Voluntary Registers not Regulation

VOLUNTARY REGISTRATION NOT REGULATION

It was anticipated that a national register of counsellors would be opened in 2011. ACC were involved in discussions with the Professional Liaison Group set up by the Health Professions Council. Background to the Regulation of Counsellors can be found in the Government document ‘Trust, Assurance, and Safety.’

The Regulation of Counsellors is now obsolete language. However there is a scheme of Voluntary Registration being developed. ACC have held a Voluntary Register of Christian Counsellors for many years, and the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (CHRE) are working on a system that will accredit voluntary registers and thereby give credence to all registrants. The Government document from February 2011 explained that regulation was far too bureaucratic and costly and so Voluntary Registration will be the way forward. This is still in the very early stages but CHRE will be making the scheme known far and wide so that Voluntary Registration, it is purported, will be necessary for all practitioners especially those who work within or for the statutory agencies. In the preparation work, ACC will be identifying what may be the outcome for people who do not register voluntarily. At this stage all of the detail is far from ready to be put into place.

Meetings have been taking place and will continue to take place from summer 2011 and ACC continues to promote the good work of our members and affiliated organisations.

Other benefits of ACC membership include:
• receiving accord magazine
• regional networking
• concessionary prices for events such as the ACC Conference
• access to specialist briefing papers when published
• access to favourable insurance rates
• access to help and advice from Head Office team
• access to the members area of the ACC web site

The members' area currently contains Back issues of accord, a Jobs page, a Forthcoming Events page and documents related to accreditation that are not in the public domain.
There is also the option for members to have their own entry on "Find a Counsellor" within the ACC site.
Click here for current prices for membership.

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