Organisational Capability

Introduction

A key part of the Safety Case process is being able to demonstrate that the organisation has an appropriate leadership and management structure that is focused on safety, as detailed in the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) leadership and management guidance (IAEA Safety Standards GSR Part 2). This is commonly referred to within the UK civil nuclear industry as ‘developing a strong nuclear safety culture’.

The organisational structure will be defined and management of change process implemented in line with Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) guidance (NS‑TAST‑GD‑048). This should include a clear description of the organisational structure, i.e. its parent companies (if any) and their background with particular focus on their nuclear safety culture and capabilities (NS-TAST-GD-049). Staffing levels will be defined (NS-TAST-GD-061) and the core competencies required within all of their staff. Training and assuring the competence will also need to be demonstrated (NS‑TAST‑GD-027).

An organisation should also have competence arrangements in place to ensure that all personnel, including third-party partners, are suitably qualified and experienced (SQEP) carry out their roles on the specific project. For major projects, these arrangements are to ensure the personnel developing, reviewing, verifying and approving have appropriate technical competence and experience commensurate with their level of responsibility (NS-TAST-GD-049).

Additional Information & Guidance

• IAEA, Leadership and Management for Safety, General Safety Requirements (GSR Part 2), IAEA: Vienna, 2016.
• ONR, NS-TAST-GD-048, Organisational Change, September 2018.
• ONR, NS-TAST-GD-049, Licensee Core Safety and Intelligent Customer Capabilities, April 2019.
• ONR, NS-TAST-GD-061, Staffing Levels and Task Organisation, March 2017.
• ONR, NS-TAST-GD-027, Training and Assuring Personnel Competence, July 2017.