Regulation of Counselling

and Psychotherapy in Ireland

BA in Counselling and Psychotherapy (part time)

Contemporary Issues II
Year 2

to the attention of Chris McNally

Rudolf-Marco NESLER
1306453@dbs.ie
 2

Regulation of Counselling and

Psychotherapy in Ireland

Introduction
The (legal) regulation of counselling and psychotherapy has emerged as an important
issue in Ireland in recent years. Like all other citizens, practitioners in these areas are
subject to the law, and their practice must conform to the law (IACP, 2010). Beyond
what is expected from every citizen, certain professional standards must be adhered to
for the sake of the client.

According to a short definition suggested by the UK Department of Health (2010)

regulation is ‘the act of regulating or the state of being regulated.’ Accordingly, regulation
focuses on ensuring that members of an identified occupational or professional group
reach and maintain the minimum threshold standards that are expected of that
occupational or professional group.

In this essay my concern is with the current status of regulation of counselling and
psychotherapy in Ireland. I will deal with the issue by briefly lining out the current state of
affairs and its consequences on client care and professional standards. Finally, I would
like to comment on the progress made towards legal regulation thus far.
 3

The Current Regulatory Status in Ireland

In general, one can distinguish between statutory and non-statutory regulation. Under
statutory regulation the government is responsible for initiating the regulation of a
profession where a risk to the public from poor practice is perceived. In Ireland the
statutory role for the (mental) health services is held by the Minister of Health and
Children and his Department. In contrast, non-statutory regulation, is usually conducted
voluntarily by a professional bodies and not directly through legislation (The Department
of Health and Children, 2010).

At present this protection of the public in Ireland is only provided by a process of self-
regulation by a large number of professional organisations. Professional bodies like
IACP, IHIP etc. lay down for their members standards of on-going education, training
and ethics as well as a complaints system to protect the public (Irish Council of
Psychotherapy, 2010). It has been pointed out that the development of professional
bodies in the mental health professions in Ireland has been slower than or other
countries like for example in the United States (O’Leary and O’Shea, 2009, p. 306).
However, today a wide range of professional organizations exist in Ireland.

This large number of professional bodies is not solely due to different political agendas
but also due to the nature of psychotherapy. Whereas for example psychologists have a
common background training and undertake different kinds of work, psychotherapists
are so named because they carry out a particular type of work, not because of having
had a particular kind of training (Deurzen and Tantam, 2005, p. 19).

As one of the major challenges in Ireland in the past has been to get counselling and
psychotherapy acknowledged as distinct professions in the public mind, in the context of
health services and the public administration – these professional bodies have certainly
hugely contributed to the awareness of counselling and psychotherapy as separate
professional occupations.

Nevertheless, the question if counselling and psychotherapy are fully acknowledged by

the government as professions in their own right, must be answered in the negative. As
a matter of fact, there exists no statutory regulation at the present time and the title
psychotherapist or counsellor is not protected. Therefore, Lucy Costigan remark is still
true that ‘... in Ireland counselling as a profession is still fragile, as a counsellor is not
required to possess a licence to practice’ (2004, p. 2).
 4

Implications of Self-Regulation on Client Care and

Professional Standards

Does psychotherapy have the marks of a real profession and can self-regulation
maintain both the welfare of clients and professional standards? Sociological theorists
have attempted to define the essential characteristics of a profession. Accordingly a
professional must possess a series of characteristics including a specialist skill enabling
a specialist service, an intellectual and practical training in a well-defined area of study,
a direct personal relationship with a client based on confidence faith and trust, a
collective sense of responsibility for maintaining the competence and integrity of the
profession, and last but not least an affiliation with a body, which may or may not have
government recognition, but which regulates and tests competence and standards of
conduct (Monopolies and Mergers Commission, 1970).

Most practitioners who call themselves counsellors and psychotherapists in Ireland fulfil
most of the above mentioned criteria. Protection for clients is assured by a number of
self-regulated professional organisations and that this works fairly well for those who are
accredited by a professional body (Irish Council of Psychotherapy, 2010).

However, at the same time there is no redress for complaints against practitioners who
are not members of a professional body. Accordingly it is possible for anybody to call
herself or himself a counselor or psychotherapist and to set up in practice without the
required training and competence. Adding to this worrying situation is that there are no
sanctions for complaints against this group of therapists. As a result, practitioners with
no qualification and those who have been disciplined by their accrediting body, can
continue to practice unhindered (McGreevy, 2008).

