The PSA invites views on its review of Standards for regulators and Accredited Registers
13 Feb 2025
The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA) is seeking views on whether the standards it uses to protect the public are working well and will be fit for the future. Today, the PSA is launching a three-month consultation on its Standards for assessing the performance of organisations that register health and social care practitioners.
This consultation provides a chance for patients, service users, health and care practitioners, the organisations it oversees and others to tell the PSA what they think about the current Standards, and to help shape how regulators and Accredited Registers are assessed in the future. It is also a chance to suggest areas that should be looked at which are not currently covered by the Standards.
Alan Clamp, PSA CEO, said:
“In the challenging environment that health and care practitioners are experiencing, it remains increasingly important to prioritise safety while adapting to change.
In that context, it is essential that the Standards focus our attention on the right things so that we can assess performance and drive improvement in regulation and registration of practitioners for the benefit of the public.
All views on our Standards are welcome.”
Alongside this consultation, the PSA is putting out a call for evidence, such as research, data or other published evidence, which suggests ways professional regulation and registration could improve. This evidence will be used to shape thinking about the future of public protection and the revised Standards.
The consultation is open from 13 February to 8 May 2025.
More information about the consultation, the call for evidence, and how to respond, can be accessed on our dedicated web page.
The revised Standards are expected to take effect from April 2026.
Notes to editors
- The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care oversees 10 statutory bodies that regulate health and social care professionals in the UK.
- We assess their performance and report to the UK Parliament. We also conduct audits and investigations and can appeal fitness to practise cases to the courts if we consider that sanctions are insufficient to protect the public and it is in the public interest.
- We also set standards for organisations holding registers for health and social care occupations and accredit those that meet them and continue to meet them.
- We share good practice and knowledge, conduct research and introduce new ideas to our sector. We monitor policy developments in the UK and internationally and provide advice on issues relating to professional standards in health and social care.
- We do this to promote the health, safety and wellbeing of users of health and social care services and the public. We are an independent body, accountable to the UK Parliament.
- Our values are – integrity, transparency, respect, fairness and teamwork – and we strive to ensure that they are at the core of our work.
- More information about our work and the approach we take is available at www.professionalstandards.org.uk
- We are reviewing our Standards of Good Regulation and Standards for Accredited Registers to ensure they effectively protect the public and uphold professional standards.
- The consultation responses we receive will be used to develop our approach going forward, which could include new Standards on areas such as culture, governance or duty of candour; or the removal or simplification of current Standards.
- More information on our Call for Evidence is available here.