This page combines links to regulating councils set up under specific legislation as well as professional associations performing a voluntary self-regulatory function.
Please note that organisations are listed here for information only and inclusion does not constitute a recommendation.
Statutory - Health
Statutory - Social Care
Voluntary self-regulators
Talking Treatments
Complementary & Alternative Medicine
A statutory regulator has the legal power to protect job titles and to require registration. This means that it is unlawful to describe oneself as a practitioner of a profession or to practise a profession without being registered with the relevant body. They have the power to investigate complaints about individual practitioners and to remove registrants if found guilty of serious misconduct.
General Medical Council (GMC)
Doctors must be registered with the GMC to practise medicine in the UK . The GMC will hear complaints about individual practitioners.
Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the UK regulatory body for the nursing and midwifery professions. The NMC maintains a register of around 672,000 qualified nurses, midwives and specialist community public health nurses. The role of the NMC is to protect the public by ensuring that nurses and midwives provide high standards of care.
Health Professions Council (HPC)
The HPC regulates 12 professions including physiotherapists, speech and language therapists, dieticians and occupational therapists.
General Dental Council (GDC)
It is illegal to describe oneself as a dentist without being registered with the GDC, except for dentists registered with the GMC and practising as non-NHS dentists. It is also illegal to describe oneself as a 'specialist' without being registered on one of the GDC's specialist lists. The GDC hears complaints about individual practitioners.
General Optical Council (GOC)
The body registering the optical professions (dispensing opticians and optometrists). It is an offence to practise without being registered. The GOC hears complaints about individual registrants.
General Osteopathic Council (GOsC)
For Osteopaths.
The General Chiropractic Council (GCC)
For Chiroprators.
Council for Health Care Regulatory Excellence
Oversees all other statutory regulators and has the power to refer regulatory bodies disciplinary decisions to the Courts.
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General Social Care Council (GSCC)
In September 2002 issued the first ever codes of practice for social care workers and employers. The codes set out the standards of practice and conduct these groups should meet. In April 2003 it launched the Social Care Register and began the process of registering all social care workers in England.
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Voluntary self-regulators will hear complaints and can promote standards for their registrants. However, as practitioners are not required by law to be registered in order to practice, they may continue to do so even if they have been removed from the register of the body of that profession. In addition to this, titles are not protected. This means anybody can describe themselves, for example, as a 'counsellor' regardless of their qualifications.
Listed below are some of the bigger registering bodies; there are many other organisations that are too numerous to list here.
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British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP)
Registers individual practitioners and organisations and will hear complaints about both.
United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
The UKCP is an umbrella body for psychotherapy training organisations. Complaints about individuals need to go to the individual member organisations in the first instance. However, appeals against the outcomes of complaints to member bodies can be heard in serious cases. Appeals to the UKCP can also be made about the way in which a complaint was heard, e.g. failure to adhere to procedures. UKCP member bodies are required to have their own complaints procedures.
British Confederation of Psychotherapists (BCP)
This body registers psychotherapy organisations, training institutions and professional associations which have their roots in psychoanalysis and analytical psychology. The BCP will hear appeals about the way in which complaints have been heard by member bodies, although complaints regarding individuals need to go to the member organisation in the first instance.
British Psychological Society (BPS)
The BPS registers individual clinical and counselling psychologists. The BPS will hear complaints about individual practitioners. Psychologists are expected to be the first 'talking therapy' practitioners to be regulated by statute under the Health Professions Council.
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There are a very large number of CAM organisations and we do not attempt to list them all here. If you need information on a particular agency please email Witness or FIH.
General Council for Massage Therapy (GCMT)
The GCMT offers membership to organisations representing massage therapists. It offers a mediation and arbitration service in disputes involving member organisations. At the time of writing it is working with the Foundation for Integrated Health to agree national occupational standards.
The Prince of Wales Foundation for Integrated Health (FIH)
FIH is not a regulator - however it is the key agency in supporting moves to regulation for CAM professions. It aims to facilitate the development and delivery of integrated healthcare. This includes encouraging conventional and complementary practitioners to work together to integrate their approaches.
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