The CAA has released proposals of a new system of Air Traffic Control Services Outside Controlled Airspace (ATSOCAS) which would involve the replacement of the current system of air traffic services such as FIS, RIS, Mandatory Control, Air Traffic Advisory Service and Approach Control Service with four new levels of service: Basic, Traffic, Deconfliction and Procedural.
The proposals come about due to concerns raised by controllers, pilots and incident investigators who were worried that there were differences in how the various existing ATSOCAS were being provided, and a general lack of understanding of the subject.
It's all part of a new 'industry-wide Airspace and Safety Initiative', which is a joint CAA, NATS, airports, GA and MoD effort to look into the major safety risks in UK airspace. See
www.airspacesafety.com for information.
The proposals, which you can read online at the CAA website are part of a consultation which is due to finish on 14 December.