Glossary

A&UE

Analysis and Use of Evidence

This is one of the Core Skills associated with the Professional Skills for Government (PSG) initiative. A brief summary of PSG focusing on the scientific and engineering perspective is available in the Careers PSG Section. More general information on PSG can be found on the Cabinet Office site.

ALB

Arm's Length Body

Arm's Length Bodies (ALBs) are stand‑alone organisations that are sponsored by, but not part of, government departments. They are an increasingly important part of delivering policy.

Although they are often thought of as recent inventions, the Department of Health established its first ALB, the Dental Practice Board, in 1948.

CEng

Chartered Engineer

Chartered Engineers (CEng) are characterised by their ability to develop appropriate solutions to engineering problems, using new or existing technologies, through innovation, creativity and change.  They might develop and apply new technologies, promote advanced designs and design methods, introduce new and more efficient production techniques, marketing and construction concepts, pioneer new engineering services and management methods. 

The qualification is maintained by Engineering Council UK.

CO

Cabinet Office

The Cabinet Office aim is to make government more effective by providing a strong centre. It does this by working alongside the Treasury and the Prime Minister’s Office.

The aim is supported by the following objectives:

• To support the Prime Minister in leading the government;
• To achieve coordination of policy and operations across government;
• To improve delivery by building capacity in departments and the public services;
• To promote standards that ensure good governance, including adherence to the Ministerial and Civil Service Codes.

CSA

Chief Scientific Adviser

CSAs come in two guises. Every department has one and, in cases where confusion may arise, these are referred to as DCSAs. In addition, there is a Government CSA (GCSA), who provides advice to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet.

In most cases the context makes clear whether it is a DCSA or the GCSA that is being referred to and in these circumstances the shorter title of CSA is generally used.

CSAC

Chief Scientific Adviser's Committee

The CSAC is chaired by the GCSA and includes DCSAs from all government departments and the devolved administrations.

CSci

Chartered Scientist

The CSci qualification reflects best practice in science and is set at a benchmark level throughout the science professions. A CSci will be able to demonstrate a systematic understanding of knowledge, and critical awareness of current problems or new insights.

CSMB

Civil Service Management Board

The CSMB is chaired by the Head of the Home Civil Service, who supports the Prime Minister in his role as Minister for the Civil Service, which includes central co-ordination and management of the Service.

CSRG

Civil Service Recruitment Gateway

The CSRG is an excellent source for information on jobs within the civil service. It includes a section containing jobs that anyone can apply for, as well as a section that is restricted to existing civil servants.

DCSA

Departmental Chief Scientific Adviser

Each department has a DCSA, whose role is to provide independent advice to the Department’s Secretary of State and the Departmental Management Board. The DCSA is also responsible for ensuring that the scientific evidence-based advice within the Department is to the required quality and fit for purpose.

When the departmental context is clear, DCSAs are often referred to as simply CSAs.

DESG

Defence Engineering and Science Group

The DESG is a community of 9,000 professional engineers and scientists working within the Ministry of Defence (MOD) civil service to equip and support the UK Armed Forces with state of the art technology.

DIUS

Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills

This new Department brings together functions from the former Office of Science and Innovation, including responsibilities for science and innovation, with further and higher education and skills, previously part of the Department for Education and Skills.

The Department will bring together the nation’s strengths in science, research, universities and colleges to build a dynamic, knowledge-based economy.

ED (PSE)

Ministerial Committee on Economic Development Sub-Committee on Productivity, Skills and Employment

The ED(PSE)'s terms of reference are “To consider issues relating to productivity and competitiveness, including skills, employment, science and innovation; and report as necessary to the Committee on Economic Development”.

EI / E&I

Evidence and Innovation

E&I strategies perform the same basic function as Science and Innovation (S&I) strategies, namely identifying the evidence base that is required to support the department's activities. As implied by their title, E&I strategies have a slightly wider scope than S&I strategies.

G7

Grade 7

G7 is the first of the three "career gateways" adopted by the Professional Skills for Government (PSG) framework.

In April 1996 departments and agencies were given delegated responsibilities for the pay and grading of their staff, except those in the Senior Civil Service. This means that G7 may not exist in your organisation, but an equivalent grade should.

GCSA

Government's Chief Scientific Adviser

The GCSA provides scientific advice to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. The current incumbent is Sir David King, who has held the post since October 2000.

The GCSA is also the head of the Office of Science and Innovation(OSI) and the cross-government Head of Science and Engineering Profession (HoSEP).

GO-
Science

Government Office for Science

GO-Science is part of the Department for Innovation,, Universities and Skills. It is headed by Sir David King, who acts as the Government's Chief Scientific Adviser (GCSA) and the cross-government Head of Science and Engineering Profession (HoSEP). Its work includes:

• advising Ministers on the United Kingdom's (UK's) overall performance in Science and Technology (S&T) and the extent to which it meets national needs; and ensuring that S&T issues which cross Departmental boundaries are handled efficiently and effectively;
• encouraging more effective exploitation of S&T to meet the needs of business, Government and the Public Services;
• pursuing the UK's S&T interest in the European Union and promoting the scientific, commercial and diplomatic interests of the UK;
• assisting Government Departments and agencies in improving the way in which S&T are used in support of policy, regulation, operations and procurement;
• contributing to activity to improve the public understanding of the role of S&T and ensuring that across Government the regulation of new technologies takes due account of social, ethical, health and safety, environmental and economic considerations.

