ANSTO Act
ANSTO is subject to the provisions of various Commonwealth Acts, Regulations made under these various Acts and Commonwealth Awards. The principal Act is the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation Act 1987 (ANSTO Act) which details the organisation's functions, powers, Board, Chief Executive Officer's duties, staffing, finance and other roles and responsibilities.
The Act (No. 3 of 1987 as amended) and taking into account amendments up to Act No. 46 109 of 20112017, as prepared by the Office of Legislative Drafting and Publishing, Attorney-General's Department, Canberra (19 September 201727 December 2011) and can be found on the Federal Register of Legislation website.
ANSTO's purpose
As outlined in the ANSTO Act 1987, the organisation's core functions are to:
- Conduct research and development in relation to nuclear science and technology
- Produce and use radioisotopes, isotopic techniques and nuclear radiation for medicine, science, industry, commerce and agriculture
- Encourage and facilitate the application and use of the results from research and development
- Manage radioactive materials and waste arising from various prescribed activities
- Provide goods and services related to core activities
- Provide advice to Government and undertake international liaison in nuclear-related matters
- Make available facilities, equipment and expertise for research in nuclear science and technology
- Publish scientific and technical reports, periodicals and papers, and provide public information and advice
ANSTO's core values
- Curiosity: Harness our curiosity to explore new opportunities and create an environment where ideas can thrive
- Excellence: Consistently delivering high-value outcomes and looking for ways to improve the quality of our performance
- Leadership: Ownership, accountability and working with integrity to inspire and motivate others
- Trust and respect: An inclusive environment that's built on our trust and respect for each other's contributions and capabilities
- Working together: Success through collaboration, teamwork and a sense of collective purpose
- Safe, secure and sustainable: Three key principles that underpin everything we do and every decision we make
See ANSTO's vision, mission, and strategic objectives
ANSTO Charters
Board Charter and Relationship with Management
Download the ANSTO Board: Charter and Relationship with Management
Remuneration and Nomination Committee Charter
Modern Slavery Statement
Download the Modern Slavery Statement. In accordance with the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth)
Service Charter
This Service Charter sets out a statement of what ANSTO does and the standards of product and service you can expect from the organisation.
ANSTO has a commitment to quality as per the requirements for ISO9001. Read more.
Who we are
ANSTO is Australia's national nuclear organisation. Its functions and activities are set down by the ANSTO Act 1987. ANSTO is a statutory authority with its own Board and reports to the Australian Parliament.
What we do
We offer products and services and undertake research and development projects in:
- The application, manufacture and supply of radiopharmaceuticals
- Irradiation services including radioactivity and dosimetry standardisation
- Radiation protection and occupational health and safety
- Environmental monitoring and dosimetry services
- The design, construction, installation and testing of equipment and facilities to meet rigorous regulatory standards
- Risk, reliability and safety management
- The management of radioactive wastes
- Environmental management
- The application of isotopes, neutrons and radioanalytical techniques to understanding environmental and industrial processes and providing solutions
- Analysis, characterisation and modification of materials by neutrons, ion beams and X-rays, and
- The processing of minerals and ceramics.
Our customers
ANSTO's customers come from both Australia and overseas. They include:
- Companies engaged in manufacturing, mining, mineral processing, environmental management, the health sector, petrochemical, energy and other technology based industries, and emerging high technology companies
- Government and international organisations
- Academia and research organisations.
ANSTO works with its customers in a number of ways. These include:
- Supplying products and services
- Undertaking research and development for and in partnership with government, industry and other research organisations
- Licensing our intellectual property for use elsewhere
- Providing consultancies
- Sponsored research
- Joint business activities.
Our customer service standards
We will:
- Treat all customers fairly, impartially and courteously
- Respond promptly to our customers' requests
- Understand our customers' business needs
- Provide fair and easily understood business arrangements that include mutual understanding and identification of each party's obligations
- Ensure our proposals, quality of service, reports and products are of a high standard
- Ensure the consistency and timeliness of service delivery with contractual terms
- Provide appropriate follow up advice and support
- Maintain appropriate confidentiality
- Comply with relevant health, safety and environmental regulations and guidelines
- Listen to our customers when they suggest ways to improve our services and give serious consideration to all suggestions.
If you phone, we will:
- answer your call promptly during normal office hours
- tell you the name of the person and area you have contacted
- transfer or refer you to an appropriate person if we are unable to assist you at first instance
- take your contact details and tell you when you can expect to receive a response, if we are not able to answer your query immediately.
If you submit an enquiry, we will:
- Acknowledge receipt of your request within two working days
- Reply within 10 working days or, if your business inquiry is more complex and requires more time, inform you of our progress in answering it.
If you write, we will:
- Reply within 10 working days or, if more time is required, inform you of the progress of your business inquiry
- Provide contact names and phone numbers in all correspondence.
ANSTO is a body corporate. Decisions on programs and activities within the organisation rest with the organisation.
How to get information
ANSTO seeks to assist the community in being well informed on our objectives and activities by providing up-to-date information in a wide variety of forms, including an Internet website.
To this end, we will provide reasonable information on our organisation, funding and activities free of charge to the community. We will also provide leaflets, booklets or other publications, where they are available, free of charge.
Information held by ANSTO and relevant to its functions as described under the ANSTO Act will be provided to the public within 20 working days, and will be in plain English. A request for such information must be as specific as possible and, unless of a straight-forward nature, in writing.
Public enquiries on an urgent issue will receive an immediate response from ANSTO. However, where the request would involve the use of substantial resources or produce an extensive workload, we will:
- Provide the inquirer with an estimate of the resources or workload involved, identifying all subject headings relating to the request
- Negotiate a more specific request, a fee for the provision of the information, and a time-frame for delivery.
ANSTO is not able to make available:
- Information that is confidential from a personal, business, legal, government or national security perspective, or is incomplete or in draft reports
- Documents containing information which would come within the exemptions specified in the Freedom of Information Act 1982 or documents which could clearly endanger safety.
ANSTO reserves the right to publicly disclose any request for information and any information provided pursuant to this Service Charter.
Monitoring and review
We welcome your feedback on our performance so we can improve our standards of service. If you have a compliment or suggestion, we will ensure that the relevant staff receive recognition or ideas for consideration.
If you are not satisfied with our services or have any concerns about them, please discuss this with the person you dealt with or their supervisor, and he or she will try to resolve your concerns.
If you are dissatisfied at any time with our handling of your complaint, or you feel that your complaint has still not been dealt with satisfactorily using ANSTO's internal mechanism, you may contact an office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman. The Commonwealth Ombudsman has offices in each State and Territory except Tasmania.
Complaints can be made:
- In person at any of these offices
- By telephoning 1300 362 072
- By writing to: The Commonwealth Ombudsman, GPO Box 442, Canberra, ACT 2601
- Via the internet on the Commonwealth Ombudsman's home page.
Checking our performance
We will:
- Monitor and evaluate our performance against the standards we have set in this Charter
- Report on our performance in the ANSTO Annual Report
- Make improvements on the basis of the monitoring process.
Statement of Expectations
The Minister for Industry and Science provided a Statement of Expectations to ANSTO on 9 December 2022.
To view the letter containing the Statement of Expectations, click here.
In May 2023, The Honourable Dr Annabelle Bennett, ANSTO Board Chair, shared ANSTO's Statement of Intent with the Minister for Industry, Science and Technology.
To view the letter containing the Statement of Intent, click here.
Policies and procedures
ANSTO provides a free enquiry service for members of the public requiring information about ANSTO and its research.
Find out more about our policies, procedures and legislative obligations.