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B.3 Staff training and continuing professional development#

Continuing professional development (CPD) has been defined (after the Engineering Council) as:

'The systematic maintenance and improvement of knowledge, skills and competence throughout a professional’s working life and the process by which a professional person maintains the quality and relevance of the professional services they provide during their working life'.

Training is something that contributes to CPD; it refers to the design, provision or organization of events which provide a structured learning experience which can form a part of an individual’s CPD programme.

As a principle, CPD refers to the need of all historic environment professionals to keep up to date and to extend our knowledge and expertise. This is essential to the development of the academic disciplines and practical methodologies of historic environment professional practice, to enhancing society’s understanding of its past and to maintaining our standards in the use and care of a vulnerable, valuable resource.

As a process, CPD describes a structure through which each of us can identify the underpinning knowledge and skills necessary to maintain or develop our expertise and further our careers, within existing roles or in seeking or taking on new responsibilities. The structure enables us to select the ways by which we acquire that knowledge and those skills, and to commit to this learning. Further, it provides us with a means of articulating to others our learning needs in order to seek, and obtain, the support we may need in our commitment.

It is relevant to all practitioners, in all sectors of the historic environment professional community, no matter what their seniority or specialization may be.

The utility and success of CPD is largely dependent upon the depth of our individual commitment to learning and the degree of responsibility to ourselves and the profession that we are each willing to accept.

B.3.1 The principles behind continuing professional development#

Continuing professional development (CPD) and life-long learning are concepts central to modern professional practice.

The principles of CPD are supported by government, employers and professional bodies and as a result increasing attention is being given to staff development, with the aim of creating a climate of continuous improvement in service delivery. An organization’s performance is improved by linking training and development to planned, well-communicated service objectives. Everyone is encouraged and developed to make the best possible contribution to achieving the organization’s goals.

The objectives of individual members of staff should be integrated into a training strategy for the service as a whole. A starting point for this strategy would be an assessment of the skills and knowledge required for the service to fulfill its objectives, and also those needed by specific members of staff. This assessment can then be used to help 'benchmark' the current level of expertise and to prepare a strategy for developing staff, and also consider methods of obtaining training through internal or external courses and workshops.

A methodology, with supporting case study, for undertaking a skills audit within a historic environment organization has been published by the Cultural Heritage National Training Organisation (now part of Creative and Cultural Skills).

B.3.2 Undertaking continuing professional development#

CPD is structured upon the use of two career development tools, the Personal Development Plan and the CPD Log.

The Personal Development Plan (PDP) is a key part of quality assurance in the training process. This should document targeted career objectives which are 'SMART' - specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time bound, and identify the training required to support this career development. This document belongs to the individual, but its preparation should be discussed and ideally agreed with the individual’s line manager to ensure that the individual’s professional development meshes with the skills needs of the organization. The actual document may be a short or long term plan, depending on what is most useful.

The personal development plan is supported by a second document, the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Log. It is important to track closely the achievement of learning goals, in order to record and reflect on learning. The CPD Log is an on-going record of achieved training or career objectives. It provides an ordered documentary record of steps undertaken to achieve personal development goals, the time investment, the means, the achieved progress, and any follow up.

These two documents, the PDP and CPD log are directly linked. Working together they produce a dynamic process: CPD achievements refer back to the aims in the PDP, the PDP evolves as existing objectives are accomplished and new ones added. The format is not rigid, retrospective changes may be applied to the PDP in the light of unexpected learning opportunities. These documents allow and promote a pro-active approach to personal development on the part of the practitioner. They encourage and enable the formalization and articulation of learning goals, objectives and progress towards them. They offer a portable record of personal investment in development.

The PDP and the CPD log belong to the individual practitioner, their mentor or manager may use them to identify and evaluate training needs, but ownership stays with the individual. This sense of ownership is important, as it helps to motivate the individual in setting personal goals which contribute to the overall development of the organization’s skills base.

B.3.3 Training in archaeology#

A number of bodies are engaged in the active promotion of training across the professions and specialisms working with the historic environment.

The Archaeology Training Forum#

Since 1998, the Archaeology Training Forum (ATF) and its member organisations have taken forward a co-ordinated programme to develop training and a framework for professional qualification in archaeology. The ATF is a delegate body which represents all those organisations which have an interest in the issues of training and career development in archaeology. It was constituted in 1998 to review the present provision of training in archaeology and to co-ordinate future strategies to meet the profession's training needs. The ATF exists to:

• keep current training provision by member bodies and others under review
• seek to ensure that funding for training from whatever source is distributed according to need within a framework of priorities
• work towards the alignment of existing and proposed training sessions and units, sponsored or run by bodies represented, into a series of related programmes accessible to all members of the profession and to interested amateurs
• work towards agreement on the validation of training units and their integration within a widely accepted professional career structure.

The ATF is concerned to promote solutions to current training issues in the profession and to engender action to ensure that future needs are met. To do so it works with academic and professional partners to promote a range of training to meet the needs of the profession and to co-ordinate strategies to fill any perceived gaps.

