Ion Micro-Probe Steering Group Committee

The current members of the Steering Group Committee  are:

Analytical Advisers and Ex-officio Members:

The Steering Committee exists to:

• Provide independent advice to the Facility
• Represent the Facility user community.
• Review applications for the use of the Facility.
• Prioritise usage for the Facility.
• Monitor outputs from the Facility and user satisfaction.
• Challenge and advise the Facility to not only maximise benefits for the user community (as per the requirements of the Benefits Realisation plan and associated metrics) but to improve and innovate to ensure that the Facility aligns to current and future demand for environmental science.
• Advise the Facility, the relevant Centre and NERC on aspects of the operations of the Facility and the future vision and direction.

Steering Committee expectation

• The Steering Committee will advise and challenge the delivery and innovation of the Facility to ensure that it aligns to current and future demand for environmental science and maximises the benefits to users as reported in the Benefits Realisation Plan.
• It is expected that the Steering Committee would meet annually at a minimum.
• The Steering Committee will receive the Facilities’ Benefits Realisation Plan from the Facility Management, which they, through the Chair, would be expected to input into, before its submission to the relevant centre contact and ultimately NERC.
• Members are expected to know who they are representing (e.g. the community, Centre, themselves) and how this influences their role and opinion.

The Chair

• The Chair should be an independent[1] member.
• The Chair agrees to meeting agendas, manages effective meetings and reviews the minutes.
• The Chair should act as the main contact point between the Steering Committee and the relevant Centre.

NOTE [1] Independent – they must not be employed by the Facility and should be an expert in the related science but not a regular user of the facility.

1. To review applications and/or use of the Facility and make suggestions to the Facility and the relevant Centre. This could include but is not limited to priorities regarding the allocation of the Facility's resources, taking into account recommendations made through the NERC peer review mechanisms.
2. To review the scientific quality of work undertaken by users utilising the Facility based on reports and publications.
3. To monitor the level of user satisfaction with the service, review user feedback and analyse the user base. To propose options for improvement if required.
4. To give guidance to the Centre Contact and Facility Management related to the improvement of the Facility's equipment and its service function.
5. To represent the wider views of the community on the operation and development of the Facility.
6. To review and provide advice to the Facility Management on the risk register.
7. To input into the Benefits Realisation Plan, prepared by the Facility Management, with the Chair and Steering Committee providing a specific update, prior to submission of the plan to the relevant Centre and NERC.
8. To advise the Centre on:
   • the level and direction of the internal R&D programme for the Facility,
   • anticipated changes in requirements from the Facility and the anticipated levels of future demand for the Facility,
   • opportunities for development and innovation,
   • international benchmarking. 

Steering Committee membership will be decided by the Centre Contact, Head of Facility and the Steering Committee Chair (or in the absence of the Chair, a nominated independent member of the Steering Committee). There will be opportunities for new members to self-nominate to apply to join the Steering Committee, as well as invitations for new members. New members must be approved by the Steering Committee before final appointments are made.

New Chairs will be decided by the Centre Contact, Centre Director, Head of Facility and a member of the Steering Committee.

The Steering Committee should have a core membership of between 5-10 members, excluding ex-officio members, and more than 50% of membership should be made up by independent members.

Any member may, with the advance agreement of the Chair, send a deputy to a meeting.  If a member cannot attend, they should send comments via email to the Secretary and Chair. A Deputy Chair from the Steering Committee can be nominated to chair the meeting in the absence of the Chair, in exceptional circumstances.

NERC staff, the Centre Contact, other centre staff and the Facility staff are ex-officio members.  Closed Sessions within Steering Committee meetings should only be attended by Steering Committee members and the Centre Contact.

All members, other than ex-officio members, will be invited to serve for a term of up to four years with a maximum extension of a further two years. The Chair will serve a maximum of four years. The Steering Committee should have a staggered membership to ensure continuity. 

A Secretary of the Committee, who coordinates the preparation and distribution of papers in advance of the meeting and takes the minutes, needs to attend each meeting. They also ensure full minutes are normally distributed within four weeks of each meeting.

The membership list must comply with NERC’s policies on conflicts of interest and equality and diversity.

For both policies, please visit the NERC website:

NERC policies