At this week’s RICS General Council meeting members gave the go-ahead to 29 skills panels and announced chairmen for the new groups. But, while the principle of the skills panels has been established, their management and reporting systems are still a contentious issue.
The new panels form a key part of the RICS’ bid to create a more demand-led profession. They will be monitored by the secretariat as part of the also newly agreed constitutional review of the institution. But the divisional councils are also planning to take an active role in the process.
Simon Simcox, GP division senior vice-chairman, commented after the meeting: “I am quite determined that the GP divisional council will not fall into the trough in the meantime, while the management system is under review.” He says that the GP division is eager to assess the performance of relevant skills panels and would take a very active role in doing so. Official proposals for monitoring the panels will be drawn up for the general practice divisional council meeting in October.
Less contentious than the skills panels, was the introduction of support panels to cover policy, small firms and branches to operate alongside the existing standing committees.
The constitutional review committee is now scheduled to start work in the autumn and a green consultation paper will be published next April. Responses will be invited throughout next summer with recommendations put to General Council at its 1993 autumn meeting, and final approval of the new constitution tabled at an extraordinary general meeting in July or September 1994.
The council referred proposals to amend the regulation of members’ accounts for further consultation. The working party report, which included suggestions that practices holding clients’ money should make it known in what accounts money was held on their behalf, faced stiff criticism from members.
RICS skills panel chairmen:
Agency: Jenefer Greenwood, Hillier Parker
Boundaries: Roger Fisher, East London Polytechnic
Building conservation: Stephen Bond, Tuffin Ferraby & Taylor
Commercial property management: Richard Alty, Kemsley Whiteley & Ferris
Development appraisal and implementation; Stuart Black, Clipper Estates
Economic analysis and forecasting: David Cadman, Property Market Analysis
Environmental management: Gordon Wood, Johnson Poole & Bloomer
Facilities management: David Owen, Chesterton
Farm business management: Paul Pridmore, Berry Bros & Holmes
Forestry and woodland management: Mark Crichton-Maitland, MCM Associates
Furniture and works of art valuation and marketing: Brian Clarke, Clarke Cammon
Geographic and land information management: to be announced.
Housing management & maintenance: Gerald Fox, Fineman Lever & Co
Hydrographic surveying: Jim Brechin, Svitzer UK
Insolvency: to be announced
Investment and financial services: Colin Vaughan, Debenham Tewson & Chinnocks
Land management: George Nicholls, Kemsley Whiteley & Ferris
Machinery and equipment valuation: Jim Brearley, Property Leeds (UK)
Mapping and positioning: to be announced
Marine resource management: to be announced
Minerals technology: to be announced
Planning practice: Andrew Warner, Dalton Warner Davis
Project management: Tim Binnington, Sovereign Land
Property auctioneering: to be announced
Residential valuation and survey: Christopher Shaw, Countryside Surveyors
Shopping centre and town centre management: Martyn Chase, Donaldsons
Valuation practice: Bruce Duncan, Cotton Thompson Cole
Valuation standards: Andrew Cherry, Healey & Baker
Waste management: to be announced
