BOHS 2021-2026 Strategy Review

The British Occupational Hygiene Society reflects on their achievements over the past 4 years.

Annual Reports

BOHS is pleased to present the Society's Annual Reports.

Timelines of Activity

These timelines demonstrate the activity that has taken place over the past four years and how they correlate with their respective strategies.

A brief overview of activity each quarter since 2021 can also be found below, please scroll down.

Q1 2021

Activity of Q1 2021.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Approved the BOHS 2021 - 2026 Strategy.
Agreed to make all BOHS Faculty Registrars ex officio members of the Board.
Revised the Board Regulations.
Revised the Society's Byelaws.
Reviewed the composition of its Board Sub-Committees.
Reviewed the annual report and agreed to hold an additional meeting to give further scrutiny to the financial and governance elements.
Discussed the major risk of volunteer resource and the barriers for getting people involved.
Agreed to update the Awards Committee Terms of Reference.

Discussed membership categories.
Reviewed the draft FAAM Strategy.

Finalised the FOH Strategy
Setup strategic implementation groups to consider how to practically achieve the strategy.
Began developing the BOHS Statement of Occupational Hygiene Competencies.
Began preparing against the Professional Standards Authority (PSA)'s criteria.
Revised the guide for the DipOH including the self-assessment checklist.

Q2 2021

Activity of Q2 2021.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Agreed for the Annual OH2021 conference to go ahead in person with the appropriate measures in place following the pandemic.
Implemented a new standard model for the Society's Memorandum of Understandings with other organisations.
Approved the proposal for BOHS and UKHCA to jointly lead a Scientific Liaison Coalition workstream on Ototoxic Substances.
Implemented the Quality Enhancement Committee to have better oversight over the management and operation of the Society's qualifications.
Approved the revised Awards Committee Terms of Reference and approved John Dobbie as interim Chair for 2021.
Implemented the Head Office Quarterly Report where the heads of departments each reviewed the risks relating to their department to ensure they are being adequately managed at a granular level.
Updated the Risk Register to reflect the methodology of the Charity Commission for better governance and transparency.
Approved an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion strategy.

Considered and approved the proposal in principle to allow reduced rates for retired members.
ECHA science report was published on 01 February 2021 and the conference committee were able to organise a useful consultation via a webinar on 10 March 2021. The CEO, Kevin Bampton, was then able to pull together a suitable response which was reviewed by members of the consultation and the FAAM Committee before submitting on 01 April 2021.
Approved the revised Certificate of Competence in Asbestos (CoCA) guidance.

Agreed to introduce a GAL SOP mandatory examination.

Q3 2021

Activity of Q3 2021.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Discussed the risk to reputation based on misrepresentation of individuals posing as BOHS qualified professionals without the qualifications or membership.
Discussed the risk to reputation based on those representing the Society such as speakers
Discussed how BOHS can qualitatively measure their success in demystifying occupational hygiene and attracting a wider community.
Agreed to pursue an office refurbishment to account for the change in the use of the space with the new hybrid-working (home and office) as well as a potential revenue stream by hiring out space when it is not being used by staff.
Carried out a full review of the Society's risk register with a particular focus on; equality and diversity, the annual conference, qualifications and training, risk to reputation, and journal income.
Discussed the potential impact of the occupational exposure limits (OELs) no longer existing as a result of BREXIT. A webinar was planned by the Society detailing HSE's approach to OEL setting in the future.
Reviewed the Society's reserves policy and agreed to enquire with the Charity Commission regarding the compliance of the banks used by BOHS to ensure the Society are banking with a suitable and reputable bank.

Discussed membership criteria.
Approved the new FAAM Strategy.
Approved the formation of the following sub-committees:
- Communications
- Professional Development
- Technical & Scientific
- Reporting Standards.
FAAM provided a response to the enquiry into how the HSE manages the continued presence of asbestos in buildings launched by the Work and Pension Committee.

Setup strategic working groups to work on strategic activities.
Considered focusing on soft skills within the profession.
Updated the Code of Ethics and its procedures based on PSA criteria.
Identified a gap in industry knowledge around metal working fluids.

Q4 2021

Activity of Q4 2021.

