All Nominations must be received by Di Cooke before the 1st February 2008.

HONOURS GUIDELINES

The Royal Life Saving Society UK has always been very conscious of the enormous amount of time, effort and dedication given by its many members. In order to recognise outstanding contributions a series of Society Honours are awarded to individuals by the National Honours Committee. This Committee currently comprises the Chairman of the National Honours Committee, the President of RLSS UK and the Deputy President. A member of Headquarters staff is responsible for administration.

The concept underlying the Honours system is that length of service and meritorious work should each be recognised separately. There are, therefore, two series of Honours - Service Honours and Merit Honours. Each series is independent of the other and each has different criteria of eligibility. Individuals may, and often will, hold both Service and Merit Honours and could receive one of each in a single year. It should be emphasized that both Service Honours and Merit Honours have equal value and are awarded in recognition of valuable work done to support the aims of the Society.

NOMINATION PROCEDURE

1. It is recommended that each Branch should have a small Honours Committee. This Committee should keep a list of possible nominees and should ensure, as far as possible, that no deserving person is overlooked.
2. Branches should make every effort to ensure that those who are eligible for Service Honours are aware of their eligibility and should encourage members to bring to the attention of the Branch Honorary Secretary their years of service.
3. Local Managers, Affiliated Organisations and Society Members should be encouraged to submit the names and records of service of possible nominees for Merit Honours to the Branch Honours Committee; in non-Branch areas overseas, nominations should be made directly to Headquarters.
4. In the case of Merit Honours no individual may write his/her own nomination and a nominee should not be aware that his/her name has been put forward. Nominations for Merit Honours must be written, as far as is possible, without reference to, or with the knowledge of, the individual concerned.

NOMINATION FORMS

1. The forms to be used for nominations are supplied to Branches from Headquarters together with instructions for their completion. It is essential that these instructions are followed carefully as failure to do so may jeopardise the award of an Honour.
2. Nomination forms for Merit Honours may only be signed by the Branch Chairman or President (unless the recipient holds both of these offices) but for Service Honours may alternatively be signed by the Branch Honorary Secretary. No individual may sign his/her own Service or Merit nomination form.
3. Fully completed and signed nomination forms must be forwarded to RLSS UK Headquarters to arrive by the closing date (see Timetable for Honours Nominations). Nominations that arriving after this date, may not be considered. It is strongly recommended that the Post Office 'Recorded Delivery' or 'Special Delivery' service should be used to safeguard their transmission to us and supply you with proof of delivery. It is advisable to retain a copy of the nominations.
4. Nominations from non-Branch areas overseas should be submitted direct to RLSS UK Headquarters after being endorsed by the most senior RLSS officer available.

NATIONAL HONOURS COMMITTEE

1. This is a Sub Committee of the Management Board and is appointed to consider nominations for Society Honours. It receives these nominations from Branches and from Regional Chairmen. It has the authority to make its own nominations, particularly for individuals who have rendered service at national level.
2. The National Honours Committee may reject, upgrade or downgrade nominations, particularly if a citation is insufficient.
   Its decision is final and its proceedings are confidential. A Branch's Honours Committee however will be notified the reasons for amendment or rejection.

PUBLICATION OF LIST OF HONOURS

Individual recipients of Honours are notified directly from RLSS UK Headquarters on behalf of the RLSS UK President. Once any minor errors on the list (spelling, etc,) have been advised by recipients and corrections made, a complete List is published and distributed to Branches through Relay.

PRESENTATION OF HONOURS CEREMONY

1. All recipients of National Honours (both Merit and Service) are invited to attend the Presentation of Honours Ceremony without charge. It is possible for recipients to bring guests with them to the Ceremony and full details are sent to all recipients. If numbers attending need to be restricted this will be on a "first come, first served" basis.
2. Following the Ceremony for those recipients unable to attend, his/her insignia will be forwarded to the local RLSS UK Branch for presentation. In the case on non-Branch areas the insignia is distributed appropriately.
   

The forms to be used for nominations are available from the Branch Secretary, Di Cooke. Please ring her on 07970424669 or email Suzanne Martindale on pro@rlss-sussex.co.uk The Honours form can also be downloaded by using the link at the bottom of this page.

