The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) is the sole national accreditation body for the United Kingdom. UKAS is recognised by government, to assess against internationally agreed standards, organisations that provide certification, testing, inspection and calibration services. Accreditation by UKAS demonstrates the competence, impartiality and performance capability of these evaluators. In short, UKAS ‘checks the checkers’. UKAS is a non-profit-distributing private company, limited by guarantee. UKAS is independent of Government.
DANGER! Many companies run the risk of undermining their long-term success by purchasing independent evaluations that are not UKAS accredited. A survey was carried out in 2016, see below:
93% of respondents agree that accreditation provides confidence to their customers and stakeholders
76% agree that accreditation differentiates them from their competitors
85% agree that accreditation improves the quality and validity of their work
71% agree that accreditation helps them to win new or maintain existing business