Met Office Hadley Centre Science Review Group (SRG) Terms of Reference

The Terms of Reference for the Met Office Hadley Centre Science Review Group (SRG), including the group's remit, structure and membership.

Remit

The Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ) commissions the Met Office Hadley Centre (MOHC) on behalf of Government to undertake a programme of work in climate science and modelling, to meet Government priorities in contributing to the UK Climate Science capability and provide the evidence base to support DESNZ, Defra and FCDO departmental objectives on Climate Change (the ‘government customers’).

The Met Office Hadley Centre Science Review Group (MOHC SRG) brings together experts from different disciplines to advise its government customers on the content, progress, scientific excellence, relevance and impact of the Met Office Hadley Centre Climate Programme funded by Government.

At a high level the SRG has three roles:

Assessing the extent to which the MOHC Climate Programme undertakes science of the appropriate quality to provide the best advice on climate science to its government customers.
Assessing the relevance and impact that the Climate Programme has in providing climate science and services to support UK government policy and wider MOHC activities.
Assessing the impact that the Climate Programme has on the wider UK and international community, including its relationship with other research organisations, and the effectiveness of its communication activities.

To do this the SRG will:

Review the overall performance of the MOHC in meeting the priorities of its government customers as reflected in the MOHCCP.
Review and quality assure major scientific developments in the work of the MOHCCP, providing advice on whether there is an appropriate balance between scientific excellence and policy-led science.
Advise on the content and strategic direction of the MOHCCP and its links with other components of the Met Office, and with the UK and international climate and impact science community.
Review collaborations and interactions between MOHCCP and research activities in the UK and internationally. In particular, identify how they help deliver the objectives of the programme and the impact of the MOHCCP on UK and international research.
Assess indicators of impact of MOHCCP and review MOHC communication strategy, focussing on whether it reaches relevant audiences, accessibility and impact.

Membership

The SRG has a membership of 10 to 12 Members, each of whom is recruited for a 4-year term, on a staggered basis. Members may be re-appointed, to a total maximum of 8 years. See Annex 1 for a list of current and outgoing members.

The SRG Chair will be appointed by the MOHCCP Senior Responsible Owner (DESNZ’s Head of Climate Science) in consultation with the Director of the MOHC. Members will be appointed by the MOHCCP Senior Responsible Owner in consultation with the Director of the MOHC and the SRG Chair. Membership will aim to bring together a broad range of expertise, including the application of research outputs for mitigation and adaptation activities. A balance between UK and non-UK experts is desirable. For specific issues additional experts may be temporarily consulted or asked to provide a written review.

Meeting frequency and structure

The SRG meets annually, normally in the winter, and co-ordinated with the annual meeting of the Met Office Science Advisory Committee (MOSAC). The SRG will share plenary sessions with MOSAC to examine issues related to Met Office underpinning science and supercomputing relevant to both the Public Weather Service (PWS) and Climate Programme. The meeting will allow adequate time for SRG separate sessions and discussion with MOHC Strategic Heads. Plenary and separate SRG sessions will aim to balance presentation and discussion time. The agenda for the meetings will be agreed between DESNZ, Defra, FCDO, the SRG Chair and the Director of MOHC. DESNZ, Defra, FCDO and SRG members will receive a full pack of meeting papers at least two weeks in advance of the SRG meeting.

Report

The SRG will produce a report outlining the main conclusions and recommendations arising from the review process, which will be submitted to DESNZ’s, Defra’s and FCDO’s Chief Scientific Advisors and the MOHC Programme Board. The report will follow the high-level objectives described in the “Remit” section above.

The report will be delivered within 6 weeks following the SRG meeting. DESNZ, Defra and FCDO may request a draft version of the report prior to that date, in which case the SRG Chair will agree the terms under which the draft report will be delivered.

Annex

Met Office Hadley Centre Science Review Group - Members’ Terms of Service Details