"FRIENDS OF THE SOCIETY" CERTIFICATES

Certificates awarded by a Branch Management Committee, on behalf of RLSS UK, may be made to individuals who are not members of the Society, and to groups or organisations in the Branch area who have rendered valuable service to the Society.

Certificates will be available, free of charge, on application to Headquarters. For each nomination the Branch is requested to give the name of the individual/group/club etc. with a brief reason for issue. Certificates will be inscribed and returned to Branches as soon as possible following application.

HONOURS AWARDED BEFORE 1994

Prior to 1994 there was a single series of Honours, each awarded on the basis of a combination of length of service and merit. Holders of such 'old' Honours will be deemed to have already been awarded both a Service Honour and a Merit Honour according to the following table, please use this to decide whether or not a nominee is eligible for a particular Honour:

Already held

Considered to hold

'Old' Honour		Service Honour		Merit Honour
President's Commendation		Certificate of Thanks		Certificate of Merit
Certificate of Thanks		Service Medal		Certificate of Merit
Recognition Badge		Service Medal		Medal of Distinction
Bar to Recognition Badge		Bar to Service Medal		Medal of Distinction
Service Cross		Service Cross		Medal of Honour
Bar to Service Cross		Bar to Service Cross		Medal of Honour

Members may not receive any Honour, Service or Merit, which is lower than or equivalent to one already held.

For example, a holder of a pre-1994 Recognition Badge is considered already to hold the Service Medal and Medal of Distinction. The next Service Honour for which they would be eligible is the Bar to Service Medal (16 years service) or higher. The next Merit Honour for which they could be nominated (if deemed to fulfil the criteria) would be the Bar to Medal of Distinction.

It should be recognised that recipients of the Certificate of Thanks and the Service Cross prior to 1994 received their Honours for both merit and service. In both cases the 'new' Certificate of Thanks and Service Cross certificates and medal are of a different design.

SERVICE HONOURS

Service Honours can be awarded to individual members, members of affiliated clubs/organisations and ATCs in membership, for years of continuous service to the Society.

Definition of Service is teaching or examining or assisting with the organisation or promotion of a group or club, or other significant contribution to the work of the Society. The nominee should show a consistenly high level of commitment to the Society

Service should not comprise simply of membership of the Society or a club, or obtaining lifesaving awards, or for taking part in competitions. Service may be taken from the age of 14 years (if appropriate) providing the relevant criteria are met.

Certificate of Thanks		4 and 8 years service (More than one may be awarded)
Service Medal		12 years service
Bar to Service Medal		16 years service
Service Cross		20 years service
1st Bar to Service Cross		25 years service
2nd Bar to Service Cross		30 years service
Honorary UK Life Member		35 years service
Recognition of Service		40 years service * introduced for 2007
UK Long Service Medal		50 years or more service

1. It is the responsibility of Branches to check and confirm, as far as is practicable, the length of service of an individual member. Nomination forms must be signed by the Branch President, Chairman or Honorary Secretary confirming that the nominee has completed the required years of service. Nominations may be rejected if incorrect information is given.
2. No citations are required as a Service Honour is a recognition solely of length of service.
3. Information given by Branches of a member's length of service will, wherever possible, be verified by details kept at River House, but in all cases should correspond with the date for commencement of service. If an individual is in dispute with his or her Branch over such confirmation, an appeal may be made to the National Honours Committee, but this is expected to be a very rare occurrence and would only be upheld if very compelling documentary proof was submitted.
4. The first Service Honour awarded to an individual may only be the highest for which he or she is eligible. For example, a member with 20 years continuous service may receive a Service Cross, but may not also receive a Certificate of Thanks or Service Medal. If the first Service Honour is a Bar to Service Medal, and the individual does not already hold a Service Medal, this will be presented with the Bar.
5. Service should be calculated to the end of the previous year in which the nomination is to be made, e.g. for 2008 Honours number of years of service is up to 31 December 2007 Please ensure commencement date matches the number of years service (information at the end of these Guidelines)..

MERIT HONOURS

There is a national upper limit to the number of Merit Honours (not Service Honours) that may be awarded in any one year.

Each Branch will be allocated a maximum of 15 Merit Honours, no more than 5 of which can be allocated to Medals of Distinction or above. The remainder can be allocated to either Certificates of Merit or Recognition.