This less than ideal situation is reflected in a warning of the Department of Health and
Children who cautions individuals who consider embarking on counselling and
psychotherapy as clients: ‘... it is important to make sure you are happy with the training
and qualifications of any counsellor that you choose’ (Department of Health and
Children, 2010). Therefore, it is evident that self-regulation can not fully guarantee a
minimum professional standard, as membership in professional bodies is on a voluntary
basis. It seems that only statutory legislation can close this gap and protect the public
against the risk of poor practice.
 5

However, professionalization of counselling and psychotherapy under both statutory and

non-statutory regulation does not stir enthusiasm in everyone.

First, critics of regulation have repeatedly pointed out that such a move fosters restrictive
practice, it may stifle initiative and is primarily motivated by money, status seeking and
bargaining of power. These values are clearly out of line with those roots that are in
voluntarism and with counselling values in general. Last but not least, all the steps and
hurdles on the way to full recognition, can also be seen as limiting the career
opportunities for sections of Irish society. After all, not everybody has the money and
access to the respective educational institutions (Baron, 1996, p. 22-23).

Second, with a staggering number of professional organisations and accreditation

bodies in place in Ireland, the question could also be asked which system of
professionalism is the most effective and egalitarian one for the counsellor seeking
registration. Accordingly, professional elitism can be bad, not just because it moves
counsellors and therapists away from their common ground with clients, but because it
may well operate to exclude some professionals and include others (Frankland, 1996, p.
30).

Third, in the case of non-statutory regulation, the apprehension has been brought
forward, that a regulatory model could tempt the professional body to act in its own
interest (Bond, 2000). The professional organisation may well end up promoting its
professional interests over that of its users, which may occur in spite of the admonition
to ‘... respect the rights and dignity of the client’, as lined out in the IACP code of conduct
(IACP, 2010).

Fourth, in the case of statutory regulation, there is less room for individuality, because of
the high level of standardisation (Department of Health, 2010). Therefore, by its nature,
statutory regulation leaves less room for a diversity of theoretical and practical
approaches to counselling and psychotherapy.
 6

Progress and Direction of the Legal Statutory

Process

Some progress has been made in the past toward statutory regulation of counselling
and psychotherapy in Ireland.

First, the passing of the Health and Social Care Professionals Act by the Oireachtas in
2005 was an important milestone because the Act provides for the inclusion of
professions to a system of statutory registration and also provides a framework to guide
future decisions in this regard (Department of Health and Children, 2010). However,
counselling and psychotherapy were not listed amongst the twelve health and social
care professions included in the Act because of the ‘disparate nature of the profession’
(McGreevy, 2008), which referred to the high number of different counselling
organisations and interests. Brady (2005) had already pointed to the diversity and
fragmentation in counselling and psychotherapy in Ireland and had remarked that this
would pose a great challenge for statutory registration.

Second, as a first step in the implementation of the system of statutory registration in the
health and social services, the Health and Social Care Professionals Council was
established by the Minister for Health and Children in March 2007. This body has since
been working to put in place the necessary structures for registration and education to
practice for the twelve health and social care professions designated in the Act
(Department of Health and Children, 2010). With the Health and Social Care
Professionals Council in place, the general framework for a possible future statutory
registration of counselling and psychotherapy was at least put into place.

Then, after several years of drafting and negotiation, in September 2008 the
Psychological Therapies Forum, consisting of representatives of the major professional
bodies, presented agreed recommendations for the statutory training and regulation of
counselling and psychotherapy to John Maloney, Minister of State at the Department of
Health & Children with responsibility for mental health in Ireland (Ring, 2008). Finally, a
a compromise in regards to statutory regulation had been found. Derval Ryan’s address
to the Minister of Health underlined the urgency that ‘... it is imperative that the public is
protected by promoting high standards of education, training, competence and conduct
among the counselling and psychotherapy professions’ (Irish Council of Psychotherapy
2010).
 7

All in all the Psychological Therapies Forum formulated four specific recommendations
which involved minimum standards, holding practitioners to regulation, taking action
when practitioners do not meet standards and protecting the profession and its
reputation. A critical milestone in the agreed recommendation was also to adopt the
name of “Psychological Therapist” to cover both professions (McGreevy, 2008).
Although no immediate decision was made, the recommendations were welcomed by
the Minister at the time, as a ‘valuable document to help inform future discussions and
decision making regarding the inclusion of further health and social care profession
within statutory registration’ (Department of Health and Children, 2010). Therefore, the
hope for the future is that counselling and psychotherapy be included in the next phase
of professions to be regulated under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act.

