UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy

Since its foundation in 1998, the UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO) has had as its main aim the establishment of a professional body for the hypnotherapy profession, able to represent hypnotherapy as a profession to government, academic bodies and the public at large, and able to speak with authority for all hypnotherapy practitioners. UKCHO is the largest umbrella organisation of hypnotherapy practitioners in the United Kingdom.

UKCHO is funded by its Members and Associate Members through an annual subscription, and its expenditure is limited to administration costs. As a Company Limited by Guarantee, UKCHO has an elected Executive Committee consisting of seven Directors, including the Company Secretary.

Following the recommendations contained in the Report of the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology, ‘Complementary and Alternative Medicine’, recommendations which have been endorsed by the Government and the Department of Health, UKCHO was invited to represent the discipline of hypnotherapy at a series of seminars organised by The Prince of Wales Foundation for Integrated Medicine, with the intention of establishing self-regulation of the hypnotherapy profession.

UKCHO was also invited to contribute to the development of national occupational standards in hypnotherapy within the framework of national vocational qualifications. These standards have now been completed and form the basis of all recognised and accredited training courses in hypnotherapy. UKCHO has also developed a widely adopted Code of Conduct, Ethics and Practice and has set minimum standards for hypnotherapy training. UKCHO is a major source of information and support, both for its members and members of the public, through its freephone telephone service and website. All Members and Associate Members, together with their contact details, are listed on the UKCHO website: www.ukcho.co.uk

PROFESSIONAL REGULATION

“Regulation, whether statutory or voluntary, is about protecting the public. For this reason, the Government through the Department of Health fully supports the work of The Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC). The Department of Health has stated that the only register of complementary or alternative therapists that they will recognize is the CNHC.” (A Statement by the Department of Health, 2010).

As reported previously in UKCHO News, The Complementary & Natural Healthcare Council has been established and supported by the Department of Health with the aim that its kite-mark ‘CNHC Registered’ will give complementary healthcare practitioners the opportunity to demonstrate that they are bona fide and meet recognised standards of competence and probity, and abide by a rigorous code of conduct, performance and ethics, and, in addition, that they are covered by adequate professional indemnity insurance. The Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum, with its two constituent bodies, The UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations and The Working Group on Hypnotherapy Regulation, has now finalised its policy and programme of work for the voluntary regulation of the hypnotherapy profession. Under the independent chairmanship of Dr Jenny Gordon, and with the professional advice and financial support of The Prince’s Foundation, the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum has agreed standards for education and training, together with codes of conduct, ethics and performance, and has established registers of accredited hypnotherapists, who are safe and competent to practice.

The target date for the completion of the work leading to the professional regulation of hypnotherapy has always been 30^th December 2010, and UKCHO is pleased to report that the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum has now agreed with the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council that the voluntary regulation of the hypnotherapy profession will begin on 1^st December 2010 with the opening of the new CNHC National Register of Hypnotherapists.

The first stage in the regulation process will be for the transfer to the CNHC of the information contained in the UKCHO database of hypnotherapists, so that CNHC may contact individual hypnotherapy practitioners inviting them to register with the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council. (For the professional advantages of CNHC Registration, please visit the website at www.cnhc.org.uk). This transfer of information to the CNHC will comply with the Data Protection Acts and those hypnotherapy practitioners who do not wish their details to be passed on to the CNHC should notify UKCHO at ukcho.registrar@btinternet.com by Friday 26^th November 2010, giving their name and registration number, together with a clear statement that they do not wish their details to be transferred to CNHC. It is important to note, however, that to be recognized by the Department of Health hypnotherapy practitioners will need to be listed on the CNHC Register.

Within The Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council the hypnotherapy profession will have its own ‘Profession Specific Board’ to advise the CNHC on relevant matters of education and training, and standards of ethics, conduct and performance. Initially, the four members of the PSB will be nominated by the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum to serve for an initial period of three years, after which nominations for election to the PSB will be sought from all ‘CNHC Registered Hypnotherapists’.

