In response to questions about the remit and powers of the NRPSI Review sub-committee, Mr Bell advised that it has no decision-making powers as such; its remit is to advise and make recommendations to CIOL Council on the implementation of the three Recommendations contained in the NRPSI Review Report which have been adopted by the Council. Mr Bell emphasised that the Council had concentrated on these as key Recommendations, and had not considered the remaining Recommendations in any depth.

In the interest of transparency, it was suggested and agreed that reports would be posted on the NRPSI website and in addition an online forum should be established to facilitate the free flow of information arising from the sub-committee’s deliberations.

It was suggested and agreed that all members of the sub-committee would declare any interests which could materially affect their participation in the work of the sub-committee.

In response to questions about the likely timescale for implementation of the Recommendations, Mr Bell asked the meeting to be aware that there was a lot of detailed work to be done by the sub-committee and by staff at Saxon House. He expressed the hope that the work could be completed by year end, but a definitive target date could be stated at this stage..

The meeting discussed access to the Register by commercial agencies and the proposal was made that the NRPSI should not grant licences in respect of new applications from commercial agencies; and that the licences held by existing agencies should be lapsed. Mr Bell pointed out that this was not a matter that the meeting could decide; Mr Townsley noted that the proposal had already been submitted for the attention of the Board of NRPSI.

NRPSI Review Update 4 January 2010 – Interpreter Representation on Sub-committee

This update follows previous reports published on 4 December and 18 December 2009. The report published on 4 December announced the adoption by the CIOL Council of the key recommendations (recommendations 1, 2 and 3) of the NRPSI Review and stated that this would be taken forward by a sub-committee whose remit would be to investigate the means of implementation of those recommendations. The update published on 18 December summarised the purpose and mode of operation of the sub-committee, including the inclusion of two NRPSI-registered interpreters on the sub-committee. The intention in the present update is to announce the timetable for the election of two interpreter representatives and the method of election. The information here is being sent by e-mail to all RPSIs.

Key Recommendations of the NRPSI Review (adopted by Council)

1. That the NRPSI only undertakes a regulatory function as prescribed in the White Paper.

2. Consideration should be given to how the PSIs needs for membership functions could be progressed.

3. That the NRPSI should be reconstituted to be INDEPENDENT of the CIOL. When reorganised to undertake a regulator function as prescribed in the White Paper the NRPSI should be constituted as a charity or not-for-profit company.

Terms of reference of the sub-committee

The sub-committee will provide the Council of the CIOL with information and advice to inform its decisions leading up to the point where a new body with formal legal foundations is created and operational. This new body will then take on responsibility for the National Register. The sub-committee has adopted the following terms of reference:

· to investigate and report to CIOL Council on the process by which the NRPSI can be established as a non-statutory regulator in line with the recommendations of the Review report as informed by the 2007 White Paper on Health Care Regulation

· to investigate and report back to CIOL Council on the process by which NRPSI Limited, the holder of the National Register, can cease to be a subsidiary of the Institute and be reconstituted as an independent charity or not-for-profit organisation

· to investigate and report back to CIOL Council on how PSIs needs for membership functions can be progressed in line with the recommendations of the Review report

· in carrying out the above, to take into account further recommendations in the report of the Review Panel as it considers relevant and necessary

Membership of the sub-committee

Brooke Townsley (Chair)

Tony Bell

Guillermo Makin

Keith Moffitt

John Hammond (chief executive)

Two RPSIs elected directly by RPSIs

The sub-committee will invite the assistance of other members of Council, individual members of the CIOL, RPSIs, the NRPSI Committee or individual members of it, members of staff of the CIOL and NRPSI and any other persons as and when appropriate. The sub-committee may seek professional advice as necessary.

Meetings and reporting structure

The sub-committee will work by means of telephone meetings, except where the work specifically requires a face-to-face meeting. The sub-committee will report its progress and findings to Council at its next meeting (6 February 2010) and to the Executive Committee in the same way.

Election of NRPSI Interpreters to the sub-committee

RPSIs are invited to elect two NRPSI-registered interpreter representatives to serve on the sub-committee. All RPSIs are eligible to stand for election, and all RPSIs may vote. Non-RPSIs are not eligible to participate in the election.