The Board FAAM Committee

Discussed whether BOHS should have more outward facing awards which recognises non-occupational hygienists who practice occupational hygiene within their roles.
Discussed the potential reputational risk of associating with large oil companies e.g., sponsors of BOHS conferences.
Discussed BOHS' partnership with ILEVE and to what extent the Society should be supporting the LEV sector.
Approved the 2022 budget.
Considered the financial and operational risks associated with implementing an accredited Professional Register by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA) for Health and Social Care and approved the proposal to move forward with the initiative of obtaining accreditation for the Register for Occupational Hygiene Professionals based on the estimate costs.
Discussed the progress made on the volunteering project to encourage more volunteers by having better processes and incentives in place for them including onboarding and clarity of roles.
Discussed spreading awareness of occupational hygiene in schools and universities.
"Discussed industry issues that were raised in the 'Women in Occupational Hygiene' sessions of the OH2021 conference and agreed to form a working group to consider:
- Founding, supporting and developing a women’s network of occupational hygienists with IOHA and/or other UK safety professionals/health professionals.
- A leadership development programme, aimed at developing leadership skills, with priority for those who are from less represented groups, disadvantaged groups, have had career interruption for health and family reasons.
- More systematic analysis and development of equality, diversity, and inclusion through all our volunteer activities.
- Proper equality impact assessment on all policies, roles and practices of the Society, ranging from role commitment to qualifications design and focus.
- Campaigns to recruit into the profession being designed to ensure that women and other less represented groups see Occupational Hygiene as their natural home as a profession.
- Continued monitoring, scrutiny, awareness-raising, and a regular central slot in the Society’s main conferences to highlight women and occupational hygiene until gender parity has been achieved. "
Reviewed the monitoring questionnaire for equality, diversity and inclusion.
Discussed whether it is appropriate for the Society to advertise Occupational Hygienist roles and/or manage shadowing/work experience opportunities.
Discussed expanding the FAAM Committee.

Approved the terms of reference for the sub-committees.
Discussed improving the CPD scheme.
Discussed focusing on technical guidance and resources.

Q1 2022

Activity of Q1 2022.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Agreed for head office to produce a redacted version of the Board Minutes for them to review prior to approval to publish via the electronic decision-making process. It was noted that the process for redacting minutes would need to be documented.
Discussed presenting the Society’s initial plans to address equality, diversity, and inclusion at the BOHS conference.
Agreed to set an objective for the new BOHS representative of the IOHA Board to take a proposal to IOHA for the establishment of an international network.
Agreed to seek a suitable individual to conduct research focusing on women in occupational hygiene in relation to equality, diversity and inclusion.
Discussed the viability of regional co-ordinator meetings returning to face-to-face and agreed to continue to offer webinars and keep the opportunities to host face-to-face meetings in reserve as the recent attempt to return to f2f was not well attended.
Discussed the best ways to communicate the annual report to members so they can see the valuable work being carried out by the Society.
BOHS provided evidence at the All-Party Parliamentary Group on respiratory illnesses in relation to Silica.
Discussed collaboration with HSE in relation to green energy net zero.

Revised FAAM Committee’s Terms of Reference.
Discussed the importance of maintaining FAAM’s impartiality to BOHS qualifications to avoid bias.
Discussed communicating with local authorities on issues of asbestos management.
Discussed the UK Building Information Modelling (BIM) Framework Guidance.
Due to FAAM’s response to the recent ECHA consultation, FAAM was asked to give evidence to the Work and Pension Select Committee (WPS Committee). This has led to additional conversations with the WPS Committee regarding ways to determine the risk of asbestos highlighting HSE’s resources for electronic microscopy. The WPS Committee are going to investigate this further.

Passed the Home Office audit in relation to the Group Authority Licence.
Delivered PDCs at the OH2022 conference:
- Report writing.
- Metal working fluids.
- Leadership and management of good occupational hygiene.
Revised the Consultants' Directory of Occupational Hygiene Services.

Q2 2022

Activity of Q2 2022.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Discussed whether more could be done on the subject of noise management/ hearing conservation, given it is a popular topic and the recent Midlands webinar had the highest attendees count yet. A half-day workshop was planned for a limited audience in mid-July, followed by a webinar for a broader audience later in the year.
Revised the Conflicts of Interest Policy to ensure it details the Society's obligations as a qualifications provider and in line with the recommendations of the PSA.
Developed a volunteer recruitment framework for committees and expert groups.

Approved a revised approach to the CPD framework.
Reviewed the report and correspondence with the Work and Pension Select Committee regarding their enquiry into HSE’s approach to asbestos management.
Discussed the issue of false negatives in asbestos bulk analysis and how FAAM can support this issue.

Formed an expert group to produce two pieces of guidance on metal working fluid.
Reviewed the draft BOHS Statement of Occupational Hygiene Competencies.
Delivered a speed mentoring session at the OH2022 conference.

