UKAS is the National Accreditation Body for the United Kingdom. UKAS is appointed by the Government, to assess and accredit organizations that provide a variety of services including certification, testing, inspection, and calibration based on compliance with international standards and demonstration through objective evidence of competency and impartiality in the performance of defined activities.
At the beginning of the pandemic reliable testing was quickly identified as a key component in the effort to control the spread of the virus. UKAS has been part of that effort, working with the government to provide advice on quality assurance and accreditation of laboratories performing COVID-19 testing including laboratories that have been supporting the national testing provision (NHS Test and Trace) and private providers of sampling and testing. This work continues as the pandemic, and resulting restrictions and requirements continue to evolve.
Sampling and testing services
Sampling and testing fed by private providers quickly became a vital part of the testing provision
The sampling and testing provided by private providers quickly became a vital part of the testing provision. Accreditation was recognized as playing a vital role in assuring the quality of the sampling and testing services offered.
To support this work UKAS has worked with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) to develop a three-staged accreditation process for private providers of COVID-19 sampling and testing consisting of a self-declaration – stage 1, (as of May 2022 LFT providers of self-testing kits, are no longer required to complete a self-declaration) key area assessment – stage 2 and then a full assessment of activities – stage 3. The self-declaration is reviewed by UKAS to ensure standards are being met. UKAS does not conduct any monitoring of those organizations that only ‘sell’ the testing service and do not perform sampling and/or testing.
number of eLearning modules
This process has been developed to assist providers gain some early recognition by DHSC while they were progressing towards accreditation within the timescales required by the regulations and for any providers of private COVID-19 testing requiring accreditation for their services.
Bespoke support for private providers was also produced via a number of eLearning modules which take the reader through the entire process as well as weekly drop-in webinar sessions led by accreditation specialists throughout the spring and summer of 2021 where any and all questions were addressed.
Declaration to the Department of Health
UKAS has accredited over 50 public sector labs and over 500 private providers of COVID-19 sampling
To date, UKAS has accredited over 50 public sector laboratories and over 500 private providers of COVID-19 sampling and/or testing. It is recognized that many laboratories do not sell the tests directly to the consumer and that tests are provided through intermediaries that interact with and sell directly to the public.
The regulations that apply to private providers of COVID-19 tests in England require that all organizations selling private COVID-19 testing kits/services (to be used at home or for self-swabbing) must make a declaration to the Department of Health that they comply with certain minimum standards. The details of the organizations that have made this declaration are published on gov.uk (unless the provider has opted out of appearing on the public lists). The legislation allows that organizations may take up to eight months to achieve accreditation.
UKAS application stage
DHSC utilizes information gathered from a variety of sources, including information about the status
The government holds overall authority over which organizations are listed on gov.uk. DHSC utilizes information gathered from a variety of sources, including information about the status of the UKAS application stage and accreditation to keep the information up to date.
Please note that not all organizations on the gov.uk listed are yet accredited and may not be required to be accredited (i.e., whether it only sells tests or carries out sampling and/or testing) or the status of accreditation of the organization or its chosen subcontractor(s).
Lateral flow tests
Providers who supply kits for self-swab and self-test will not be UKAS accredited and UKAS is not conducting the assessment of this activity.
UKAS accreditation of the providers that perform sampling and testing will confirm their competence to perform their activities and provide assurance to consumers that test results are reliable. UKAS-accredited organizations are subject to ongoing surveillance assessment.