Issue 18 June 2010

For the last two years The Royal Society of Medicine has been the venue for meetings of the UKCHO Executive Committee as it works towards a policy for the professional regulation of hypnotherapy practitioners. The Royal Society of Medicine is an independent, non-political organisation, established 1806. It is one of the largest providers of continuing medical education in the United Kingdom, providing accredited courses for continuing professional development, including hypnosis and psychosomatic medicine. The aims of the RSM are to provide a broad range of educational activities and opportunities for medical practitioners and allied healthcare practitioners; and to promote the exchange of information and ideas on the science, practice and organisation of medicine and complementary healthcare, both within the health professions and with responsible and informed public opinion. The RSM receives no state funding to carry out its work and is dependent on generous donations and legacies. (For further information please visit the RSM website at www.rsm.ac.uk).

At its last meeting, held on Wednesday, 12^th May 2010, the UKCHO Executive Committee was pleased to welcome to the meeting Jacky Owens and Peter Naish, President and President-Elect of the Hypnosis and Psychosomatic Medicine Section of The Royal Society of Medicine. There followed a discussion of matters of mutual interest in the regulation and practice of hypnotherapy. During the discussion attention was drawn to the work of The British Society of Clinical and Academic Hypnosis (BSCAH), with its emphasis on the clinical use of hypnosis in the field of medicine and dentistry. Full details of its courses and curriculum are available in the website at www.bscah.com. Please note, however, that membership of BSCAH is only open to those professionally qualified as Doctors, Dentists, Psychiatrists, Psychologists and Nurses.

As reported in recent Issues of UKCHO News, The Complementary & Natural Healthcare Council is continuing its work with the intention that its kite-mark - ‘CNHC Registered’ - will give complementary healthcare practitioners the opportunity to demonstrate, to actual and potential consumers, that they are bona fide and meet recognised standards of competence and probity, and abide by a rigorous code of conduct, performance and ethics, and, in addition, that they are covered by adequate professional indemnity insurance. These standards – competence, probity, conduct, performance and ethics, professional indemnity insurance - are the pillars of professional regulation. With these aims in mind The Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum, established jointly by UKCHO and The Working Group for Hypnotherapy Regulation, has been meeting on a regular basis to agree professional standards for hypnotherapy, which will allow hypnotherapy practitioners to register voluntarily with CNHC.

Competence

It is envisaged that competence to practise as a hypnotherapist registered with the CNHC would be based on a core curriculum and learning outcomes for hypnotherapy, to be agreed by the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum following consultation with professional bodies and hypnotherapy training schools. The CNHC currently requires that standards of competence are based on national occupational standards as a minimum, but professional associations and hypnotherapy training schools may choose to set a higher standard, if appropriate. Skills for Health has announced its intention to update and reformat the current national occupational standards for hypnotherapy and Working Groups are being set up for this purpose.

Probity

It is envisaged that the probity of a hypnotherapist to practise as a Registered Member of the CNHC will be dependent on registration with the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). As reported in the last Issue of UKCHO News, new measures have been introduced under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 to prevent unsuitable people from undertaking paid or voluntary work with children or vulnerable adults, the so called Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS). To implement VBS a new public body, the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA), has been established which will work closely with the Criminal Records Bureau, and will have the power to vet and bar unsuitable people from positions where they might pose a risk to children and vulnerable adults. From advice received, these new measures will apply to complementary therapists, including hypnotherapists, all of whom will need to register with ISA and CRB in due course, if they practise with children or vulnerable adults on a regular and frequent basis.

Conduct, Performance and Ethics

It is envisaged that the standards of conduct, performance and ethics to be followed by a hypnotherapist registered with the CNHC will be those set out in the CNHC Code of Conduct, Performance and Ethics, as modified following discussions with The Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum. (A copy of the Code may be seen on the CNHC website at www.cnhc.org.uk)

Professional Indemnity Insurance

It is a strict condition of the CNHC Code of Conduct, Performance and Ethics that every individual hypnotherapy practitioner is fully insured, having in place an insurance policy with cover of at least £2,000,000. Such an insurance policy should cover any civil liability likely to fall on a hypnotherapy practitioner, including professional indemnity, public liability, product liability, libel and slander. It will be the responsibility of individual hypnotherapy practitioners to satisfy themselves through their Insurance Broker that any insurance they purchase is adequate for their particular practice.