Q3 2022

Activity of Q3 2022.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Agreed that it would be appropriate to carry out a review of the mentoring programme.
Discussed the need for BOHS’ CPD scheme to be reviewed as part of the initiative to introduce a competency framework. This will be reviewed by the FOH Committee.
Parmjit Gahir became BOHS' Health and Safety Lead on the Board.
Formed a committee to organise activities for BOHS’ 70th anniversary.
Discussed better signposting to the Annals of Work Exposure and Health within the technical guidance pages of the BOHS website.
Discussed the fees in relation to the Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals.
Discussed an upcoming opportunity to request for occupational hygiene to become a Regulated Profession.
Discussed the risks of the Society with particular focus on unprotected intellectual assets, project governance and management, misrepresentation and potential reputational damage.
Approved fundamental changes to BOHS' minute-taking in line with guidance from the Chartered Governance Institute and Charity Commission.

Endorsed the Memorandum of Understanding between FAAM and the Faculty of Asbestos Management of Australia and New Zealand (FAMANZ).

Agreed that the minimum level of BOHS membership to apply to be on the OSHCR registration should be Licentiate as it aligns with the proposed level for the Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals and the current Directory of Occupational Hygiene Services.
Agreed that a minimum of 5 years' experience is suitable for specialist membership.
Revised the application process for specialist membership to include 'dermal' in the list of suitable subjects.

Q4 2022

Activity of Q4 2022.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Discussed BOHS' operation for delivering webinars in order to get the best value and reach out of them.
Agreed to take the Board on a roadshow of the parliaments in 2023 to raise awareness of occupational hygiene in honour of the Society's 70th Anniversary.
Approved the recommendation to petitioning for a Grant of Arms (Coat of Arms).
Approved the Faculty of Asbestos Management in Australia and New Zealand (FAMANZ) Memorandum of Understanding.
Discussed the reasoning behind members deciding not to renew, noting a considerable number have left the profession, namely those who are retiring.
Approved the 2023 Budget.
Revised the Reserves Policy.
Approved the recommendation to canvas membership for their views on a name change for the Society.
Reviewed the external report on BOHS' current HR.

Fellowship of FAAM opens.
Explored four key areas; FAAM research, personal monitoring, working with the local authorities, and the relationship between analysts and asbestos removal supervisor via the Technical & Scientific Sub-Committee.
Developed a questionnaire on personal monitoring.
Supported the proposal to introduce BOHS Platinum Charter Membership.
Discussed the new Occupational Exposure Limits (OEL) in Europe.

Implemented a professional risk matrix in line with PSA's requirements.
Reviewed and approved BOHS' conflicts of interest policy for qualifications.
Approved the revised guidance “Testing Compliance with Occupational Exposure Limits for Airborne Substances”.
Revised the Chartered Fellow application form.

Q1 2023

Activity of Q1 2023.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Reviewed the risk register with particular focus on volunteer resource, investment performance, special resolution rejection, IT support and business continuity, and unprotected intellectual assets.
Agreed to add new risks to the risk register in relation to BREXIT and the EU Law Reform Bill.
Reviewed and approved the insurance provision for the Society.
Considered the governance of the Board (sub-committees) and if they are allowing them to discharge their obligations suitably.
Considered the need for Board Champions.
Approved the final fees in relation to the potential accredited Professional Register.
Considered the conference opportunities the Society has including the potential to deliver a commercially driven event. The Board agreed to revisit this proposal in Q4 2023 if there is suitable resource and cost to carry out appropriate research on this opportunity.
Agreed to carry out a member science initiative to survey the membership to capture science data that can be used for research purposes on isocyanate and silica.
Held an extraordinary board meeting to consider the responses to the AGM notice in relation to the special resolution to change the name of the Society.

Discussed ambitions of obtaining chartership for FAAM members.
Held a workshop for Analysts and Asbestos Removal Supervisors focused on the 4-stage clearance.
Discussed the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill.
Discussed carrying out a pilot project on the emerging new technique for removing asbestos.

Held a special meeting to review education pathways and review the draft competency framework.
Agreed that the W201 qualification was no longer suitable criteria for the Associate membership of FOH.
Revised the FOH Committee’s Terms of Reference.
Revised the FOH Regulations following feedback from the PSA.
Reviewed the 'How to Get Chartered' infographic.