The facilities of NRPSI Ltd will be used to carry out the election. The procedures and the methods of nomination and voting are as follows:

· All RPSIs are eligible to stand for election. An RPSI wishing to stand for election must nominate him- or herself (self-nomination)

· Nominations should be submitted using the prescribed form, download available here

· Nominations may be sent by e-mail, fax or post, or may be hand-delivered. Nominations sent by e-mail must be sent from the candidate’s own e-mail address (as held by NRPSI). If the nomination is sent by post, faxed or hand-delivered it must be signed by the candidate. Nominations sent by post must be by “Guaranteed Next-Day Delivery”

· Nominations must be accompanied by a statement (150 words maximum) by the candidate explaining how he or she would contribute to the work of the sub-committee

· Nominations and statements must be received at the NRPSI office no later than 5 pm on Wednesday 13 January 2010

· Nominations will be acknowledged by e-mail to the candidate

· Ballot papers, with the candidates’ statements, will be sent by e-mail to RPSIs on Friday 15 January

· Signed ballot forms may be returned by post, or faxed, or scanned and sent by e-mailed PDF. Signed forms must reach the NRPSI office no later than 5 pm on Wednesday 27 January. Ballot forms returned by post must be sent by “Guaranteed Next-Day Delivery”

· The results of the election will be announced on the NRPSI website, and will also be announced at the forum on 30 January (see below)

Forum on 30 January

A forum is being held on 30 January to explain and discuss the implementation of the review recommendations, answer questions and hear the views of NRPSI interpreters. The forum will be held at the Novotel, Southwark Bridge Road, London, from 2 till 5 pm. Details will be announced in due course.

Brooke Townsley

Sub-committee chair

NRPSI Review – update 18 December 2009

The statement published on 4 December announcing the adoption by the CIOL Council of the key recommendations (recommendations 1, 2 and 3) of the NRPSI Review stated that this would be taken forward by a sub-committee whose remit would be to investigate the means of implementation of those recommendations.

The sub-committee has started work, and the present update is intended to make known the purpose and mode of operation of the sub-committee, and the ways in which individual and organisational stakeholders can expect to be involved.

The remit of the sub-committee is to map out the path for the establishment of a “new” NRPSI as a non-statutory regulator, independent of the CIOL, and report its findings to Council. The sub-committee will provide the Council of the CIOL with information and advice to inform its decisions leading up to the point where a new body with formal legal foundations is created and operational. This new body will then take on responsibility for the National Register. (click here to see a visual representation).

The public services and other bodies with which NRPSI Ltd engages in carrying out its function have been informed of this process, and have been given the assurance that the regular operations of NRPSI will continue unchanged until such time as the reorganisation indicated by the Review has taken place; until that time it is “business as usual”.

The sub-committee will address all three of the recommendations adopted by the Council. The first and third recommendations are addressed by the steps outlined above. The second recommendation is concerned with investigating how PSIs’ needs for membership functions can be progressed after the separation of the CIOL and the NRPSI.

Although the work will proceed as quickly as is reasonably possible, it is not feasible at this early stage to put dates on the linear representation shown above. The sub-committee will, however, make a report to the CIOL Council on 6 February, and a report will be made, from Council, to the CIOL AGM on 13 March.

The contribution of registered interpreters to the discussion is important, and the sub-committee has agreed that, subject to Council agreement, two representatives from among the NRPSI-registered interpreters should be elected to join the sub-committee and take part in its work. (At the same time, of course, individual interpreters will continue to be welcome to send comments to the dedicated e-mail address nrpsireview09@iol.org.uk.)

The expansion of the sub-committee to include directly elected RPSI representatives will require the agreement of Council. Subject to this an election will be organised to take place early in the New Year, with a view to announcement of the result at the forum to be held on 30 January (see below) and on the websites.

The forum on 30 January, already mentioned in the earlier statement, will be held at the Novotel, Southwark Bridge Road, London, from 2 till 5 pm. The forum will be an opportunity to explain the process in which we are engaged, answer questions, and hear the views of NRPSI interpreters. Full details will be announced in due course.