HAL

Heuristic ALgorithmic Computer

HAL was the spaceship computer featured in the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey". Conspiracy theorists have made much of the fact that Incrementing each letter of HAL gives IBM, but Arthur C. Clarke (the co-screenwriter) claimed this was unintentional, and if he had noticed it before it was too late, he would have changed it.

More information on HAL, and movies in general, is available from the very impressive Internet Movie Database.

HMG

Her Majesty's Government

HoP

Head of Profession

A HoP is responsible for building, supporting and championing a community. Examples of the activities undertaken by HoPs include:

• Taking steps to identify members of their community and to communicate their understanding of, and vision for, the HoP role.
• Facilitating networking, especially that which occurs across traditional boundaries like those between a department and its agencies, or those between different government departments.
• Identifying and publicising "good news" stories that effectively demonstrate the capabilities of their community, and its value to the parent department and the wider government.
• Having a good understanding of the capabilities of their community, and using this information to support departmental activities including, for example, future business planning and the development of Science and Innovation (S&I) or Evidence and Innovation (E&I) strategies.

HoSEP

Head of Science and Engineering Profession

The cross-government HoSEP acts as the Head of Profession (HoP) for all civil service scientists and engineers. This role is currently undertaken by the Government's Chief Scientific Adviser, who is supported by a range of departmental HoPs.

HOSDB

Home Office Scientific Development Branch

The HOSDB aims to be the Home Office’s definitive source of advice on scientific and technical issues, to deliver innovative technical capabilities and to support our customers, ensuring scientific and technical solutions are effective on the ground.

The HOSDB was previously known as the Police Scientific Development Branch (PSDB).

HSC

Horizon Scanning Centre

In its Science and Innovation Investment Framework 2004-2014, the Government committed to establishing a Centre of Excellence in Horizon Scanning, to be based in the Foresight directorate of the Office of Science and Technology.

The Centre's aims are:

• To inform departmental and cross-departmental decision-making;
• To support horizon scanning carried out by others inside government;
• To spot the implications of emerging science and technology and enable others to act on them.

L&D

Learning and Development

A L&D document, which provides guidance on activities that may help individuals obtain and demonstrate the various competencies required by civil service scientists and engineers, has been produced. This is available from the Professional Skills for Government (PSG) page of this site.

NDPB

Non-Departmental Public Body

The term NDPB has been in existence since 1980 when Sir Leo Pliatsky coined it in his ‘Report on Non Departmental Public Bodies’. An NDPB is described as:

“A body which has a role in the processes of national government, but is not a government department, or part of one, and which accordingly operates to a greater or lesser extent at arm’s length from ministers.”

NDPBs have a national or regional remit and carry out a wide range of important functions. Their distance from government means that the day-to-day decisions they make are independent as they are removed from ministers and civil servants. Ministers are however ultimately responsible to parliament for an NDPB’s independence; its effectiveness; and efficiency.

A good guide to the world of Executive Agencies, Trading Funds and NDPBs is available on the Agencies and Public Bodies pages of the Civil Service web site.

NSG

National School of Government

The NSG was launched in June 2005 by the Cabinet Office.  It became a non-ministerial department on 30 March 2006.  The NSG work nationally and internationally to help the public sector build capacity in good governance.

OU

Open University

The OU is the United Kingdom's only university dedicated to distance learning. It has around 150,000 undergraduate and more than 30,000 postgraduate students.

PB1 / PB3

(Senior Civil Service) Pay Band 1 / Pay Band 3

SCS PB1 and PB3 are, respectively, the second and third of the three "career gateways" adopted by the Professional Skills for Government (PSG) framework.

POST

Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology

POST is the UK Parliament’s in-house source of independent, balanced and accessible analysis of public policy issues related to science and technology. Its aim is to inform parliamentary debate.

PSDB

Police Scientific Development Branch

The PSDB was part of the Home Office. It has recently been renamed, with an appropriately expanded remit, to the Home Office Scientific Development Branch (HOSDB).

PSG

Professional Skills for Government

PSG identifies the skills civil servants need in order to design and deliver customer-driven services, gives individuals the opportunities to gain those skills, and creates a more systematic and consistent approach to skills and career development.

The Cabinet Office maintains a general PSG site, whilst information of specific relevance to scientists and engineers can be found on the PSG section of this web site.

PSRE

Public Sector Research Establishment

The term PSRE covers a broad range of public sector organisations that undertake research either as their main objective or as a subsidiary activity to support their core aims.

PSREs are a very diverse group of organisations and include Research Council Institutes, government laboratories, National Health Service Innovation Hubs and major museums.

R&D

Research and Development

One of the many surveys run by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) collects data on government funding of R&D. Within this context, R&D has a specific definition.

