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Our Technician Commitment

For over 75 years, the IST has supported technicians and the wider technical community.

Logo for Technician Commitment

As an official supporter of the Technician Commitment, we proudly stand behind its mission to ensure greater:

Visibility, Recognition, Career Development and Sustainability

… for technicians working across higher education, research, industry and beyond.

Technicians are essential to innovation, discovery and operational excellence. The IST is committed not just to acknowledging this, but to actively strengthening the systems that support them.

What Is the Technician Commitment?

The Technician Commitment is a sector-wide initiative that aims to ensure visibility, recognition, career development and sustainability for technicians working in higher education and research across all disciplines.

As a professional body, the IST pledges meaningful action against the key challenges affecting technical staff and supports organisations working to embed these principles into institutional culture.

More information: www.techniciancommitment.org.uk

Our Commitment in Action

We have delivered two structured action plans:

Technician Commitment Action Plan 1.0 Document Summary
Technician Commitment Action Plan 2.0 Document Summary
  • Action Plan 1.0 (2021 – 2024) – Established foundations and delivered measurable impact
  • Action Plan 2.0 (2025 – 2028) – Building on success and expanding our ambition

Our Action Plan 2.0 reflects progress, feedback and a future-focused approach; strengthening accessibility, inclusivity and strategic growth.

Award-Winning Commitment in Action

We are proud to announce that the IST has been awarded the Technician Commitment Supporter Award (2025), recognising the successful delivery of our Action Plan and our continued leadership in supporting technicians across all disciplines.

All thirteen actions within our submission were rated Green — either sustained or evolving through new initiatives — an exceptional achievement acknowledged by the review panel.

Read more about our award and what this means for the technical community → Link to blog post

1. How IST Supports Visibility

Celebrating Technical Excellence: Technicians deserve to be seen, heard and celebrated.

How We Support Technicians:

How We Support Organisations:

  • Platforms to showcase institutional technical excellence
  • Conference hosting opportunities highlighting local technical staff
  • Recognition frameworks that align with institutional development strategies
  • EDI-informed event planning and inclusive practice models
2. How IST Supports Recognition

Professional Standards. Professional Status. Recognition underpins confidence, progression and sector value.

How We Support Technicians:

How We Support Organisations:

  • Government and sector bodies
  • Clear professional accreditation routes for staff
  • External validation of competence and standards
  • Alignment with national and international best practice
  • Contributions to standards development through partnerships
3. How IST Supports Career Development

Pathways. Progression. Lifelong Learning. Technicians need structured, accessible, future-ready development.

How We Support Technicians:

  • Accredited and validated CPD programmes
  • Collaboration with HEaTED to deliver specialist training
  • AI-focused development programmes linked to professional registration
  • Online learning expansion for accessibility
  • Mentoring support
  • Cross-sector networking and conference presentation opportunities

How We Support Organisations:

  • Alignment of technician progression with organisational strategy
  • Bespoke in-house training partnerships
  • Structured professional development pathways
  • Integration of CPD support and guidance
4. How IST Supports Sustainability

Inclusive. Resilient. Future-Focused Careers. A sustainable technical workforce must be inclusive, supported and future-ready.

How We Support Technicians:

How We Support Organisations:

  • Strong national and international partnerships to sustain professional standards
  • Guidance on inclusive technical workforce practices
  • Support for apprenticeship and skills pathway development
  • Insight into emerging technical disciplines
5. How We Are Evaluating Our Impact

As an official supporter of the Technician Commitment, we undertake a RAG (Red, Amber, Green) self-assessment after the most current action plan.

This ensures:

  • Accountability
  • Measurable progress
  • Continuous improvement
  • Transparent reporting
6. Our Next Steps (2025 – 2028)

To ensure continued impact, we are focusing on:

  • Broader engagement with professional bodies and national networks
  • Accessibility improvements (including dyslexia- and autism-friendly formats)
  • SMART objective refinement
  • Collaborative strategic workshops across STEMM, AI and Creative streams
  • Expanded conferences, training and CPD offerings
  • Strengthened partnerships across Higher Education, industry and government
Supporting Organisations

If your organisation has signed (or is considering signing) the Technician Commitment, the IST can support you by:

  • Providing professional registration pathways
  • Supporting technician recognition and awards
  • Offering CPD and training provision
  • Contributing to EDI and sustainability strategy
  • Delivering talks, workshops and collaborations
  • Acting as a sector partner in workforce development

We work alongside institutions, not just in principle, but in practice. IST are here to support you.