UKAS Accredited Certification Bodies

We recommend being certified by a UKAS accredited certification body. It is not compulsory to use a UKAS accredited certification body, however, doing so means they have been independently verified and are recognised internationally. An increasing number of organisations (your customers) are insisting on UKAS accredited certification from their suppliers/contractors (you).

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Certification bodies will charge separately for their time during the external audit. We will liaise directly with certification bodies to obtain competitively priced quotations and agree on suitable dates for all parties.

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Data Collection

We will conduct a data collection exercise to gather all the necessary information about your business to enable us to create your management system. 

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Management System Creation and Implementation

We work with you to create and implement an ISO compliant management system. This can be a singular management system, or any combination of quality, environmental or health & safety, known as an integrated management system. Our processes have been designed to make this as smooth as possible as we understand that time is valuable.

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A management system must be tailored to the needs of each business and the activities, products and/or services it provides. The level of complexity of the management system will depend on each business’ specific context. Depending on how your business operates today, creating a management system may not require a lot of change beyond documenting what and how you do it, or it may mean a number of changes that can benefit your business.

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Internal Audit

You must conduct internal audits at planned intervals to provide information on whether the management system conforms to the business' own requirements for its management system, the requirements of the standards and is effectively implemented and maintained. As trained auditors we conduct the necessary internal audits for your business.

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Management Review

Top management must review the management system at planned intervals against a list of set criteria to ensure its continuing suitability, adequacy and effectiveness. We assist businesses in preparing for, chairing and minuting annual management review meetings.

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Findings / Actions

A variety of findings and actions, such as opportunities for improvement, observations and non-conformances, will be identified during the certification journey including the data collection exercise, internal audits and management review meeting. We will manage the logging of findings and actions and monitor them to completion.

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External Audit / Certification

Certification can be a useful tool to add credibility to a business, by demonstrating that your product or service meets the expectations of your customers. For some industries, certification is a legal or contractual requirement. We support businesses with choosing a certification body and preparing for and attending external audits.

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Certification audits consist of 2 stages:

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• A Stage 1 audit is usually carried out over 1 or 2 days. The purpose of the Stage 1 audit is to determine if the business meets the requirements of the standard and also to evaluate the business' readiness to face the Stage 2 audit. 

• A Stage 2 audit, also referred as the certification audit, evaluates the implementation and effectiveness of your business' management system. During the Stage 2 audit, your certification body will determine the degree of compliance with the requirements of the standards' and report any non-conformances or potential non-conformances that your business will have to correct before the certification can be issued. If the Stage 2 audit is successful, your business' management system will be certified.

 

To retain certification a business must undergo an annual surveillance audit and three yearly re-certification audit.

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Management System Maintenance:

To retain certification a business is required to comply with the processes stated within the management system and maintain and update the management system on an ongoing basis to ensure it remains current and accurate and compliant with relevant ISO standard(s) and applicable legislation. Lister CMS tailor support packages to each business and can include the following management systems activities:

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• Quarterly review meetings

• Internal auditing

• Management review meetings

• Action tracking

• Documentation management

• Legal register updates

• Tendering support

• Accident, incident and non-conformance investigations

• Business objectives management

• Management System Awareness training

• Third party management

• QESH advice

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Lister CMS also work closely with HR and Health and Safety Advisors and provide additional services for NERS, Achilles, Safe Contractor and CHAS.

Please note, as an employer you have a legal responsibility to appoint a competent person(s) to help you meet your health and safety legal duties.

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