Q2 2023

Activity of Q2 2023.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Held a parliament event at the Welsh Assembly.
Discussed concerns regarding the descriptors for the potential accredited Professional Register which were communicated to the FOH Committee via the FOH Registrar.
Discussed an emerging opportunity to accept a financial donation from Amazon and the potential reputational risks associated.
Reviewed the Society's level of reserves.
Updated the Society's bank mandates to ensure the appropriate roles on the Board have authorisation.
Discussed concerns regarding the uptake of BOHS' awards and how this can be improved.
Discussed the volunteering project with a particular focus on upskilling volunteers, improving engagement, the management of volunteers soft skills, succession planning etc.
Reviewed the risk register with particular focus on BOHS's professional qualification provision and requested a report from the FOH Committee on how they are managing theses risks.
Revised the Society's overall Conflicts of Interest Policy.
Agreed to hold a Strategy Away Day in Q1 2024.

Discussed hosting FAAM webinars.
Reviewed the findings of the workshop on the 4-stage clearance.
Reviewed the responses to the personal monitoring questionnaire distributed to participants at the 4-stage clearance workshop.
Discussed FAAM representation and how to consult the membership.

Revised the Code of Ethics and introduced a new safeguarding annex following further feedback from the PSA.
Agreed the process for accepting Associate members of FOH on to the Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals.
Agreed to a time-limit for 'Associate' members of FOH who only hold the W201 to obtain more qualifications in order to retain their membership.
Agreed in principle, to partial accreditation for Universities who are already accredited by BOHS using processes that are already in place.
All paperwork requested by the PSA was sent for review.
Implemented a new Membership and Professional Register Appeals Process.
Further revised the draft BOHS Statement of Occupational Hygiene Competencies.
Revised the GAL SOP following further review.
Reviewed the guidance on the Directory of Occupational Hygiene Services.
Delivered two half-day PDCs at the OH2023 conference:
- Sampling strategy or result interpretation / statistics.
- Value of workplace health (extracting its value to organisations from costs and benefits).
- Influencing skills.
- Expert witness.

Q3 2023

Activity of Q3 2023.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Discussed the financial donation from Amazon in further detail.
Approved the proposal to run a a 2.5-day soft skills / leadership course to be run by BOHS current President
Discussed utilising the International Engagement Group to promote better engagement with international partners at BOHS' conferences.
Discussed the performance of the OH2023 conference.
Considered the impact of the potential accredited Professional Register on the profession and potential opportunities to highlight specialisms within the register such as LEV.
Discussed the Society's representation on the Scientific Liaison Coalition and agreed it was still suitable.
Held a parliament event at the Scottish Parliament.

Discussed the possibility of a national asbestos database.
Agreed to produce a new science-based magazine called Asbestos Aware.
Continued discussions on drafting an asbestos competency framework.

Revised the Code of Ethics' Complaints Procedure in line with feedback from the PSA.
The Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals was built.
Considered the representation of LEV professionals on the Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals.
Approved the draft BOHS Statement of Occupational Hygiene Competencies for consultation with the membership.
Revised the GAL SOP Assessment questions.

Q4 2023

Activity of Q4 2023.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

BOHS's Professional Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals was accredited by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA) for Health and Social Care.
Discussed the emerging topic of net zero.
Discussed the progress of the member science initiative focusing on silica and isocyanate.
Discussed the conference provision of the Society for 2024.
Approved the 2024 budget.
Reviewed the risk register with significant consideration to the risks to misrepresentation and reputational damage.
Reviewed the health and safety of the Society.
Considered BOHS's international reputation in connection with the move away from W series.
Agreed that no first-sits of any W500 series exam will take place after 04 December 2024 to ensure all candidates are given fair and equal treatment with the right to the same amount of time to resit an exam should they need to.
Approved the proposal to re-introduce the M500 series.

Reviewed and approved revised FAAM Fellowship criteria.

Implemented a registration application process for the Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals.
Implemented a policy on readmission to the Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals.
Agreed to a short-term (until December 2024) gateway for Associate members of FOH who have been unable to progress due to lack of training opportunity, to obtain their CertOH (to become Licentiate members of the Faculty) using the BOHS Core Exam.
Following membership consultation, responses were reviewed and the BOHS Statement of Occupational Hygiene Competencies finalised.
Handled a complaint against the Code of Ethics through informal resolution.
Approved the NEBOSH Diploma as suitable criteria for Associate membership of FOH.
Agreed for IOSH Members who hold the NEBOSH Diploma to be included on the Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals as “Associated Professionals”.
Reviewed the DipOH qualification in depth and agreed a plan of action to improve candidate experience.
Agreed to hold a webinar on mentoring to revive the scheme.
Reviewed BOHS' MoU with the Institute of Acoustics and agreed that the mutual agreement in place with regard to qualifications and professional recognition remains acceptable.
BOHS was awarded its own Coat of Arms.

