# LC36 -- Control of Organisational Change

## Condition

Licence Condition 36 requires the licensee to make and implement adequate arrangements to control any changes to the **organisational structure or resources** (including contractors) which may affect safety. The safety implications of any proposed change must be assessed before it is implemented.

## Key Requirements

- Adequate arrangements must exist for controlling organisational change
- All proposed changes that may affect safety must be subject to a prior safety assessment
- The arrangements must cover changes to staffing levels, reporting structures, contractor arrangements and the allocation of safety responsibilities
- Changes must not be implemented until the assessment demonstrates that safety will not be adversely affected
- The arrangements apply to both permanent restructuring and temporary changes

## Relevance to Decommissioning

Decommissioning programmes are particularly susceptible to organisational change:

- **Long timescales.** UK decommissioning programmes span decades. Over such periods, multiple reorganisations of the licensee, changes of Site Licence Company (SLC), and shifts in NDA strategy are virtually inevitable. Each must be assessed under LC36.
- **Workforce transitions.** As operational staff retire and decommissioning progresses, the workforce composition changes substantially. Skills in reactor operation give way to requirements for demolition engineering, waste management and environmental remediation. LC36 ensures these transitions are managed safely.
- **Contractor dependency.** Decommissioning relies heavily on specialist contractors. Changes to contracting strategy, contract scope, or key contractor personnel can affect safety and must be assessed.
- **Knowledge management.** Organisational change is one of the primary mechanisms through which institutional knowledge is lost. LC36 arrangements should include consideration of whether proposed changes would result in loss of safety-critical knowledge.
- **NDA estate restructuring.** The periodic competition and re-designation of Parent Body Organisations (PBOs) and SLCs for NDA sites represents a major organisational change that must be assessed under LC36.

## Docket Cross-References

- Chapter 6, Section 6.5 -- Key Nuclear Site Licence Conditions

## See Also

- [LC26](LC26.md) -- Control and Supervision of Operations (SQEP requirements)
- [LC35](LC35.md) -- Decommissioning (decommissioning arrangements affected by change)