For information on the work and activities of UKCHO please visit the website at www.ukcho.co.uk

Peter Matthews (Secretary).

Issue 17 January 2010

As reported in the last Issue of UKCHO News, The Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council is continuing its work apace with the intention that its kite-mark - ‘CNHC Registered’ - will give complementary healthcare practitioners the opportunity to demonstrate, to actual and potential consumers, that they are bona fide and meet recognised standards of education and training, and abide by a rigorous code of conduct, ethics and practice. Hence, those who practise complementary healthcare will benefit by increased public confidence and awareness. (Please see attached letter to GPs).

At a meeting of the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council with professional associations, held on Tuesday 17^th November 2009, the Department of Health confirmed that the CNHC is the only body to be recognised by the UK Government for the regulation and registration of those who practise complementary healthcare, including hypnotherapy. At the same meeting it was stressed that professional associations, of which there are 174 within the complementary healthcare sector as a whole, would continue to exist and would have an important part to play in offering advice, guidance and support to their members, and in the provision of education and training and continuing professional development. Each complementary healthcare profession would have its own ‘Profession Specific Board’ to advise the CNHC on relevant matters of education and training, and standards of ethics, conduct and practice. (For further information visit the CNHC website at www.cnhc.org.uk).

The Independent Safeguarding Authority – An Update

As reported in the last Issue of UKCHO News, new measures have been introduced under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 to prevent unsuitable people from undertaking paid or voluntary work with children or vulnerable adults, the so called Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS). To implement VBS a new public body, the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA), has been established which will work closely with the Criminal Records Bureau, and will have the power to vet and bar unsuitable people from positions where they might pose a risk to children and vulnerable adults. From advice received, these new measures will apply to complementary therapists, including hypnotherapists, all of whom will need to register with ISA and CRB in due course, if they practise with children or vulnerable adults on a regular and frequent basis.

The process established is that persons who will be working with those defined as ‘vulnerable’ will apply to ISA for Registration. ISA will check applicants against the two barred lists that have been compiled. If the applicant is not listed as barred they will be assigned a temporary registration number. The CRB will then check the applicant for any relevant information and this information will then be scrutinised by the ISA’s ‘Vetting and Barring Panel’. It is this Panel which will make the ultimate decisions in the process and to whom any representations regarding decisions will be made. If the application is accepted, the applicant will be placed on the relevant ISA Register.

ISA is currently taking applications from new applicants for employed posts within the National Health Service, Social Services and Education. It will not be taking applications from voluntary, self-employed persons, or members of the complementary healthcare professions, until possibly October 2011. In the interim, and in order to get over the fact that CRB disclosure documents are restricted documents under the Police Act 1997, some professional associations are establishing schemes whereby their members may obtain an ‘extended disclosure’ CRB check and, dependant on the result, obtain a certificate which may be displayed for clients to see.

These new developments for the protection of the public will be monitored closely by UKCHO and the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum, and further advice and information will be issued in due course. In the meantime, for further information, please visit the website at www.isa-gov.org.uk

A Letter to General Practitioners

Dear Doctor,

The Professional Regulation of Hypnotherapy and the UKCHO National Register of Hypnotherapists

I am writing to inform you of the imminent regulation of the hypnotherapy profession. For some time now the Hypnotherapy Associations have been working with The Prince of Wales’s Foundation for Integrated Health, whose work is supported by the Department of Health, on the pathway towards professional regulation. It is hoped that, by late 2010, the hypnotherapy profession will be regulated under the National Register provided by Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC), a government sponsored organisation set up for the protection of the public in complementary healthcare.

