Key Considerations When Selecting a Therapist in the UK
Choosing a therapist is an important decision, particularly when beginning therapy for the first time. In this guide, I explain why checking a therapist’s qualifications, professional registration, accreditation, experience and insurance matters, and what clients should know about professional standards, ethical guidelines and complaints procedures in the UK.
Jodie Mainstone
9/29/20262 min read
Choosing a Therapist: Qualifications, Registration and Professional Standards
Checking your therapist’s qualifications, professional registrations and experience is an important step when beginning your mental health journey. Finding the right therapist is about more than simply finding someone who offers counselling or psychotherapy. It is also important to understand their training, professional background, the organisation they are registered with and the standards they are required to follow.
In the UK, there are a number of professional bodies that represent counsellors, psychotherapists and other mental health professionals. Organisations such as the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) set professional standards and ethical guidelines for their members. Other professional organisations represent specific areas of clinical practice, such as addiction and EMDR.
It is also important to understand the difference between protected and unprotected professional titles. Some healthcare professions, including psychologists, are regulated by law and require practitioners to be registered with the relevant statutory regulator. For example, the title ‘psychologist’ is protected and practitioners using protected titles must meet the relevant registration requirements.
In contrast, titles such as ‘counsellor’ and ‘psychotherapist’ are not currently protected by law in the UK. This means that, in principle, anyone can use these titles without having completed a recognised professional training or being registered with a professional body. For this reason, checking a therapist’s qualifications, professional registration and accreditation can provide important reassurance when choosing someone to work with.
Professional registration and accreditation also provide an additional level of accountability. Registered and accredited practitioners are generally expected to work within a professional ethical framework, maintain appropriate clinical standards, undertake ongoing professional development and engage in regular clinical supervision. Professional bodies also have formal complaints procedures, giving clients a route to raise concerns if they believe a practitioner has acted inappropriately or outside the standards expected of their profession.
This does not mean that difficulties can never arise in therapy. Therapy involves a professional relationship, and it is important that you feel able to ask questions, raise concerns and understand your therapist’s approach to confidentiality, boundaries and professional conduct.
Before beginning therapy, you may therefore wish to check:
What professional qualifications and clinical training does the therapist have?
Are they registered or accredited with a recognised professional body?
Does their professional body have an ethical code and formal complaints procedure?
Do they undertake regular clinical supervision?
Do they maintain ongoing professional development and training?
Do they have appropriate professional insurance?
Do they have experience working with the difficulties you are seeking support for?
Are they clear about confidentiality and the circumstances in which confidentiality may need to be limited?
Taking a few minutes to check these details can help you make a more informed decision about who you choose to work with. It can also provide reassurance that your therapist is working within recognised professional and ethical standards and that there are appropriate procedures in place should you ever need to raise a concern.
Choosing a therapist is a personal decision, and finding someone with the appropriate qualifications, experience and professional standards is an important part of establishing a safe and effective therapeutic relationship.
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