The Technician Commitment hosted its eleventh signatory event on Tuesday 12 September 2023 at the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) in London.
The event welcomed one hundred attendees across sixty five institutions to share industry best practice, hear sector updates and network with technical colleagues. At the event, TALENT launched a new report: ‘Creating and Maintaining Safe Environments: The Role Of Technicians In Health And Safety: Technicians In Health And Safety’ with a presentation from Catrin Harris and Ed Bowerman.
The daytime portion of the event was held in the RSA’s prestigious Great Room. After introductions from Clare Stevenson and Mel Leitch, Associate Leads, Technician Commitment, attendees were updated on the UK Institute for Technical Skills and Strategy (ITSS) and were given the opportunity to contribute ideas on how the Technician Commitment can continue to drive change for technical staff as part of the newly-created institute.
After lunch, attendees became the first to hear key findings related to the recently published TALENT report ‘Technicians in Health and Safety’. Dr Clare Dyer-Smith from the Royal Society of Chemistry shared their insights on sustainable laboratories, including a new funding opportunity to help make science research more environmentally sustainable. Dr Simon Breeden, Associate Lead, Technician Commitment, led a Q&A session on Stage Three Self-Assessment and Action Plan Guidance for signatory institutions who joined before December 2019.
Other agenda items included presentations from Stephen Franey MBE (King’s College London), Dr Karen Henderson (University of Reading), and Dr Uzma Qureshi (University College London) on behalf of the London and South East Technical Network; Abid Qayum, Head of Operations, Nottingham School of Art & Design Nottingham Trent; and the recipients of the 2023 Technician Commitment Collaboration Fund. All the days’ presentations can be viewed here.
The day wrapped with a roundtable discussion about future planning and the aims and expectations of the Technician Commitment, with closing remarks from Dr Kelly Vere MBE, Programme Lead, Technician Commitment. She said:
“It was fantastic to bring together more signatories than ever to discuss the future of the Technician Commitment. We’ve achieved so much together in the first six years of the Commitment, and it was exciting to crowdsource ideas from colleagues across the sector on how we can utilise the new Institute for Technical Skills and Strategy as a new launchpad for even greater success. Thank you to our colleagues at the RSA for providing such a storied backdrop for the conference.”
The formal programme was followed by an evening drinks reception where Dr Helen Pain, Steering Board Chair, Technician Commitment and CEO, Royal Society of Chemistry, presented the Technician Commitment Submission and Impact Awards to institutions who have made strides in support of the Technician Commitment.
See the presentations here.
View event photos here.
Find out more about the Institute for Technical Skills and Strategy.
