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Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors

Coordinates: 51°30′3″N 0°7′41″W / 51.50083°N 0.12806°W / 51.50083; -0.12806
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Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
TypeProfessional body
Headquarters12 Great George Street, Parliament Square, London SW1P 3AD
Coordinates51°30′3″N 0°7′41″W / 51.50083°N 0.12806°W / 51.50083; -0.12806
Region served
Worldwide
Membership
120,000 (2015)

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is an independent, representative professional body which regulates construction and property professionals in the United Kingdom and other countries around the world. Members and Fellows of RICS are entitled to describe themselves as Chartered Surveyors and use post nominal letters MRICS and FRICS after their names.

RICS provides education and training standards, protects consumers with strict codes of practice and advises governments and business. RICS provides expertise in matters involving fixed assets, including but not limited to land and real property.

History

The RICS was founded in London as the "Institution of Surveyors" after a meeting of 49 surveyors at the Westminster Palace Hotel on 15 June 1868. The inaugural president was John Clutton (who founded Cluttons, a property firm still in business today). RICS has occupied headquarters on the corner of Great George Street and Parliament Square since then.[1] It received a Royal charter as "The Surveyors' Institution" on 26 August 1881.[2][note 1]

The Surveyors' Institution became the "Chartered Surveyors' Institution" in 1930.[3] In 1946, George VI granted the title "Royal" and in 1947 the professional body became the “Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors”. [4]

International presence

The RICS headquarters is in London with its main support functions in Coventry. There are regional offices in the United Kingdom, across mainland Europe, in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, North America and Brazil.

In 2015, there were RICS-qualified professionals in more than 140 countries. The total number of those accredited worldwide was 120,000, plus student membership of 81,000. The majority of accredited individuals or members are still based in the United Kingdom with large numbers also in mainland Europe, Australia and Hong Kong. There is now a strong growth globally, and particularly in China, India and the Americas.

The RICS has close links with many national surveying institutions and is a founding member association of the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG). Within the RICS the primary areas of practice represented at FIG are geomatics (land and hydrographic survey), environment, planning, construction and valuation.

The RICS works in close collaboration with other professional bodies, central banks and international organisations such as The United Nations, World Bank and The European Union. In 2013 the RICS was a founder member of the coalition to develop International Property Measurement Standards, which launched its first standard – for measuring office space – in November 2014. In 2014 the RICS was a founder member of the coalition to develop International Ethics Standards. In each case, coalition member bodies are committed to implementing the new standards through training and guidance for professional practitioners.

Membership

Entry to membership of the RICS is via four main routes: academic; graduate; technical; and senior professional. The RICS has links with universities worldwide, with whom they have accredited approved courses which satisfy part of the qualification requirements to become trainee surveyors. The RICS also offers expedited routes to membership for qualified professional members of some partner associations.

Members must update their knowledge and competence during their working life through RICS' Continuous Professional Development regulations so the advice they give will be of the highest and most professional standard.

Designations

  • Associate members may use "AssocRICS" after their names (previously members at this level were known as Technical Members and used the designation "TechRICS").[5]
  • Professional Members may use "MRICS" after their names (previously members at this level were known as Professional Associates and used the designation "ARICS").
  • Fellows may use "FRICS" after their names.

Professional Members and Fellows of the RICS are entitled to use the designation "Chartered Surveyor" and variations such as "Chartered Building Surveyor" or "Chartered Quantity Surveyor" - depending on their chosen specialist qualifications and field of expertise. For example, not all RICS members who undertake building surveys are actually Chartered Building Surveyors (less than 10% of the RICS membership are Chartered Building Surveyors).

Professional Groups

Property Professional Groups Land Professional Built Environment Professional Groups
Arts & Antiquities Environment Building Control
Commercial Property Geomatics Building Surveying
Dispute Resolution Minerals & Waste Project Management
Facilities Management Planning & Development Quantity Surveying & Construction
Machinery & Assets Rural Dilapidations forum
Management Consultancy Telecom forum Insurance forum
Residential property
Valuation
Building conservation forum

Professional Groups of the RICS

Expertise

The expertise of RICS members covers all property and construction related activities. Activities in which members may be specialists include:

RICS also has specialist designations such as 'Chartered Building Surveyor' and 'Chartered Quantity Surveyor', 'Chartered Taxation Surveyor' etc. and these members have to have undertaken a specific specialist route for qualification and membership. Confusingly for the public any member of the RICS may describe themselves as a 'chartered surveyor' and by giving themselves a description such as 'building pathologist' may offer a building surveying service.

RICS Shop is the commercial publishing and bookselling arm of the RICS. They publish materials regarding Building surveying; Commercial property; Construction; Dispute resolution; Environment; Facilities management; Geomatics; Machinery & Business Assets; Management consultancy; Minerals and Waste management; Planning & development; Project management; Residential property; Rural, and Valuation.

RICS Shop satisfies the needs of the property, land and construction industry.

Past Presidents

Recent Past Presidents have included Jonathan David Harris OBE, Peter Ralph Faulkner, Peter William Fall,Nick Brooke, Barry Gilbertson, Steve Williams, Graham Chase, David Tuffin, Peter Goodacre, Max Crofts and Robert Peto. A full list of past presidents.

Matrics

The junior branch of the RICS, known as Matrics (pronounced "matrix"), provides educational support, charitable and networking activities for surveying students, trainee surveyors (of any age) and Chartered Surveyors with ten years or less post-qualification experience.[6] It comprises some 40 local groups across the United Kingdom. Established in 1889 as the Junior Committee, it became the "Junior Organisation" ("JO") in 1928 and was re-branded as "RICS Matrics" in 2003. It also has links with the Young Chartered Surveyors in the Republic of Ireland.

BCIS

BCIS is the Building Cost Information Service of RICS. Established in 1962 BCIS provides independent cost information about the built environment. BCIS pioneered elemental cost planning in the early 1960s which is now the basis of early cost advice in the construction industry today. The organisation holds the largest independent database of cost plans in elemental form. As well as undertaking research contracts for government they provide online and paper services regarding building costs, occupancy costs, rebuilding costs, construction duration, repair costs, construction inflation, civil engineering costs, and estimating.

Charitable works

Lionheart is the benevolent fund for past and present RICS members and their families. The charity was established in 1899 and provides financial support, health and well-being packages, and work-related counselling and befriending support. RICS also supports the Chartered Surveyors Training Trust, which helps young people enter the profession through apprenticeships;[7] Charity Property Help, which provides property advice to charities and voluntary organisations,[8] and The Chartered Surveyors' Voluntary Service (CSVS), a registered charity providing free property advice to people who would otherwise struggle to access professional assistance.[9]

See also

Notes and References

Notes

  1. ^ Under the charter, full members were classed as Fellows (FSI) or Professional Associates (PASI). Non-chartered associate and student memberships were also provided for.[2]

References

  1. ^ "History". RICS. 2014. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
  2. ^ a b "The Institution of Surveyors". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 10 September 1881. p. 12. Retrieved 27 September 2014.(subscription required)
  3. ^ "Chartered Surveyors". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 15 November 1930. p. 8. Retrieved 27 September 2014.(subscription required)
  4. ^ "Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 28 May 1946. p. 8. Retrieved 27 September 2014.(subscription required)
  5. ^ "AssocRICS - the new grade". RICS. 1 January 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
  6. ^ RICS[1]
  7. ^ RICS[2]
  8. ^ RICS[3]
  9. ^ RICS[4]
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