Q1 2024

Activity of Q1 2024.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Approved the 2024 AGM Process
Discussed the function of Regional Co-ordinators (RC) and regional meetings and agreed to introduce an annual RC report to provide oversight.
Agreed that a route should be created to enable the scheduling and topics of webinars to be overseen by the Faculty Committees.
Agreed to plan a corporate occupational hygiene leadership summit.
Reintroduced the M500 series.
BOHS published “300 Years of Protecting Worker Health” by Trevor Ogden.

Planned a second trial of the emerging new asbestos removal technique.
Held a personal monitoring workshop at the OH2025 conference.
Discussed potential research collaboration opportunities with Mesothelioma UK and other related bodies.
BOHS Platinum Membership has been introduced for FAAM membership.
Discussed the recent All-Party Parliamentary Group meeting on asbestos.

BOHS published the Statement of Occupational Hygiene Competencies.
Revised the FOH Regulations to align with the re-introduction of the M500 series.
Held an away day to carry out in an indepth review of the Diploma of Professional Competence in Occupational Hygiene (DipOH).

Q2 2024

Activity of Q2 2024.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Held an Away Day to review the progress of the strategy.
Considered the process for developing the next strategy.
Carried out a full in-depth review of the risk register.
Reviewed the Conflicts of Interest Policy to ensure it aligns with the Charity Commission and the Chartered Governance Institute.
Reviewed the progress of the re-introduction of the M500 series.

Held a Strategy Away Day to review the Sub-Committees and FAAM’s future focus.
Discussed how to improve communications with members.
Approved a regular e-newsletter to communicate with members.
Discussed UK scenarios that might arise from the EU reducing the OEL.
Held a webinar on the new European OEL.

Reviewed and approved the revised FOH Committee Terms of Reference.
Revised the Code of Ethics Complaints Procedure to comply with PSA’s condition.
The Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals goes live to the public.
A consultation has started with the LEV Community to define LEV Technicians for inclusion on the Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals.
Reviewed and responded to the consultation on the European Platform for Occupational Hygiene’s Draft Occupational Hygiene Competency Framework for Europe, noting that it was infused with elements of BOHS’ Statement of Occupational Hygiene Competencies.
Plans to review the M500 series syllabi kick off.
An LEV Advisory Group has been formed.
An action plan was drawn up to improve the delivery of the DipOH Qualification.

Q3 2024

Activity of Q3 2024.

The Board FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Approved a Memorandum of Understanding between BOHS and NEBOSH.
Reviewed the performance of IOHA2024.
Reviewed the funding of the Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals.
Considered and agreed to maintain BOHS’s current position in respect of not supporting a ban on engineered stone because of a bans inability to work.

Held the second trial of the asbestos removal technique.
Reviewed the responses to the questionnaires sent following the recent FAAM webinar.
Discussed potential research opportunities.

Reviewed the Good Practice Guide for Consultants.
Agreed to amend the International Certificate in Occupational Hygiene’s post-nominals from ‘ICertOH’ to ‘CertOH’.

Q4 2024

Activity of Q4 2024.

FAAM Committee FOH Committee

Discussed introducing asbestos specific awards to celebrate the achievements of those in the industry.
The first e-newsletter has been published.
Held two successful webinars and have another webinar scheduled.
Discussed the consortium led by RPA to develop a guidance document for the safe management of asbestos at work, under contract to the European Commission's Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (DG EMPL) and FAAM’s potential contribution.
Held an EM Analysis of Asbestos in Air workshop.
A paper on FAAM’s trial of the asbestos removal technique has been drafted.
Held the Asbestos2024 conference.

A full review was carried out on the Faculty Risk Matrix in preparation for consultation with the membership.
BOHS’s Group Authority Licence has been renewed for a period of one year.
BOHS Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) policy has been reviewed and updated to align with the PSA’s new EDI standard. A further action plan to improve the Society’s EDI has been put in place.
Agreed to a single process for qualification recognition and registration recognition.
Parts 1/4 and 2/4 of the improved diploma guidance have been drawn up and are currently with the FOH Committee for review.
Agreed to introduce a supplement to the DipOH qualification, to allow DipOH holders to quickly identify key information about their qualification such as what level it is (Level 7).
Approved he formation of a working group to develop the concept and approach of Workplace Health Value.
The guidance for Metal Working Fluid has been published.