Volunteering for committee work: FAQs

What are the different committees I can volunteer for?

  1. Board of Directors – the decision makers for CIfA and its work.
  2. Advisory Council – advise staff and the Board about CIfA’s work.
  3. Registered Organisations committee – make decisions about the registration of organisations from reports provided by panels (voluntary members) who carry out the inspections and consider the direction and development of scheme.
  4. Validation committee – make decisions about individual accreditation, supported by specialist assessors and panel members, and consider the development of application advice.
  5. Area and Special Interest Groups – work on important issues within their specialism or area and advise CIfA.

Note: the committee numbers above correspond with the details presented in questions below.

If you have any further questions or queries about getting involved with committees please email us at admin@archaeologists.net and we will be happy to help.

FAQs

Who can join a committee?

For committees 1-4 above, only accredited (PCIfA, ACIfA or MCIfA) members can join a committee.

Committee Chair, Secretary and Treasurer positions for Area or Special Interest Groups must be held by accredited members. Ordinary committee members can be accredited (PCIfA, ACIfA or MCIfA) or non-accredited (Student, Affiliate) members.

Where and when are the meetings held?

1. Currently on Teams, six times per year

2. Currently on Teams, six times per year

3. Currently on Teams, four times per year and panels in various places throughout the year (in-person and digital)

4. Currently on Teams, eight times per year and panels twice a year (March and September)

5. Mainly on Teams, at least four times per year including the Annual General Meeting (AGM). Various locations depending on where committee members are based for in-person meetings.

Please note that we understand members have other commitments as volunteers and we do not expect them to attend all the meetings or be available all the time. We can work around you.

How do I join a committee?

1. Look out for the call for nominations prior to the CIfA AGM in October and complete a nomination form with a nominator and two seconders OR if you are already on an Area Group or SIG committee offer to be the Group Representative for Advisory Council

2. As above.

3. Email Kerry (kerry.wiggins@archaeologists.net) to register your interest. Invited to observe a meeting and complete a roles, responsibilities and conflict of interest form involving a short biography about your experience and what you can bring to the committee and submit an up to date CPD log, which is sent to the Board to agree.

4. Email Lianne (lianne.birney@archaeologists.net) to register your interest. Invited to observe a meeting and complete a roles, responsibilities and conflict of interest form involving a short biography about your experience and why you want to join the committee and submit an up to date CV and CPD log, which is sent to the Board to agree.

Assessors and panel members also have a confidentiality form to sign and are agreed by the committee and the relevant CIfA staff member.

5. Look out for the call for nominations prior to the group AGMs throughout the year and complete a nomination form, with a nominator and one seconders. You can also find cooptions listed on the Jobs Training and Volunteer bulletin.

Why should I join a committee?

Reasons members have given include:

  • Networking
  • Continuing Professional Development (CPD) hours
  • Influencing policy and practice
  • Contributing to your profession and your Institute
  • Reasonable travel expenses are paid for

More details can be found on our Get involved with CIfA page.

What experience do I need?

Some previous experience may be necessary, and we have outlined this below. You will need to provide a nomination form - see How do I join a committee above.

1 & 2. The Board and Advisory Council requires relevant experience. We provide basic training for those joining the Board and Advisory Council.

3 & 4. For the RCO and VC committees there is a learn as you go element supported by the other committee members and staff. This now includes guidance and FAQs.

3. You must be accredited (PCIfA, ACIfA or MCIfA) and be able to distinguish good practice and areas for improvement within an organisation. 

4. You must be accredited (PCIfA, ACIfA or MCIfA) and able to distinguish good practice within reports and other examples of work and be familiar with the application process. 

5. For Area groups and SIGs you do not need any experience, but a familiarity with group committees would be useful. We have a Groups Toolkit to help support new committee members alongside the existing committee members and staff. There can also be opportunities to shadow committee members to learn about what is involved.

If you have any further questions or queries about getting involved with committees please email us at admin@archaeologists.net and we will be happy to help.