Eligibility Criteria and Evidence Requirements

CIAT has devised two routes to Accreditation:

1. CIAT—Accredited Conservationist - This is the conventional route to Accreditation. Candidates must be practising in a conservation related field and must be able to demonstrate their competence through five conservation projects carried out in practice. The five projects must be no more than three years old. Continued acceptance for inclusion within the Register is based on this requirement of currency. This route has been endorsed by the Edinburgh Group.
2. CIAT—Recognised Conservationist (non-practising) - CIAT recognises that some of its members, although having sufficient knowledge in the area of conservation, may not be practising in this field and will therefore be unable to demonstrate the competence required through the conventional assessment route. Instead, CIAT will accept five case studies awarding the designation of CIAT—Recognised Conservationist (non-practising). Although any candidate choosing this route will have to meet the same competences as the conventional route, defined by the Edinburgh Group, this route is not endorsed by them.

Eligibility criteria
In order to be placed upon the CIAT Conservation Register, as either a CIAT—Accredited Conservationist or CIAT—Recognised Conservationist (non-practising), the candidate must meet the following criteria:

1. The candidate must be either: a Chartered Architectural Technologist of at least five years’ standing, or; holders of diplomas (or equivalent/better) in conservation and a Chartered Architectural Technologist of at least two years’ standing, or; a Chartered Architectural Technologist and a Chartered Member of an allied professional body of at least five years’ standing, or; a Chartered Architectural Technologist and holders of diplomas (or equivalent/better) in conservation and at least two years’ standing as a Chartered Member of an allied professional body.
2. Candidates seeking to become CIAT—Accredited Conservationists must have sufficient appropriate experience within conservation to be able to compile an evidence based portfolio. For candidates seeking to become CIAT—Recognised Conservationists (non-practising) must have sufficient knowledge within conservation to be able to submit a portfolio of case studies or academic work.
3. Successfully complete the CIAT Conservation Register application process, including technical assessment and formal interview.

In order to remain upon the CIAT Conservation Register, all candidates must:

1. Maintain Chartered Membership of CIAT.
2. Undertake adequate and relevant CPD commensurate with ongoing duties and responsibilities (as determined by the candidate), which will be monitored in line with current Institute policy.
3. Pay an annual fee to cover administration and promotion of the Register.
4. Be subject to periodical re-assessment.

Evidence requirements
The typical evidence specific to each unit which could be submitted by a candidate seeking inclusion on the CIAT Conservation Register is outlined below. Evidence will be drawn from five conservation projects for candidates seeking to become CIAT—Accredited Conservationists. For those seeking to become a CIAT—Recognised Conservationist (non-practising), the evidence will be in the form of five case studies. This is not a definitive list of evidence requirements, merely a guide as to the scope and range of evidence the assessors will be looking for.

CIAT strongly urges all candidates to visit www.understandingconservation.org for further guidance on the contents of the portfolio. This website has been developed as a self-assessment tool to test mindset, skills and competence prior to submitting a portfolio of evidence in pursuit of a common standard across the various professional institutes offering conservation accreditation.

All evidence submitted should be within the context of conservation, dealing with physical decay of buildings, their everyday maintenance and adapting redundant buildings for alternate, sustainable uses. The principles of conservation must be adhered to. Those principles include minimal intervention, reversibility, minimal loss of fabric and preservation of authenticity and integrity.

For candidates seeking to become CIAT—Accredited Conservationists, evidence must be derived from the candidate rather than the team, however, managing a team to deliver a certain aspect will be accepted as valid evidence. Case studies will be accepted where, for example, the candidate’s participation within the project did not cover that particular aspect but they have artificially extended their role via simulation or further analysis, or they have reached their known limit of expertise and consulted another professional, enabling the candidate to make an informed decision as a project leader.

Other information might include; curriculum vitae, educational qualifications, employment details and experience, professional qualifications, short courses, CPD records, publications and references.