Merit Honours are awarded, as the name implies, to individual members, members of affiliated clubs/organisations and ATCs in membership, for meritorious contribution to the Society. There is no length of service requirement for Merit Honours although it would be difficult for a nominee to fulfil the criteria for one of the higher Merit Honours without having contributed to the work of the Society for a significant number of years.

Certificate of Merit
awarded for 'Meritorious Contribution' at Club or Branch level and endorsed by the Branch. May be awarded more than once but with an interval of at least two years between awards

Certificate of Recognition
Awarded for continuing contribution at Club or Branch level. May be awarded more than once and nominee would have normally received at least 1 Certificate of Merit with an interval of at least 2 years between awards

Medal of Distinction
awarded for outstanding work at Club, Branch or Regional level or notable contribution at National level. The nominee would normally have received one or more Certificates of Merit and Certificates of Recognition

Bar(s) to Medal of Distinction
awarded for continuing outstanding work at Club, Branch or Regional level and/or notable contribution at National level. To be awarded at intervals of four years and eight years following receipt of the Medal of Distinction

Medal of Honour
awarded for exceptional contribution at Branch or Regional level, and/or outstanding work at National level as well

UK Honorary Life Governor
awarded for an outstanding contribution to the Society as a whole. It would be exceptional for this contribution to have been at Branch level alone, and it would normally be expected that 'outstanding contribution' would also have been given at National Level

UK Honorary Vice President
awarded for a supreme level of contribution to the Society. This Honour would be suitable for someone who has chaired several National committees over a period of time and done so with outstanding ability or made a similar supreme level of contribution to the Society at Branch or Regional level.

1. Merit Honours are awarded by the National Honours Committee on the basis of the citations, where applicable, that must accompany each nomination. It is therefore essential that citations are carefully prepared and worded to show how the nominee fulfils the criteria for the proposed Honour. Such generalisations as "has made an outstanding contribution to the Branch" are very unlikely to be deemed sufficient.
2. Citations should emphasize work done for the Society since the last award of a Merit or Pre-1994 'Old' Honour.
3. No citation is required for the Certificate of Merit or Certificate of Recognition, although the National Honours Committee reserves the right to request one.
4. Although it would be expected that a Member would progress through the Merit Honours there is no absolute requirement for this if exceptional service has been given to the Society. Criteria for each of the Merit Honours are given in the list above; it is these criteria that will be used by the National Honours Committee to determine if the proposed Honour shall be awarded. (A 'Suggestion Sheet' is attached, to assist completion of the nomination).

TIMETABLE FOR HONOURS NOMINATIONS

(Dates marked * are to be regarded as absolute and applicable for 2008)

Notification of Honours Guidelines to Branches		November 2007
Receipt of completed Nomination Forms by Branch from Individual, Branch or Club official		1st February 2008
Meeting of Branch Honours Committee		February 2008
* Closing date for Receipt of Honours Nominations at HQ		31st March, 2008
Meeting of National Honours Committee		21 May 2008
Despatch of Individual notification to Honours recipients		from June 2008
*Receipt of corrections from recipients		By July 2008
*Publication of Honours List to Branches		July 2008 Branch Relay
*Receipt of Honours Ceremony ticket applications		By 22nd August 2008
Presentation of Honours Ceremony, Guildhall		Saturday 4th October 2008
*Dispatch of outstanding Honours insignia		October 2008 Branch Relay

The following information is given to enable correct nominations to be recommended:

Service should be calculated to the end of the previous year in which the nomination is to be made, i.e. for 2008, the number of years service is up to 31 December 2007. Service should have commenced 1 January 2003 or earlier to be eligible to receive a Service Honour in 2008.

Start date	Length of service	Able to be nominated for
2003	4 years	Certificate of Thanks
2002	5 years
2001	6 years
2000	7 years
1999	8 years	Certificate of Thanks
1998	9 years
1997	10 years
1996	11 years
1995	12 years	Service Medal
1994	13 years
1993	14 years
1992	15 years
1991	16 years	Bar to Service Medal
1987	20 years	Service Cross
1982	25 years	1st Bar to Service Cross
1977	30 years	2nd Bar to Service Cross
1972	35 years	Honorary UK Life Member
1967	40 years	Recognition of Service Award
1957	50 years	UK Long Service Medal