The bodies presently making up the ATF are:

• The Association of Local Government Archaeological Officers
• The Council for British Archaeology
• English Heritage
• The Society of Museum Archaeologists
• The Standing Committee of Archaeological Unit Managers
• The Subject Committee for Archaeology
• Prospect
• Creative and Cultural Skills
• Higher Education Academy Subject Centre for Archaeology
• The Institute of Historic Building Conservation

One of the ATF's earliest pieces of work was the commissioning of the development of a suite of National Occupational Standards in Archaeological Practice (see below). These benchmarks of vocational competence are now being used as the underpinning architecture for the ATF’s profession-wide initiatives. The ATF’s forward plan for the period to 2006 sets out a route map of training priorities for the profession, which includes further promoting personal investment in training and best practice through wider use of PDPs and CPD logs and producing guidance for employers in archaeology on effective strategies for training in business.

National Occupational Standards (NOS)#

National Occupational Standards (NOS) form the basis of the government's strategy for vocational qualifications and training. These are a simple, yet powerful and comprehensive tool which can support the efficient achievement of individual and organisational goals.

Put simply, they describe what competent people in a particular occupation should be able to achieve. They provide a framework for progression beyond degree level, for vocational training and for professional development and career planning.

A suite of National Occupational Standards in Archaeological Practice has been developed in conjunction with ATF members and after extensive consultation with the sector. Reference to these means that creating personal development plans, establishing training programmes and bringing clarity and focus to performance appraisal can be achieved more efficiently.

B.3.4 The Institute for Archaeologists (IfA)#

The Institute for Archaeologists is the professional organisation for all archaeologists and others involved in protecting and understanding the historic environment. It acts in support of its members, works to improve pay and conditions, represents the interests of archaeology and archaeologists to government, policy makers and industry, keeps members up to date on developments in archaeological practice, sets standards and issues guidelines, promotes and organises training, improves individual career prospects, provides a wide range of membership services, and through its Registered Organisation (RO) scheme improves employment practices and raises standards of work.

There are presently around 3,000 members of the IfA. Membership is open to practising archaeologists in all fields, whether professional or amateur. Archaeologists are admitted to corporate membership after rigorous peer review of their experience and qualifications. They may identify themselves as corporate members by using the designation PIfA, AIfA and MIfA depending on membership grade. There are non-corporate membership grades of Student and Affiliate. All members agree to abide by the Institute's Code of Conduct, for all archaeologists have a duty to adhere to the highest professional and ethical standards.

The IfA plays an active role in supporting and developing the skills base of individual members, of IfA Registered Organisations and the profession as a whole.

Throughout the IfA Code of conduct there runs a requirement for practitioners to maintain and be aware of their levels of knowledge and skill. Without such maintenance and awareness, archaeologists cannot hope to uphold the principles and adhere to the rules laid down in the Code. The IfA sees Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as a principal means of sustaining and developing archaeologists, the profession of archaeology and standards, and so IfA is committed to CPD as a means of securing good practice and high standards amongst its members. Both new applicants for membership and existing members are expected to undertake at least 50 hours CPD in any two-year period and CPD is madatory for corporate members. The CPD pages of the IfA web site can be found at: http://www.archaeologists.net/modules/icontent/index.php?page=20

B.3.5 Training in building conservation#

Since April 2004 it has been a condition of English Heritage and Historic Scotland grant funded building repair projects that the lead professionals should be accredited in conservation. This requirement follows concerns at Historic Scotland in relation to the quality of grant-aided works, which led first to a commitment in the 1998 Historic Buildings Council for Scotland’s Annual Report that “within 3 to 5 years” lead professionals should be accredited. English Heritage then gave a parallel commitment to accreditation at the IHBC 2001 Annual School in London.

A number of the professional bodies have administered accreditation systems for some time. These schemes allow pre-qualified and appropriately experienced professionals to seek accreditation as individuals, normally by way of submission of detailed evidence of experience. (Eydman and Preston 2004

Professional Training in the Historic Environment: http://www.helm.org.uk/server/show/nav.19725

National Occupational Standards in Archaeological Practice:http://www.archaeologists.net/development/nos

IfA CPD page:http://www.archaeologists.net/development/cpd

Three case studies using NOS are available via IFA website http://www.archaeologists.net/development/nos

IHBC CPD page http://www.ihbc.org.uk/join/ed_train/cpd/cpd.html

Creative and Cultural Skills: http://www.ccskills.org.uk/

Learning and Skills Council: http://www.lsc.gov.uk

TUC Learning Services: http://www.unionlearn.org.uk/

Union Learning Fund: http://www.unionlearningfund.org.uk/

IFA training and career development: http://www.archaeologists.net/development/nos

Training in Professional Archaeology: http://www.britarch.ac.uk/training/survey.html

Archaeology Labour Market Intelligence: http://www.archaeologists.net/profession/profiling

CBA Briefing: training courses, etc: http://www.britarch.ac.uk/briefing/briefing.html

Investors in People: http://www.investorsinpeople.co.uk/Pages/Home.aspx

exeGesIS SDM Ltd: http://www.esdm.co.uk/training.asp

HELM: http://www.helm.org.uk/

Data Standards Unit: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/publications/midas-heritage/midasheritagepartone.pdf

Archaeology Data Service: http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/