the licence
categories sought. The means of
demonstrating competence is by assessment against the competence criteria for
the requested licence
category. Licence
applicants must be regularly employed on licensable work, and are required to
ensure that their work experience and training remain current after the issue
of a licence. The IRSE Licence is not valid for use in The
licencesing Scheme is accredited by UKAS to BS EN ISO/IEC17024 (Conformity Assessment.
General Requirements for Bodies Operating Certification of Persons); accreditation
by UKAS demonstrates the competence, impartiality and performance capability
of the IRSE and indicates Government recognition of the scheme. More than 50
licence “categories” have been produced by the IRSE and further
categories are being developed to meet the requirements of the industry. These licence categories cover design,
installation, testing, maintenance and engineering management of both railway
signalling and telecommunications.
Each licence category has an associated set of performance and
knowledge requirements against which applicants are required to demonstrate
their competence. Additional
categories can be added to a holder’s licence at any time, provided of
course they satisfactorily complete a process of further assessment for those
additional categories. Assessment of an applicant for a licence
is a two-stage process; firstly there is a workplace assessment, followed by
an independent assessment by Competence Assessor registered with the
IRSE. Licences are then valid for
five years, after which the holder has to go through a
“surveillance” process.
Subject to a satisfactory surveillance, the licence validity can be
extended for a further 5 years (at the end of which a full re-certification
process must be undertaken). A
licence ceases to be valid if satisfactory surveillance has not been
completed by the 5 year point.
For more information on the surveillance process click here. The licence holder’s employer is
required to perform an annual check and confirmation that the licence holder
continues to be engaged on work within the scope of their licence, and that
the work is being performed competently.
This confirmation has to be recorded in the licence holder’s
logbook, and is subject to scrutiny by the Competence Assessor as part of the
surveillance process. A licence fee is
charged by the IRSE for each five-year period of the licence, and an
amendment fee may be charged for other changes requested by the licensee, or
for the replacement of a lost or stolen licence card. The licensing
scheme is governed by the IRSE Licensing Committee, in accordance with a
suite of procedures. Membership
of the committee reflects the various participants in the You do not have to
be a member of the IRSE in order to possess an IRSE licence. What possession of a licence enables the
holder to do Possession of a
licence is essential for people who want to carry out S&T engineering
work for Network The licence is
recognition of the individual’s competence as demonstrated in the
workplace and/or by a portfolio of evidence. The standards achieved in gaining the
licence are recognised by rail industry employers across the Possession of a
licence indicates that the candidate is generically competent in the category
(or categories) for which they have been assessed. However, it does not mean that all
activities within a specific category can be performed by the holder. Thus, for instance, a someone who
designs relay-based signalling systems might hold a signalling design
licence, but possession of the licence does not necessarily mean that they
can also design (or be required to design) mechanical interlocking systems,
or perform SSI data preparation, or prepare scheme plans. Thus all employers are required to
have a system in place for recording the technology-specific skills
that each licensed employee possesses, and ensure that they allocate tasks
only to individuals who possess both the appropriate category of
licence and the specific skills required for the tasks. Obligations placed on licence holders Licence holders
have do demonstrate their continuous competence by authenticated entries in
their logbook which should be reviewed annually by their line manager,
profession head or employing manager. Possession of a licence places
obligations on the holder, regarding working competently and safely, keeping
their logbook up to date to show they are regularly employed on licensable
work and not undertaking work for which they do not consider themselves
competent to carry out, Click here
for more details. Appeals All Assessing
Agents which operate the scheme should ensure that all applicants understand
the appeals procedure of their centre.
Employers and Assessing Agents may have additional internal procedures
but as a minimum they must conform to the IRSE Complaints and Appeals Procedure
(LP4). Click here
for details Complaints All licence holders must keep a record of any
complaints made against them about their work in their logbook, and the IRSE
operates a procedure for handling such complaints. The prime aim of the complaint
procedure is to ensure that the licence holder's performance is restored to
the required level of competence.
The IRSE and the Assessing Agents also have processes for dealing with
complaints against them with regard to the licensing scheme. For more
information on the complaints processes see IRSE Procedure
LP4 Confidentiality The IRSE has
procedures in place to ensure that all information obtained in the course of
its licensing activities is kept confidential. Such information cannot be disclosed
to an unauthorised party without the written consent of the organisation or
individual from whom the information was obtained, except where the law requires such information to be
disclosed. All Assessors,
Assessing Agents and IRSE Personnel have signed a confidentiality agreement A Checklist for
obtaining an IRSE licence Here is a
checklist of the steps for someone wishing to gain an IRSE licence. Click here
for further details of the steps. ·
Get an IRSE logbook and start using it. ·
Identify which Licence category/categories to apply
for. Check with your line manager
that these categories are appropriate for you and the work you undertake ·
Get a workplace assessor, who will help you through
the assessment process and perform your workplace assessment. ·
Identify and collect/provide the evidence you need in
order to demonstrate competence in your selected licence category. ·
When you have evidence available for assessment, get
your workplace assessor to assess it.
You don’t have to wait until all the evidence is available
before the assessor starts work. ·
When all your evidence has been assessed by the
workplace assessor, submit the evidence for formal competence assessment. ·
When the Competence Assessor is satisfied with your
evidence, he/she will submit a request to IRSE for your licence to be awarded.
Pending its issue, you will be provided with a temporary certificated of
competence. Key players in the
IRSE Licensing Scheme Accredits
IRSE Licensing Scheme to EN17024, Audits IRSE and selected Assessing Agents
annually IRSE Awarding
Body and also Standard Setting Body, Certificates applicants by issue of
licences. Licensing
Committee members from a cross section of the rail industry to run the scheme
for the rail industry Assessing Agents Assessing
Agents must comply with IRSE Procedures and have their own internal
procedures governing its operation of the scheme. They are responsible for implementing
the competence assessment of initial applicants and surveillance of Licence
Holder. They must ensure that all
records are stored and controlled to maintain the integrity and
confidentiality of the Scheme and be available for audit purposes (Assessing
Agents are subject to annual audit by IRSE) Assessing Agent
Manager Overall
responsibility of the Assessing Agent function, ensures correct allocation
of assessors to candidates Technical Senior
engineer who provides technical advice, Approved by IRSE. Internal Verifier Ensures
quality of assessments. D34/V1
qualified. Approved
by IRSE. Competence
Assessors Occupationally
competent. D32/33,
A1 qualified. Approved
by IRSE. Employers Comply
with Licensing Scheme Employers Code of practice. (LP5) Support
applicants and licence holders by: · Providing access
to workplace assessments · Issuing IRSE
logbooks · Maintaining
records of staff competence · Reviewing logbooks
at least annually · Ensure
surveillance undertaken at 5 years · Ensure
re-certification undertaken at 10 years · Responding to
appeals from applicants · Advising IRSE of
complaints against Licence holders · Advice the IRSE
when staff no longer competent in specific licence categories Workplace
Assessors Occupationally
competent. D32/33, A1 qualified.
Approved by Assessing Agents. Applicants and
Licence Holders Comply
with obligations for Licence Holders. Keeps
logbook up to date with authenticated record of work activities Ensures
competence and training up to date. Notifies
IRSE of complaints.
|
|