Brooke Townsley

Sub-committee chair

REVIEW OF NRPSI

At its meeting on 28 November the Council of the Chartered Institute of Linguists received the report entitled The Future of the National Register of Public Service Interpreters. The report is published herewith.

The report was prepared by a Panel commissioned by the Council to review the National Register of Public Service Interpreters (NRPSI), following the decision taken by Council in February 2009, reinforced by the resolution of the AGM on 14 March 2009 “That the Council shall put in place a mechanism to resolve, within six months, the differences concerning the National Register of Public Service Interpreters”.

The terms of reference for the Review Panel were agreed by Council, and the Panel of three independent members, a representative of the Council and a representative elected by NRPSI registrants, was appointed by a Working Group delegated by Council. Full details were published on the CIOL and NRPSI websites, and are still available there for reference. An invitation was extended to registered NRPSI interpreters and to CIOL members, to the public services, independent service providers and other interested parties to make written submissions to the review.

The Council welcomed the Review Panel’s report and expressed its appreciation both to the Panel members and also to all those who had made submissions. The Council recognised the significance of the changes recommended in the report, and the challenges that they represent, and formally adopted the first three recommendations in the report, viz.:

1. That the NRPSI only undertakes a regulatory function as prescribed in the White Paper.*

2. Consideration should be given to how the PSIs’ needs for membership functions could be progressed.

[* The White Paper referred to is Trust, Assurance and Safety – The Regulation of Health Professionals in the 21st Century (February 2007).]

The Council concentrated on those three recommendations, recognising that they are key to the changes proposed, while noting that other recommendations in the report are logically entailed by those recommendations.

In order to continue the process, Council appointed a sub-committee to investigate how those three main recommendations can be implemented. Specifically, the sub-committee will:

– investigate and report to CIOL Council on the process by which the NRPSI can be established as a non-statutory regulator in line with the recommendations of the Review report as informed by the 2007 White Paper on Health Care Regulation;

– investigate and report back to CIOL Council on the process by which NRPSI Ltd, the holder of the National Register, can cease to be a subsidiary of the CIOL and be reconstituted as an independent charity or not-for-profit organisation;

– investigate and report to CIOL Council on how PSIs’ needs for membership functions can be progressed in line with the recommendations of the Review report.

In carrying out the above, the sub-committee will take into account the further recommendations in the report of the Review Panel as it considers relevant and necessary. The sub-committee will report to the Council at its next meeting and to the Executive Committee of the CIOL as appropriate.

Council appointed the following to the sub-committee:

Brooke Townsley (Chair)

Tony Bell

John Hammond (chief executive)

Guillermo Makin

Keith Moffitt

The sub-committee will be able to draw on the advice of others both inside and outside the Council and the membership of the CIOL. Madeleine Lee (a member of Council and an RPSI) will assist the sub-committee in relation to the consideration of PSIs’ needs for membership functions.

Council is extremely conscious of the significance of the developments under discussion for the working life of Registered Public Service Interpreters, and the importance of openness and effective communication. The sub-committee will consider how best to satisfy the requirements implied by that. An initial measure agreed by Council is the holding of an Open Forum on 30 January 2010, to which all RPSIs will be invited. The sub-committee will by then have been working for a month, and it will be an opportune moment to hear the views of interpreters and others.

Finally, please note that the e-mail channel for comments on the NRPSI Review and the process now beginning will be kept open, and comments submitted will be seen by the sub-committee. The address for comments is nrpsireview09@iol.org.uk

As Chair of Council I commend to all concerned the report published herewith (click here to view the full report, PDF 577kb), and the process set up by Council to carry forward this important development.

Tony Bell, MA, MPhil, FCIL

Chair of Council

4 December 2009

Update November 2009 (56kb)

Update & Reminder - August 2009 .pdf (23kb)

Panel Members - August 2009.pdf (14kb)

NRPSI Review - Briefing June 2009.pdf (86 kb)

Call for submissions June 2009.pdf (30 kb)

The Chief Executive’s Letter in the June/July issue of The Linguist informed CIOL members of the appointment of a cross-sectional working party charged with proposing “a means of exploring the differences that have emerged in recent years over the policy, function and management of the National Register of Public Service Interpreters (NRPSI)”. An update was published on 12 June. Please find below a further update. For more detailed information see the Briefing Document and the Call for submissions (above).

