At an Extraordinary General Meeting, held in Leeds on Friday, 26 April 2019, accredited members of the Chartered Institute for Archaeologist (CIfA) voted not to petition the Privy Council to introduce a new Chartered Archaeologist grade of accreditation.
CIfA’s Board of Directors met on 7 May and discussed the results of the vote for the proposal to introduce a Chartered Archaeologist grade of accreditation.
The vote at the EGM did not gain the 75 percent support required to pass the resolution, but it did achieve a majority of 55 percent. That, and the instruction from the 2017 AGM to prepare the documents supporting the 2019 EGM resolution, show that that the profession continues to aspire to the general principle of a Chartered Archaeologist accreditation.
We have received a great deal of feedback, much of which is positive, regarding the Chartered Archaeologist proposal. However, a wider range of concerns has been raised. Some of these are directly related to the Chartered Archaeologist proposal, but others reflect broader sectoral issues.
- Board statement following the EGM (PDF file)
Next steps
Following on from the April EGM, CIfA's Board and Advisory Council have been considering the feedback and the issues raised in more detail. The Board recognises the need for better engagement with members and is grateful to all members who took the time to provide feedback.
The Board has agreed to invest additional resources to improve engagement and communication. CIfA’s Advisory Council, Groups and their associated networks have a key role to play in this. Using information from the Advisory Council’s participation survey, changes have already been made to how we involve and engage members, and further opportunities to improve this will be sought. The Board is committed to improving engagement with PCIfA members and encouraging more to take an active part in the work of the Institute.
The Board will also use the feedback on to review CIfA’s professional accreditation structure. This will include reviewing the assessment criteria for each accredited grade, the language and examples used in our guidance and how we promote the importance of professional accreditation as part of individual career progression. The results of this work will inform any future revised proposals for a Chartered Archaeologist grade of accreditation.
The April 2019 proposal and past campaign
- April 2019 proposal document (PDF file)
Why is chartered status unique and why does archaeology need it?
As archaeology matures as a profession, CIfA wants all stakeholders to be aware that the profession is striving for excellence, raising standards, and working in the public interest, for the benefit of the historic environment. A Chartered Archaeologist grade is a way for CIfA to bring our accreditations into line with the most trusted and established professional bodies. This will improve the value and meaning of CIfA accreditation and ensure that it is recognised as a benchmark of quality by archaeologists, clients and the public.
A Chartered Archaeologist grade will
- Focus on raising standards and continual improvement
- Inspire client and public confidence in our abilities and professionalism
- Deliver parity of status with other professions
- Provide greater recognition of the value added by archaeologists
- Set clear professional career pathways for all archaeologists
- Attract new people into the profession and retain talent
Further information
See below for details of past consultations, publications about Chartered Archaeologist and FAQs.
