22 July 2005

The SRS will close in December 2008. There will be a programme of phased closure of stations beginning in 2006. The SRS station plan is under development and an announcement will be made in advance of the SR User meeting in September indicating which stations will close in March 2006. CCLRC has held detailed discussions with Diamond and the Wellcome Trust in preparation for the planned closure of stations on the SRS, focusing on the issues related to the migration of users from SRS to Diamond. Details of the build-up of the beamlines at Diamond are available on the Diamond website at http://www.diamond.ac.uk/Beamlines/Beamlineplan/default.htm where you will also find an outline document which provides information for prospective users and sets out plans for a number of key areas of interest including guidance on issues such as the anticipated timing of the first call for proposals.

Grantholders and others who have programme mode access allocated at the SRS should note that there will be no automatic transfer of beamtime from SRS to Diamond. Continuity for programmes is recognised as important and hence awards of the programme mode type may move across but with a fresh assessment of the appropriate allocation of beamtime by Diamond Peer Review Panels following separate application to Diamond.

Questions or comments should be emailed to Professor Mike Chesters ( m.a.chesters@dl.ac.uk )
or Dr Tracy Turner ( t.s.turner@dl.ac.uk ).