Document Control
It is a mandatory requirement all entrants to the Food Production Unit understand and abide by all of FERA LTD Policies & Procedures.
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Document Reference Number | 3.5 |
Document Sub-Sections |
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Issue Number | 1.0 |
Issue Date: | 05/01/2024 |
Last Reviewed Date | 05/01/2024 |
Reviewed by | Board of Directors |
Next Review Date | Annualised 05/01/2025 (Earlier if any significant changes made or required). |
Responsible Officer(s) | Board of Directors |
Distribution |
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Storage | Stored on the intranet. |
Document Control | Uncontrolled Copy Unless Printed on Yellow Signed Paper or accessed on intranet. |
Amendments with date of amendment. | Nil |
Document Notes | Nil |
Intranet Link | |
Authorised by | Adeel Iqbal |
3.5.1a DOCUMENT CONTROL POLICY
FERA Ltd. is committed to ensuring that all documentation utilised is fit for purpose and compliant with the most up to date legislation and best practice. In order to achieve this, we have adopted a robust process of document production, ratification, and dissemination.
No documentation must be utilised unless it has been ratified through the appropriate channels, usually the Board of Directors, commensurate with the importance of the document, and all documents, once ratified must be made available to all staff via the most appropriate page of FERA’s intranet.
The following principles must be adopted when introducing new documentation or reviewing existing documentation across the company.
The author/reviewer of any document must be the ‘most appropriate’ or competent person. This will be based on their role, experience and/or qualifications.
The author/reviewer may be an employee of FERA; however, there may be occasions when external or specialist support will be required to ensure documentation is robust.
Review periods set must be proportionate, however, reviews must be brought forward under the following (non-exhaustive) circumstances:
Changes in legislation and guidance
Changes in Best Practice
To address identified risks, or trends
To address changes in service provision
To incorporate advancements in technology or change of specifications
In response to regulator recommendations and directives.
Once ratified all documentation must be stored on the Trust Intranet for ease of accessibility for staff. In the event that the intranet is not available, all policies are available from the Board of Directors. Hard copies of all Standard Operating Procedures, Guidelines and Policy can be made available upon request.
3.5.1b DOCUMENT CONTROL PROCEDURES
DOCUMENT CONTROL PROCEDURES | |
DOCUMENT APPROVAL | Approval of a given document will take one of two forms:
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DOCUMENT INDICES | Each document must have a document index. They will all contain the following information:
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POLICY | A policy is an organisational wide framework which applies in all circumstances as relevant to all staff and can assist in both subjective and objective decision making. All staff must comply with policies at all times. Policies set out the main duties of staff and how they should be carried out. Many policies incorporate legal or statutory duties, how they apply and how staff are able to meet these duties through applying the policy. |
PROTOCOLS & PROCEDURES | Protocols dictate what we do, and audits of protocols ensure that we are doing what we say we will. A protocol is a document setting out the actions or steps to be followed by staff relevant to the subject set out in the document. Protocols can be associated with a policy and describe how a policy is carried out. Protocols are step by step instructions on how operational activities will be carried out. They are precise and detailed and must be adhered to by all staff to which they are relevant. Protocols can be in pictorial form. |
DOCUMENT DEVELOPMENT | Once a need for new or revised documentation has been identified it must be allocated to the most appropriate individual for action:- The allocation of such work will necessarily take into consideration:
The individual with responsibility for producing the document must do so utilising the appropriate template (if available). They must ensure that all sections including appendices are fully completed in a timely manner, and submitted to the Board of Directors. The timescales for doing this will be dependent on the complexity of the document required and the level of risk associated with the document not being available to staff, and also current expiration dates. Should the author wish to extend the date by which they will submit a revised policy, they must first seek the authorisation and approval of the relevant Director, and then inform the Food Safety Team, in order that they may formally document the extension. Upon completion of the required document it must be submitted for ratification prior to implementation in line with appropriate timescales ratification and approval process. |
DOCUMENT RETENTION AND EXPIRIES | FERA is required to keep an archive of previous versions of certain documentation and records for the duration of the product shelf life plus 1 year in order to be able to provide a robust audit trail. This is the responsibility of the Board of Directors. All documents will have an expiry date. This date will depend on the nature of the document taking into account the anticipated pace of change, external requirements and risk, however, as mentioned above documentation may need to be reviewed earlier than anticipated under certain circumstances. All policies, official procedures and Standard Operating Procedures must be reviewed within 3 years as a minimum, however the usual timeframe for review is annualized to coincide with external audits. |
DOCUMENT REVISION | Once reviewed the reviewer may take any one of 3 courses of action: Review and Revise the document and seek re-ratification through the appropriate channels. Delete the document if it is no longer applicable (this must be agreed by the relevant ratification process). Delete the document with the approval of the board with a detailed description of the rationale. Review the document but leave it unchanged (NB when the reviewer decides to leave the document unchanged they must explain their reasons to the relevant ratification body and records must be retained in the minutes). |
ARCHIVED DOCUMENTS | Documents as they become obsolete and/or are superseded will be removed from circulation and replaced, if appropriate, with an updated version. A ‘master’ copy of each document will be archived. Archived policies will be accessible through the Board of Directors. |
3.5.1c DOCUMENT LIST: AN UP TO DATE LIST OF ALL DOCUMENTS INCLUDING ISSUE DATE, VERSION NUMBER AND DATE
Document List |