In the meantime, and as a requirement of this process, The National Register of Hypnotherapists has been established by The United Kingdom Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO). This Register contains the details of hypnotherapists trained to a very high standard in the theory and practice of hypnotherapy, all of whom are expected to adhere to a strict Code of Conduct, Ethics and Practice, and hold Professional and Public Liability Insurance. Each ‘UKCHO Registered’ hypnotherapist is allocated a unique registration number, and has undergone an audit check of their fitness to practice under the Register.

We understand the legal problems General Practitioners may have in making referrals for hypnotherapy to a particular therapist, and that is not the purpose of this letter. We merely ask that doctors involved in discussions about hypnotherapy with their patients steer them towards hypnotherapists who are on the UKCHO National Register until the CNHC Register is in place in late 2010.

If you require any further information on this matter, please visit the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk

Yours faithfully,

Issue 16 October 2009

UKCHO has always believed that unity was essential if the hypnotherapy profession was to achieve the recognition it deserved, and to this end it has always urged that all professional hypnotherapy organisations should work together for the common good. As reported in the last issue of UKCHO News, all the major umbrella bodies and professional organisations within the field of hypnotherapy, which between them represent some 90% of hypnotherapy practitioners in the United Kingdom, agreed earlier this year to establish the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum, consisting of The Working Group on Hypnotherapy Regulation (WGHR) and The UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO), and to work together through The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health to develop a robust and transparent structure for the regulation of the hypnotherapy profession and the protection of the public.

UKCHO is pleased to report that, at its meeting held on Thursday 24th September last, it was unanimously agreed to appoint Dr Jenny Gordon as Independent Lay Chair of the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum. Jenny Gordon trained as a nurse at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children and University College Hospital, London. She has worked in a variety of healthcare roles in the United Kingdom. She completed her PhD in 2007, with her research focused on the use of reflexology as an adjunct to the health care of children. She now works for the Royal College of Nursing Institute, based in Oxford. In particular, Jenny Gordon has just successfully completed her role as the Independent Lay Chair of The Bowen Forum in its progress towards professional regulation. She is also a Board Member of the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC). The first meeting of the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum with Jenny Gordon as the Independent Lay Chair will be held on Thursday, 19th November 2009.

The programme of work for the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum, under its new Independent Lay Chair, will include the preparation of agreed standards for education and training, agreed codes of conduct, ethics and practice, together with the necessary procedures for discipline and grievance, and the development of a public register of hypnotherapists, who are safe and competent to practice. The programme of work will be supported financially by the Department of Health through The Prince’s Foundation. Progress reports on the regulatory process will be issued by UKCHO to its Member Organisations and Associate Member Organisations as the above programme of work develops. The issue of a single therapy model or a federal therapy model for the regulation of the hypnotherapy profession will be decided in due course, following discussion and consultation with all interested parties. It has also been agreed to remain open to the possibility of statutory regulation through the Health Professions Council.

In the meantime, The Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council is continuing its work apace with the intention that its kite-mark - ‘CNHC Registered’ - will give complementary healthcare practitioners the opportunity to demonstrate, to actual and potential consumers, that they are bona fide and meet recognised standards of education and training, and abide by a rigorous code of conduct, ethics and practice. Those who practise complementary healthcare will benefit by increased public confidence and awareness. (For further information visit the CNHC website at www.cnhc.org.uk).

The Independent Safeguarding Authority

“New arrangements should be introduced requiring those who wish to work with children or vulnerable adults to be registered. The register would confirm that there is no known reason why an individual should not work with these client groups”. (Bichard Inquiry Report, 2004).

Following the murders of the schoolgirls Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells by Ian Huntley in Soham in 2002, the ‘Bichard Inquiry’ was set up by the Government and the Home Office to examine the failure of current vetting procedures. The Inquiry’s main recommendation was that a single government agency should be established to vet all individuals who wanted to work as employees or volunteers with children or vulnerable adults, and to bar unsuitable people from doing so. This recommendation has now been enacted in the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.

From 12 October 2009, new measures will be introduced to prevent unsuitable people from undertaking paid or volunteer work with children or vulnerable adults, the so called Vetting and Barring Scheme (VBS). To help implement the VBS a new public body has been set up called the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). The ISA will work closely with the Criminal Records Bureau, and will have the power to vet and bar unsuitable people from positions where they might pose a risk to children and vulnerable adults.

