Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils
Encyclopedia
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
government body that carried out civil research in science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
.
Activities
The CCLRC was created on 1 April 1995 as a non-departmental public bodyNon-departmental public body
In the United Kingdom, a non-departmental public body —often referred to as a quango—is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury, Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive to certain types of public bodies...
from the laboratories of the previous Science and Engineering Research Council
Science and Engineering Research Council
The Science and Engineering Research Council used to be the UK agency in charge of publicly funded scientific and engineering research activities including astronomy, biotechnology and biological sciences, space research and particle physics...
including 1942 staff and an annual turnover of £106 million which had temporarily been controlled by the EPSRC
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council is a British Research Council that provides government funding for grants to undertake research and postgraduate degrees in engineering and the physical sciences , mainly to universities in the United Kingdom...
. It operated at three locations:
- Rutherford Appleton LaboratoryRutherford Appleton LaboratoryThe Rutherford Appleton Laboratory is one of the national scientific research laboratories in the UK operated by the Science and Technology Facilities Council . It is located on the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus at Chilton near Didcot in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom...
, near DidcotDidcotDidcot is a town and civil parish in Oxfordshire about south of Oxford. Until 1974 it was in Berkshire, but was transferred to Oxfordshire in that year, and from Wallingford Rural District to the district of South Oxfordshire...
in OxfordshireOxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, incorporating the ISIS neutron sourceISIS neutron sourceISIS is a pulsed neutron and muon source. It is situated at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory on the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom and is part of the Science and Technology Facilities Council... - Daresbury LaboratoryDaresbury LaboratoryDaresbury Laboratory is a scientific research laboratory near Daresbury in Cheshire, England, which began operations in 1962 and was officially opened on 16 June 1967 as the Daresbury Nuclear Physics Laboratory by the then Prime Minister of United Kingdom, Harold Wilson...
. at DaresburyDaresburyDaresbury is a small rural village, civil parish and ward in the unitary authority of Halton and part of the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is covered by the Weaver Vale constituency...
in CheshireCheshireCheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow... - Chilbolton ObservatoryChilbolton ObservatoryThe Chilbolton Observatory is a facility for atmospheric and radio research located on the edge of the village of Chilbolton near Stockbridge in Hampshire, England...
, near StockbridgeStockbridge, HampshireStockbridge is a small town and civil parish in Hampshire, England. It has an acreage of and a population of little under 600 people according to the 2001 census in Hampshire, England. It lies on the River Test, in the Test Valley district and renowned for trout fishing. The A30 road goes through...
in HampshireHampshireHampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
The Diamond Light Source
Diamond Light Source
Diamond Light Source is the UK's national synchrotron science facility in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom. Its purpose is to produce intense beams of light whose special characteristics are useful in many areas of scientific research...
, was developed by the CCLRC at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory
Rutherford Appleton Laboratory
The Rutherford Appleton Laboratory is one of the national scientific research laboratories in the UK operated by the Science and Technology Facilities Council . It is located on the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus at Chilton near Didcot in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom...
and established as an independent company.
The CCLRC was established:
a) to promote high quality scientific and engineering research by providing facilities and technical expertise in support of basic, strategic and applied research programmes;
b) to support the advancement of knowledge and technology, thereby contributing to the economic competitiveness of Our United Kingdom and the quality of life;
c) to provide advice, disseminate knowledge, and promote public understanding in the fields of science, engineering and technology.
Which in practice meant that it administered the UK's large scale facilities for materials and biomolecular research, laser and space science and alternative energy exploration on behalf of the government, the other UK research funding bodies, universities, and corporate research and development.
Over eighty per cent of the funding for the programmes carried out by the CCLRC came through partnership with other UK Research Councils, whilst the remaining twenty per cent came through partnership with industrial and overseas organisations. Some 10,000 researchers are estimated to have used CLRC’s facilities and services each year - usually working in close collaboration with CLRC’s support scientists and engineers to get the best from the facilities and expertise available.
As well as operating as a single entity, the Council (CCLRC) also operated its own wholly owned trading
subsidiary, Central Laboratory Innovation and Knowledge Transfer Limited (CLIK).
By 2006 annual expenditure had nearly doubled since CCLRC's foundation to £199.8 million as the Council's international role expanded to include the payment of the UK’s subscriptions to facilities at the ILL and ESRF
European Synchrotron Radiation Facility
The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility is a joint research facility supported by 19 countries situated in Grenoble, France...
.
On 1 April 2007 CCLRC merged with PPARC to form the Science and Technology Facilities Council
Science and Technology Facilities Council
The Science and Technology Facilities Council is a UK government body that carries out civil research in science and engineering, and funds UK research in areas including particle physics, nuclear physics, space science and astronomy .-History:It was formed in April 2007 as a merger of the Particle...
so that a single organisation was responsible for providing UK scientists with access to large scientific facilities in the UK and elsewhere in the world, including CERN
CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research , known as CERN , is an international organization whose purpose is to operate the world's largest particle physics laboratory, which is situated in the northwest suburbs of Geneva on the Franco–Swiss border...
, ESA and ESO
European Southern Observatory
The European Southern Observatory is an intergovernmental research organisation for astronomy, supported by fifteen countries...
.
Branding
Given the wide breadth of its mission there was plenty of room for the CCLRC staff to promote different activities of the Council. Consequently its branding was always a problem.Between 1994 and 1995 while the laboratories were temporarily operated by the EPSRC, the abbreviation "DRAL" was used to brand them as distinct from the funding Council. When the CCLRC was first established in 1995 the Director General of Research Councils did not want it to be confused with the funding Councils, so he did not want the abbreviation to include the letters "RC" at the end, but to be simply "CCL" - Council of the Central Laboratories. This only lasted for a few months when the accepted abbreviation became "CLRC" - Central Laboratory of the Research Councils. Since the full name included an extra word a confusion was created as to why the abbreviation appeared to be that of a different name than the actual one. To end this confusion, in 2002 the abbreviation was changed to the complete acronym of "CCLRC".
Chief Executives
- 1995-1998 Dr Paul Williams
- 1998-2000 Dr Albert R C Westwood
- 2000-2001 Dr T G Walker OBE
- 2001-2007 Prof John Wood
See also
- Cosener's HouseCosener's HouseThe Cosener's House is on an island in the River Thames within the original grounds of Abingdon Abbey, located near the centre of the town of Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England. It is run as a conference centre with accommodation by the Science and Technology Facilities Council...
, a conference centre run by CCLRC in AbingdonAbingdon, OxfordshireAbingdon or archaically Abingdon-on-Thames is a market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Vale of White Horse district. Previously the county town of Berkshire, Abingdon is one of several places that claim to be Britain's oldest continuously occupied town, with...