Background

At its meeting on 7 February 2009, the Council of the Chartered Institute of Linguists, recognising the failure over a number of years to achieve a common understanding on the relationship between the Chartered Institute and the National Register of Public Service Interpreters (NRPSI), or on the organisation and management of the same, decided to initiate a process whereby the particular and general issues should be confronted and explored, mutual understanding of the factors involved could be achieved, and a common way forward found.

Council agreed that a meeting or meetings should be organised:

to explore the differences over the function, management and policy of the NRPSI that have emerged in recent years, seeking to establish mutual understanding of the facts and informed recognition of the positions of the parties involved;
to discuss and understand the aspirations of the various parties;
to map out areas where differences can be resolved, with a view to further constructive development, and to identify areas where differences persist.

In a parallel development, the AGM of the Chartered Institute, on 14 March 2009, considered and approved the Resolution set out below (referred to as “Resolution 3”), proposed by an individual member: “That the Council shall put in place a mechanism to resolve within six months the differences concerning the National Register of Public Service Interpreters”. At its next meeting, on 4 April, Council agreed the procedures proposed to it, including the appointment of a select Panel, and the terms of reference for the Panel. Council authorised its Working Group to continue its work and make the necessary arrangements.

The Review Panel

The Review Panel is to consist of five members as follows:

three independent, “non-aligned” members (i.e. having no direct personal or professional involvement in the matters under discussion) appointed by Council;
one member of Council, appointed by Council;
one NRPSI registrant, elected by and from among the NRPSI registrants.

One of the non-aligned members will Chair the Panel.
The Panel will be asked to consider:

the appropriate role and future direction of the National Register, within the wider context of the developing profession and the needs of consumers of language services in the public services;
issues of regulation and representation;
the appropriate ownership and model of governance of the National Register;
how the various stakeholders can participate in the governance and strategic direction of the National Register, in the public interest, including forms of participation of listed interpreters along with stakeholders such as OCJR, ACPO, HMCS, NHS, Social Services, Local Councils;
the role of NRPSI in matters such as promotion of and advocacy for the Register;
the relationship of the National Register to the Chartered Institute of Linguists (the Panel may wish to give a view on alternative models of governance and/or ownership).

The opportunity is being set up for a representative range of views to be placed before the Panel, through written and oral submissions. Contributions will be sought from principal stakeholders and interested bodies, and also from the generality of NRPSI registrants and of CIOL members.

Procedures

It will be up to the Panel to decide how best to carry out its remit. The following notes are indicative.

The Panel will receive and consider written and oral submissions.
The Panel will be serviced by Chartered Institute/NRPSI administrative staff. (Mr Alan Peacock, CIOL Director of Membership and NRPSI Registrar, will be Secretary to the Panel.)
The Panel will meet in a venue to be arranged by the Chartered Institute. All practical arrangements will be made by the CIOL.
Written submissions (max. length 2,000 words) will be invited from stakeholders in the public services, interpreters on the National Register and members of the CIOL and other interested parties and organisations.
The Panel will receive all submissions. The Panel may, where the recurrence of common themes makes this appropriate or for other reasons, ask for a précis document or documents to be prepared. The Working Group, if asked to do so by the Panel, will be responsible for the preparation of such précis, with the assistance of the Secretary to the Panel.
The Panel may invite, as it sees fit, stakeholders and individuals who have made written submissions to an oral session (or sessions) to add to and discuss their submissions. Bodies and individuals who have not made written submissions may also be invited to contribute in this way if the Panel considers this useful. The Panel may seek advice and assistance from the Working Group in organising this.

Timetable

Written statements for consideration by the Panel are invited, within the deadline of 1 September 2009. It is planned that the report and recommendations of the Panel should be submitted for the consideration of Council at its meeting on 28 November.
For more detailed information please see the Briefing Document and the Call for submissions above. Further updates will be posted as necessary.

Brooke Townsley

On behalf of the NRPSI Review Working Group
June 2009

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NRPSI Review 2009-10