The High Energy cosmic-Radiation Detection facility is a large field-of-view, high-energy cosmic ray experiment planned to be installed on the China Space Station in 2027. The Silicon Charge Detector is a specialized HERD sub-detector aimed at accurately measuring the cosmic ray absolute charge magnitude $Z$, thus separating chemical species in cosmic rays from hydrogen ($Z=1$) to iron ($Z=26$) and beyond. The SCD design is based on multiple layers of single-sided micro-strip sensors that measure the energy deposited and the impact position of the traversing particle. The status of the SCD design and results of prototypes tested on the test beam will be discussed.