Development programme FAQs

ISO have produced several guidance documents and standards to help with writing standards/normative documents and conformity assessment schemes, a list of these can be found here.

UKAS requirements for CAS evaluations are set out in UKAS form F530 and are based on the European cooperation for Accreditation publication EA 1/22 EA Procedure and Criteria for the Evaluation of Conformity Assessment Schemes by EA Accreditation Body Members.

Conformity Assessment Scheme (CAS) validation is explained in UKAS form F530 which is based on the European cooperation for Accreditation publication EA 1/22 EA Procedure and Criteria for the Evaluation of Conformity Assessment Schemes by EA Accreditation Body Members. EA 1/22 in Annex 1 information to be provided by scheme owners states, item 21 provides details on validation of schemes, including that the CAS has completed a test period that demonstrates that it is ‘fit for purpose’. There is also specific guidance on validating CAS schemes in Annex 2.

UKAS as an accreditation body has to act impartially when we assess and accredit organisations. Providing specific advice would compromise our impartiality. We can provide explanations of the accreditation requirements and discuss proposed approaches.

This is determined for each scheme and is generally in the range £3k to £5k.

DEV 1003 contains information for those parties (e.g. Government, Conformity Assessment Bodies and Scheme Owners etc) interested in utilizing accreditation to underpin the quality of evaluations conducted by conformity assessment bodies (e.g. certification bodies, laboratories, inspection bodies). It also includes a ‘self-assessment’ form which, whilst not absolutely necessary to complete, will help you to understand what it is we look for when new areas for accreditation are being proposed

UKAS has also developed a readiness self-assessment tool for scheme owners operating across a range of sectors.  This tool will help scheme owners to ascertain whether they are ready or not to move forward to establish if the scheme is eligible to be used for accreditation purposes.