Peer Review Disclaimer for Agencies Prior to an agency’s first accreditation evaluation, APWA recommends a peer review is performed to provide feedback on the agency’s responses to the practices and supporting documentation. This peer review is voluntary for the agency and for those performing the review.
The agency should contact APWA Accreditation staff to identify local agencies who may be willing to assist with the peer review. If no local representation is available, arrangements may be made to perform an electronic peer review.
There are no fees or reimbursable costs for the peer review.
On-site reviews will typically last 4-6 hours, depending on how many chapters are reviewed. Virtual reviews will allow up to two weeks for responses to be received back from the reviewer.
A peer review consists of the following:
- Review of applicable chapters
- At least one third of the practices in those applicable chapters should be reviewed
Reviewers are directed to be observant of the following items which could impact the compliance rating during the evaluation:
- Date of review on documents or supporting memo from director indicating document is current
- Practices asking for a policy only need to show a policy or allowed substitution (ordinance, resolution, statute)
- Practices asking for a procedure must show procedure and proof of implementation
- Any forms shown must be filled out
Comments made by the reviewers should be like comments provided by the evaluator during the evaluation. The reviewers during the peer review may assign tentative ratings to measure progress.
Comments, suggestions, or critiques provided by the reviewer during the peer review are intended to provide guidance to the agency. Implementing any of these made during the peer review do not in any manner guarantee a Full Compliance rating during the actual evaluation. The evaluator will make the final determination as to the appropriate compliance level to assign based on the full review performed.
