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Welcome to Standards

We work on UK Government policy on all matters relating to standards-making, and manage the Government's relations with the British Standards Institution (BSI) as our National Standards Body. The Department also funds some of BSI's standards development work, including support for delegations representing the UK at overseas standards meetings and for consumer representation in standards-making activities.

The Department sponsors the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). UKAS is recognised as the sole UK national body for the accreditation of certification, testing and inspection bodies to the EN 45000 and ISO 17000 series of standards.

Through the European Commission we contribute to the development of European policy on the use of conformity assessment and accreditation in promoting the removal of barriers to trade, both in the single European market and worldwide.

European law requires national authorities to notify the European Commission of proposed technical regulations. We provide the UK central contact point for these issues under Directive 98/34/EC.

Together with BSI, UKAS and the CBI we worked to develop a National Standardisation Strategic Framework (NSSF). The NSSF aimed to promote the use of standards and standardisation in creating competitive advantage for UK businesses.

We work closely with our Technical Regulations colleagues at Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform who negotiate technical regulations at European level and implement them into UK law. Common regulatory requirements for products across Europe mean that goods can be traded freely. Products that comply carry the familiar CE marking, and cover a vast range of items from common household electrical goods to heavy industrial machinery.

Please send any comments on our Standards pages to enquiries.strd@gtnet.gov.uk