10th August 2006, 03:56 PM
Peter Wardle asks
Do we have volunteer accountants, lawyers or doctors?
Do we have volunter gardeners, brickies or plumbers?
A remark which seems to have gone unquestioned. But the answer is 'Yes, of course we do'. And I for one I would wholeheartedly disagree with the increasing professionalisation of everything. In this country, if you want to, you are completely legally entitled to
Anyone can and should be encouraged to do archaeology, whenever they like wherever they like. As with repairing your own car, or doing your own household wiring, or building your own wall, its best to read the Haynes Manual, the IEE Regulations or the Local Authority Building Regulations first. So in archaeology a person proposing to do an archaeological excavation on their own private land should seek advice from professionals. But they are not compelled to employ professionals. I remember a delightful programme on Radio 4 about a chap in Monmouthshire who bought his own field with a deserted medieval village in it so that he and the local amateur archaeology society could spend the rest of their lives excavating it. Not professionals, just enthusiasts.
Contract archaeology is another matter altogether because here a non-professional has chosen to employ a professional (you or I) to undertake a task for which a fee has been agreed. This agreement is subject to rules and regulations of the local authority (curator) and the relevant professional institutions (IFA or ICE). So in those circumstances volunteer labour should be avoided or declared to the client, and the regulating authorities, at the outset.
(Rant over
. Sorry to sound quite so much like the Daily Mail, which was not my intention at all)
Edited just to be on the safe side of the AUP, to sound less like the Daily Mail, and to shorten it ever so slightly!
Do we have volunteer accountants, lawyers or doctors?
Do we have volunter gardeners, brickies or plumbers?
A remark which seems to have gone unquestioned. But the answer is 'Yes, of course we do'. And I for one I would wholeheartedly disagree with the increasing professionalisation of everything. In this country, if you want to, you are completely legally entitled to
- manage your own finances and accounts, including tax returns, up to certain (quite high) limits beyond which professional auditing is required
- represent yourself in court, undertake your own conveyancing etc. etc., or indeed even represent someone else in court
- look after your own health and wellbeing through diet, lifestyle and exercise, no-one forces you to go to a doctor
- plant whatever you like, whenever you like in your own garden (or even concrete it over if you so choose), or do gardening for someone else without a qualification from the RHS
- build brick, stone, concrete or even timber walls entirely yourself, as long as you comply with building regulations - you can even submit your own architectural plans for planning purposes without reference to an architect
- do all and any plumbing as long as it does not involve gas appliances for which you need a CORGI-registered tradesman
Anyone can and should be encouraged to do archaeology, whenever they like wherever they like. As with repairing your own car, or doing your own household wiring, or building your own wall, its best to read the Haynes Manual, the IEE Regulations or the Local Authority Building Regulations first. So in archaeology a person proposing to do an archaeological excavation on their own private land should seek advice from professionals. But they are not compelled to employ professionals. I remember a delightful programme on Radio 4 about a chap in Monmouthshire who bought his own field with a deserted medieval village in it so that he and the local amateur archaeology society could spend the rest of their lives excavating it. Not professionals, just enthusiasts.
Contract archaeology is another matter altogether because here a non-professional has chosen to employ a professional (you or I) to undertake a task for which a fee has been agreed. This agreement is subject to rules and regulations of the local authority (curator) and the relevant professional institutions (IFA or ICE). So in those circumstances volunteer labour should be avoided or declared to the client, and the regulating authorities, at the outset.
(Rant over
. Sorry to sound quite so much like the Daily Mail, which was not my intention at all)Edited just to be on the safe side of the AUP, to sound less like the Daily Mail, and to shorten it ever so slightly!