It is defined as creative work carried out systematically to increase the stock of knowledge - including knowledge of man, culture and society - and to find new ways of using this knowledge.

For the purposes of the ONS survey, R&D must be separated from a wide range of similar activities with a scientific or technological base. The way to distinguish R&D from similar activities is the presence of an appreciable element of novelty and resolution of scientific and/or technological problems when the solution is not readily apparent to someone familiar with the stock of commonly used knowledge and techniques within the subject.

The consequence of this definition is that ONS statistics on the number of R&D personnel within government do not include a large number of scientists and engineers.

RIPSS

Research Council Institute and PSRE Sustainability Study

The Government's Chief Scientific Advisor and Director General Research Councils instigated a study to examine how to improve the sustainability and strategic coherence of the non-university public research sector.

The outcome of the project was a report entitled "PSREs and the Science Base: A policy for sustainable trading and joint strategic investment in PSRE infrastructure", but it has been more commonly known as the "RIPSS" project. A summary paper and the final report were published in April 2004.

SAPER

Scientific Advisory Panel for Emergency Response

The Civil Contingencies Secretariat, along with the Office of Science and Innovation (OSI), has established an ad hoc committee called SAPER. Its role is to complement existing mechanisms for providing scientific advice to the Government.

While the existence of SAPER is in the public domain, their membership and activities are classified.

SCS

Senior Civil Service

The SCS was created on 1 April 1996 to bring together senior civil servants from all departments into one structure. It comprises of all staff from Permanent Secretary to Grade 5 level, including agency chief executives. Although individual members of the SCS still work for one department, their pay and conditions are covered by a single set of service wide arrangements.

SEB(G)

Science and Engineering Base (Group)

SEBG is part of the Office of Science and Innovation (OSI). It aims to ensure Science Budget funded programmes, together with the Education Departments' support for the Science and Engineering Base, meet the country's future requirements, taking account of Foresight and other expressions of user needs. Issues include:

• the quality, number and subject balance of scientists and engineers qualified at postgraduate and post-doctoral levels;
• fundamental and strategic research, the maintenance of the scientific and technical knowledge base; and
• access to advances in science, engineering and technology being generated outside the UK.

SET

Science, Engineering and Technology

The grouping of SET is often used when considering the health of the "research base". For example, a series of SET statistics are prepared by the Office of Science and Technology (OST) in conjunction with the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

SETI

Science, Engineering, Technology and Innovation

Innovation is sometimes added to the group of Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) to give SETI. This is most commonly used when considering the commercial exploitation of developments in the SET area.

SETI

Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) joined in SETI efforts at a low-level in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In 1992, NASA initiated a formal, more intensive, SETI program. Less than a year later, however, Congress cancelled the program. Part of the cancelled program was picked up by the private, non-profit SETI Institute, and a smaller part by the non-profit, grassroots SETI League.

SF

Skills Framework

Skills Frameworks form part of the Professional Skills for Government (PSG) initiative. They define the skills that civil servants are expected to demonstrate at various career gateways. The Skills Framework for the Scientist / Engineer profession is available from this site, as is a companion Learning and Development document.

SI / S&I

Science and Innovation

In 2004 the Government published a ten year Science and Innovation (S&I) Investment Framework, which set out a long term vision for UK science and innovation. In support of this almost all government departments have published, or are in the process of publishing revised S&I strategies.

Whilst the precise content of these strategies varies from department to department, they all perform the same function, which is to link departmental objectives to the science that they plan to commission. They should also help set priorities, explain how the work will be managed and used, and discuss knowledge transfer activities.

Some departments, notably the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), have moved from S&I strategies to Evidence and Innovation (E&I) strategies, explicitly identifying the need for a range of evidence to support decision making.

SIG

Science In Government

SIG is part of the Government Office for Science (GO-Science), which is part of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS).

It is concerned with It is concerned with assisting Government Departments and agencies in improving the way in which science and technology are used in support of policy, regulation, operations and procurement.

SOLAS

Safety Of Life At Sea

The SOLAS Convention in its successive forms is generally regarded as the most important of all international treaties concerning the safety of merchant ships. The first version was adopted in 1914, in response to the Titanic disaster, the second in 1929, the third in 1948 and the fourth in 1960.

The intention was to keep the Convention up to date by periodic amendments but in practice the amendments procedure incorporated proved to be very slow. It became clear that it would be impossible to secure the entry into force of amendments within a reasonable period of time.

As a result, a completely new Convention was adopted in 1974 which included not only the amendments agreed up until that date but a new amendment procedure - the tacit acceptance procedure - designed to ensure that changes could be made within a specified (and acceptably short) period of time.

SPRU

Science and Technology Policy Research Unit (at Sussex University)

SPRU was founded in 1966 as one of the first centres in the field of science, technology and innovation policy. Now a world leader in research, consultancy and postgraduate training in this area, it is the largest centre of its kind worldwide.

WIG

Whitehall and Industry Group

The WIG is an independent, not-for-profit organisation that helps government and business build strong links and networks between key individuals and organisations, through sharing, learning and exchanging.