When to bring in support
- A stage 1 or stage 2 audit is booked and you are not confident the system is ready
- A previous audit raised nonconformities that need a credible response
- The person who built or ran the system has left
- A surveillance or recertification audit is due after a period of change
- You are certified to ISO 14001:2015 and need to plan the move to ISO 14001:2026
Stage 1 readiness
The stage 1 audit checks whether the system is designed and ready for stage 2. The auditor typically looks at the scope, documented information, the context and risk processes, legal and other requirements, objectives, and whether internal audit and management review are planned or done. Gaps at stage 1 are cheaper to fix than gaps at stage 2, so this is where a readiness review pays for itself.
Stage 2 readiness
Stage 2 tests whether the system is implemented and effective across the scope. Auditors interview people at different levels, follow records from risk assessment to control to inspection, sample training and competence, look at incidents and corrective actions, and check that operational controls happen in practice. A system that exists mainly on paper is exposed quickly.
What a readiness assessment covers
- Audit-style sampling. We sample your system the way an auditor will, across sites, processes and levels of the organisation.
- Documentation check. Required documented information is present, controlled and consistent with what people actually do.
- Implementation evidence. Records demonstrate that processes have operated over a meaningful period.
- Internal audit and management review. Both completed, recorded and producing actions, not just scheduled.
- Corrective actions. Open actions are closed or credibly in progress, with root causes addressed.
- Graded findings. A short report that separates what must be fixed before the audit from what can wait.
Nonconformity and corrective action support
If an audit raises nonconformities, the response has to deal with the cause, not only the symptom. We help you separate the immediate correction from the corrective action, carry out a proportionate root cause analysis, plan actions that will hold, and assemble the evidence the certification body asks for. Whether the response is accepted remains the certification body's decision.
Surveillance and recertification
After initial certification, surveillance audits normally take place at least annually within a three-year cycle, followed by a recertification audit. Systems tend to drift between audits, especially after staff changes or growth. A short review before each surveillance visit keeps internal audits, management review and corrective actions current. For ongoing support, see our ISO 45001 and ISO 14001 consultancy. Readiness assessments are scoped individually, and indicative fees for gap assessments and implementation are on our ISO consultancy pricing page.
Keeping the audit independent
We prepare you for the audit. We do not take part in it on the certification body's side or attempt to influence its findings. If you want us present on the day, we attend as your adviser, and the auditor will still speak directly to your people and draw their own conclusions.
Optional software support
Some clients use Featherstone Safety Hub, our separate health and safety software, to keep parts of their management system running between audits. Its features include a document register with version control, corrective action tracking, inspection and incident records and training records, and the Professional plan adds an environmental aspect register and legal compliance log.
It is entirely optional. Using it does not make a management system conform to ISO 45001 or ISO 14001 on its own, and the software itself is not ISO certified.
Why Featherstone Safety
Featherstone Safety Ltd is an independent UK occupational health and safety consultancy providing ISO management system consultancy and implementation support. Thomas Featherstone holds the NEBOSH International General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety and IOSH Managing Safely, is a Technical Member of IOSH (TechIOSH), and has eight years in safety-critical work.
- Systems that match the work. We build processes around how your organisation actually operates, so they survive contact with an auditor and with day-to-day pressure.
- Independent of certification. We are not a certification body and we do not issue certificates. Certification decisions are always made by an independent, accredited certification body.
- Practical site experience. Recent work includes on-site health and safety advisory and observation support during the delivery and installation of a 300 tonne super grid transformer. That was health and safety advisory work, not ISO consultancy, and it is not an endorsement of our ISO services.
Read more about Thomas Featherstone or see our case studies.
Frequently asked questions
How close to the audit can you help?
The earlier the better, because some gaps need time to generate evidence. Even a few weeks before an audit, a focused readiness review can identify the issues most likely to be raised and fix what can be fixed in time.
Can you carry out our internal audit before stage 2?
Yes. Internal auditors should be objective about what they audit, so where we have designed part of your system we agree with you how impartiality is maintained, for example by auditing other areas or coaching your own auditors.
What happens if we get a major nonconformity?
The certification body will set out what it needs before it can recommend or maintain certification, usually a corrective action plan and evidence that it has been implemented, sometimes with a follow-up visit. We help you build a response that addresses the cause and provides that evidence.
Does a readiness assessment mean we will pass?
No. It significantly reduces the risk of avoidable findings, but the audit is independent and its outcome is decided by the certification body.
Do you support ISO 14001:2026 transition audits?
Yes. We can review your existing ISO 14001:2015 system against the 2026 edition and help prepare for the audit at which your certification body assesses the transition.