Consultation Responses

LASA's response to the Home Office consultation on the transposition of European directive 2010/63/EU - protection of animals used for scientific purposes

Position Papers

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3Rs Position Paper.

Education and Training Position Paper.

Transgenics Position Paper.

Publications

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Guiding Principles on Good Practice for Ethical Review Processes

RSPCA & LASA 2010 Guiding Principles on Good Practice for Ethical Review Processes. A report by the RSPCA Research Animals Department and LASA Education, Training and Ethics section. (M. Jennings ed.)
"This document is intended to help interpret the requirements for UK local Ethical Review Processes (ERPs) and, by sharing good practices, to develop more efficient and effective processes. It has been produced in response to comments that there is “scope for improvement in this area” made by the Home Office, the Animal Procedures Committee (APC) and others working within the ‘Better Regulation’ agenda."

Guiding Principles for Preparing for and Undertaking Aseptic Surgery

LASA 2010 Guiding Principles for Preparing for and Undertaking Aseptic Surgery. A report by the LASA Education, Training and Ethics section. (M. Jennings and M. Berdoy eds.).
"This document is designed as a guide to aseptic technique for both new and experienced personal licence holders who undertake surgical procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act, 1986 (it does not deal with housing, husbandry, anaesthesia and analgesia in detail). Aseptic technique is essential when undertaking surgery on any species and the principles laid out in this document apply (equally) to both recovery surgery and lengthy procedures carried out under terminal anaesthesia."

Guidance on dose level selection for regulatory general toxicology studies for pharmaceuticals

LASA & NC3Rs 2009.
A key objective of the NC3Rs/LASA collaboration is to provide practical guidance for Study Directors and other toxicologists working in the field of regulatory toxicology. This document is aimed specifically at scientists that are new to, or training in, the role of Study Director. Drawing on the knowledge and experience of the working group members, the guidance document is intended to supplement the process of training and mentoring of Study Directors to improve the scientific outcome of regulatory general toxicology studies (see Figure 1) and to promote the application of the 3Rs.

Animal Welfare, Ethics and the 3Rs Training Materials and Resources

2009 Animal Welfare, Ethics and the 3Rs Training materials and resources. (D.I. Lewis ed.).
This resource arose out of a project funded by the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) and Laboratory Animal Science Association (LASA) to evaluate provision of training in animal welfare, ethics and law within UK Higher Education and to gather and disseminate good practice and teaching materials.

E-version constantly updated, new contributions or modifications to existing materials always welcome and feedback on resources also welcomed.
Contact 3Rs@leeds.ac.uk

9 Pages

Guiding Principles on Record Keeping for Personal Licence Holders

LASA 2009 Guiding Principles on Record Keeping for Personal Licence Holders. A report by the LASA Education, Training and Ethics section. (M. Jennings and M. Berdoy eds.).
"This document provides personal licensees with guidance on record keeping when carrying out regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, (ASPA). It aims to act as a reminder of what is legally required as well as suggest examples of good practice."

Final report of a LASA/APC Working Group to examine the feasibility of reporting data on the severity of scientific procedures on animals

LASA/APC 2008 Final report of a LASA/APC Working Group to examine the feasibility of reporting data on the severity of scientific procedures on animals.
"This is the final report of a Working Group (WG) convened under the auspices of Laboratory Animal Science Association (LASA) and the Suffering and Severity Working Group of the Animal Procedures Committee (APC), to assess the feasibility of collecting and reporting data on the actual severity of adverse effects experienced by animals used in procedures regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 [ASPA]."

37 pages

Guiding Principles on the Supervision Requirements for Personal Licensees

LASA 2007 Guiding Principles on the Supervision Requirements for Personal Licensees. A report by the LASA Education, Training and Ethics section. (M. Jennings and M. Berdoy eds.).
"Good supervision during training of personal licensees working under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act, 1986 is central to the development of core skills and attitudes, such that legal, scientific and animal welfare requirements are satisfied. The Home Office considers this to be so important that the supervisory requirements are stated as standard conditions on the personal and project licence, with an additional condition applied to personal licences as appropriate. However, there is little detailed guidance on what supervision should entail. Flexibility with regard to how supervision is implemented is deliberate to accommodate the varying practices that arise from differing circumstances at establishments. Nevertheless, there are common principles of good practice that can be adapted to fit the requirements of all establishments."