Conclusion and future outlook

As for now there is no statutory regulation for counselling and psychotherapy in Ireland
but a plethora of self-regulated professional bodies. I have pointed out that self-
regulation works to a high degree and that it has contributed substantially to the
professionalization of counselling and psychotherapy in Ireland. However, at the same
time it leaves too much room for abuse as the famous ‘Roebuck-case’ has demonstrated
well. It also excludes those counsellors and psychotherapists that do not belong to a
professional body.

The statutory regulation may not come through for a while and it is hard to say which
professional body will prevail in the meantime and which will subside. However, there
seems to be a common trend of concentration in European Union countries across
professions. Referring to the situation in the United Kingdom, Lévebre (1996) suggested
that the clearest evidence for further concentration that may eventually lead to one
professional body for counselling and theory is ‘... the pressure of the European idea
and its attendant apparatus, in such that the momentum towards national organisation
and therefore the professionalization of psychological care is unstoppable.’ This may
well apply to Ireland as well. Although such a change does not occur overnight, the
process in Ireland may well be speeded up by following the European example of
statutory regulation and of one or two unified national professional bodies for counselling
and psychotherapy respectively.

1989 words
 8

Bibliography

Levebre, M. (1996). Who will count as a Counsellor? In R. Bayne, J. Bimrose, I.

Hortoneds (Eds). New Directions in Counselling (pp. 5-15). London and New York:
Routledge.
Baron, J. The Emergence of Counselling as a Profession. In R. Bayne, J. Bimrose, I.
Hortoneds (Eds). New Directions in Counselling (pp. 16-24). London and New York:
Routledge.
Bond, T. (2005). Standards and Ethics for Counselling in Action. London, Thousand
Oaks, New Delhi: Sage.
Brady, F. (2005). Statutory Regulation of Counselling/Psychotherapy in Ireland, Irish
Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, Vol. 3(7), 4-8.
Costigan, L. (2004). Social Awareness in Counselling. Lincoln, New York and Shanghei:
iUniverse.
Department of Health and Children (2010). Mental Health Professionals. Retrieved from
http://www.dohc.ie
Department of Health and Children (2010). Address by Mr John Moloney T.D., Minister
for Equality, Disability and Mental Health at the Presentation of Submission by the
Psychological Therapies Forum Regarding Statutory Registration of Counsellors &
Psychotherapists in Ireland, 23rd September 2008. Retrieved from http://www.dohc.ie

Department of Health (2010). Extending Professional Regulation.

http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/DH_093440
Deurzen, v. D. and Tantam, D. (2005). European Guidelines to Professional and Ethical
Issues. In J. Morrissey and R. Tribe (Eds). Handbook of Professional and Ethical
Practice for Psychologists, Counsellors and Psychotherapists (pp. 19-32). New York:
Brunner & Routledge.
Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (2010). IACP Code of Ethics and
Practice for Counsellors / Psychotherapists. Retrieved from www.irish-counselling.ie

Irish Council of Psychotherapy (2010). Psychological Therapists call on Government to

introduce statutory registration for their professions in Ireland. Retrieved from
http://www.psychotherapy-ireland.com
McGreevy, R. (2008, September 9). Prevailing on Wise Counsel. Irish Times. Retrieved
from www.irishtimes.com
Monopolies and Mergers Commission (1970). The Supply of Professional Services.
London: Monopolies and Mergers Commission.
O’Leary, E. and O’Shea, E. (2009). Our Aspirations and our Possibilities – Growth and
Features of Counselling Psychology in Ireland International. In S. Egisdóttir, S.-M. A.
Leung, L. H. Gerstein, K. L. Norsworthy, P. P. Heppner (Eds). Handbook of Cross-
Cultural Counselling: Cultural Assumptions and Practices Worldwide (pp. 301-309).
London and Los Angeles: SAGE.
Ring, E. (2008, September 24). Call for Registration of Psychotherapy Sector. Irish
Examiner.