Community Interest Policy
On the 4th November 2022, ASC incorporated as Community Interest Company, which is a regulated social enterprise. Prior to this, ASC had operated as an unincorporated, non-profit association since its inception around 1996.
This is the statement ASC provided to the Community Interest Company Regulator in its application to become a community interest company and which now exists as a policy of the ASC. It defines the community that ASC exists to serve and sets out in simple terms the benefits that ASC aims to bring to that community through its activities.
Statement of Community Interest
Beneficiaries
The company will carry on its activities for the benefit of the community. Our Community is defined as people engaged within the specific area of information technology and computing for market, opinion or social research, the collection and processing of surveys and statistics who effectively form a cohesive but geographically dispersed Community of Practice throughout the United Kingdom and beyond. This primarily includes people working within research organisations or institutes as well as academics, students, software developers and others.
Activities and related benefit
Peer learning. The ASC organises a series of meetings and events on topics relevant to our community. The subject matter of interest to this community, lying at the intersection of research, technology and statistics, is often too specialised to attract the numbers of attendees needed for commercial conference providers. The ASC’s provision of a forum and meeting place for this community allows practitioners to share knowledge, facilitates personal development, and builds consensus around best practices.
ASC run these events cost-effectively by relying on the volunteer effort of our members and other practitioners in our community. ASC members form the core of those involved in the running of the organisation. Membership is open to all, and ASC events are open to all, without regard to membership. Access for remote members of the community is increased by allowing online participation at conferences and some other events.
Knowledge. We lay down knowledge within the community by publishing peer-reviewed papers and proceedings from events, and by creating a video archive of presentations from conferences. These resources are provided in an online library and archive. The peer reviewed articles and presentations ASC provides in its library are a fundamental component for the creation of new knowledge within the research technology community of practice. The development of standards and best practices in this field is chronicled for the benefit of all practitioners. Because ASC operates on a not-for-private-profit basis, all of these resources are provided free of charge for anyone to access.
Awards. The ASC presents awards for outstanding endeavours by community members. As an example, the ASC Award for Technology Innovation and Effectiveness has been presented annually since 2003.
ASC awards provide recognition for individuals within the community. They allow for excellence to be defined and exemplified. They are open to all individuals or companies active within the community. The awards encourage innovation within the community while bringing the work of the community to the attention of a wider audience. Panels of leading practitioners judge the awards, which ensures their independent standing, as does the lack of commercial influence due to ASC’s not-for-profit status.
Surplus. If the association makes any surplus, it will be reinvested into the community and increasing access to the content that we provide.