14 pages

The Value of Looking Back: Improving Science and Welfare through Retrospective Review

LASA 2007 The Value of Looking Back: Improving Science and Welfare through Retrospective Review. Poster produced by M. Jennings (RSPCA), B. Howard (LASA) & M. Berdoy (Oxford University).
"Retrospective Review can improve welfare, science, ethics and project management when it is done well but its value is heavily dependant upon how it is carried out... The general principles are relevant to any arrangement for reviewing animal work, including reviews carried out by funding or grant-awarding bodies."

A4 poster

Project Licence Abstracts Aide Memoir

LASA 2006 Project Licence Abstracts Aide Memoir.
"The primary purpose - To inform the general public in clear unambiguous terms what the proposed work involves, why there is a need to do this work, what are the benefits and what are the potential costs."

1 Page

Guidelines for the Transport of Laboratory Animals

LASA 2005 Guidelines for the Transport of Laboratory Animals produced by the LASA Transport Working Group.
Supplementary information for those transporting animals within or through the UK.
"This information resource is intended to complement the full LASA Guidelines for laboratory animal transport published on Laboratory Animals (2005) 39, 1 - 39. The LASA Guidelines set out good practice for planning and executing journeys so as to minimise stress, improve welfare and ensure that animals arrive in good health. It is essential to read the Guidelines in full to obtain maximum benefit from this resource, which sets out relevant UK legislation and uses the same headings as the Guidelines for ease of reference."

5 Pages

Key considerations in the breeding of macaques and marmosets for scientific purposes

LASA/MRC 2004 Key considerations in the breeding of macaques and marmosets for scientific purposes. Report from the CBPAR Expert Working Group.
"The Laboratory Animal Science Association (LASA) and the Medical Research Council (MRC) share a common philosophy on the use of animals in scientific research. Both organisations believe that, where animals have to be sued for scientific purposes, they should receive high-quality care, and an environment that caters as fully as possible for their physical, behavioural and psychological requirements, throughout their lifetimes. To reflect this commitment, the two organisations, under the auspices of the Centre for Best Practice for Animals In Research (CBPAR), have convened an expert working group to define the general principles which underpin good practice in the breeding of macaques and marmosets for scientific purposes. This statement sets out these principles ..."

7 Pages

Guidance Notes on Retrospective Review

LASA 2004 Guidance notes on Retrospective Review. A discussion document prepared by the LASA Ethics and Training Group. (M. Jennings and B. Howard eds.).
"the authors of the report ... examined approaches taken by a number of different UK Designated Establishments to clarify the purpose of retrospective review and to provide guidance on how the usefulness and effectiveness of the process can be optimised. It specifically addresses UK ERPs, but the principles can be applied to any body established to review research involving the use of animals. The guidelines are also relevant to deliberations on ethical review made by funding bodies and other review panels."

10 Pages

Guidance on the Rehoming of Laboratory Dogs

LASA 2004 Meeting on rehoming laboratory animals. (M. Jennings and B. Howard eds.).
"Some establishments have successfully rehomed laboratory dogs over many years - an exercise that has proved beneficial to the individual animal, the new owner and the staff at the rehoming establishment itself. If this practice is to be encouraged and become more widespread, it must be on the basis that informed and expert opinion considers the process to be in the interest of the animals in question. ..."

26 Pages

The Selection of Non-rodent Species for Pharmaceutical Toxicology

LASA 2001. Good Practice Guidelines Series 3/Isssue 1 (D. Smith and R. Hubrecht).

7 Pages

The Production and Disposition of Laboratory Rodents Surplus to the Requirements for Scientific Procedures

LASA 1998. A report of a LASA Task Force Meeting held in June 1998.

24 Pages