We can trace our history right back to 1792 when the Surveyors Club was formed.
However, the foundations of the current organisation started to properly take shape when 20 surveyors met at the Westminster Palace Hotel.
Under the chairmanship of John Clutton, they appointed a sub-committee to draw up resolutions, bye-laws and regulations. This was done in order to establish a professional association to represent surveyors and the growing property profession.
The Institution of Surveyors
This group, which had expanded to 49 members by 1868, met again at the Westminster Palace Hotel on 15 June 1868 to approve the resolutions and elect the first Council. John Clutton was elected the first president of the Institution of Surveyors. Offices were then leased at 12 Great George Street , which we still use as our headquarters today.
The requirement for such an organisation was driven by the rapid development and expansion of the industrialised world; as infrastructure, housing and transport links grew, so did the need for more stringent checks and balances.
Safeguarding the future
For more than 140 years, our professionals have worked to ensure that, while unlocking the inherent value held within the world's physical assets and developing its potential, we don't spoil the planet for future generations.
Even in parts of the world where the term 'chartered surveyor' means very little, the high standards of our professionals speak volumes. They are viewed by major financial institutions and world governments as the 'gold standard' when it comes to professional regulation in the property sector.
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