From advice received, it appears that these new measures will apply to therapists who offer advice, guidance, therapy or treatment, including hypnotherapists and psychotherapists, all of whom will need to register with ISA and CRB if they practise with children or vulnerable adults.

This new development in the protection of the public will be monitored closely by UKCHO and the Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum, and further advice and information will be issued in due course. In the meantime, for further information, please visit the website at www.isa-gov.org.uk

Issue 15 March 2009

As long ago as 2001 the Government accepted the recommendations contained in the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology Report, ‘Complementary and Alternative Medicine’, that complementary healthcare had a role to play within the National Health Service but, to do so it had to meet the same standards as other NHS treatments and therapies, and had to be clear and realistic about the contributions it could make. In the Government’s view the changes within the field of complementary healthcare, which had already begun, needed to be driven forward more decisively. To do this all the professional healthcare organisations, and the disciplines within them, had to agree to work together. UKCHO has always believed that unity was essential if the hypnotherapy profession was to achieve the recognition it deserved, and to this end it has always urged that all professional hypnotherapy organisations should work together for the common good. It is, therefore, very pleasing to report that all the major umbrella bodies and professional organisations within the field of hypnotherapy, between them representing almost 90% of the hypnotherapy practitioners in the United Kingdom, have agreed to establish a Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum consisting of The Working Group on Hypnotherapy Regulation (WGHR) and The UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO), and to work together through The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health to develop a robust and transparent structure for the regulation of the hypnotherapy profession.

The programme of work for the new Hypnotherapy Regulatory Forum, which will have an independent Lay Chair, will include the preparation of agreed standards for education and training, agreed codes of conduct, ethics and practice, together with the necessary procedures for discipline and grievance, and the development of a public register of hypnotherapists, who are safe and competent to practice. The programme of work will be supported financially by the Department of Health through The Prince’s Foundation. The issue of a single therapy model or a federal therapy model for the regulation of the hypnotherapy profession will be decided in due course, following discussion and consultation with all interested parties. It has also been agreed to remain open to the possibility of statutory regulation through the Health Professions Council.

In the meantime, The Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council, designed on the model set out by the Department of Health in its 2007 White Paper on Regulation, Trust, Assurance and Safety: the regulation of health professionals in the 21st century, became active on 19^th January 2009. It is intended that CNHC registration will give complementary healthcare practitioners the opportunity to demonstrate, to actual and potential consumers, that they are bona fide and suitably qualified. As Ben Bradshaw, Minister of State at the Department of Health recently stated: “Now that the CNHC is open for business, there will be a single voluntary registration body encompassing a wide range of complementary therapies, to which the public can turn for help. Members of the public who use these therapies will be able to check whether the practitioner they’re seeing is registered with the CNHC. If they are, they have the reassurance of knowing that they have had to meet minimum standards of qualification and that they have signed up to a rigorous code of conduct. Practitioners too will benefit by increased public confidence.” (For further information visit the CNHC website at www.cnhc.org.uk).

Issue 14 January 2009

PROFESSIONAL UNITY

UKCHO is pleased to report that, on Tuesday 9^th December 2008, under the good offices of The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health, a meeting was held between representatives of The UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO) and The Working Group for Hypnotherapy Regulation (WGHR). At this meeting it was AGREED to issue the following Joint Statement to all hypnotherapy organisations, hypnotherapy training schools and hypnotherapy practitioners.

“We, The Working Group for Hypnotherapy Regulation and The UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO) agree that both organisations have a central role to play in contributing to the development of the profession of Hypnotherapy. We honour and support each others’ contributions to this development to date, and recognise each others’ respective achievements. As our profession will best be served by co-operation and unity, we intend to put any remaining differences aside and to explore working together for the purposes of voluntary self-regulation of the UK hypnotherapy profession in the future."

William Broom & Chris Forester John Lawrence & Peter Matthews

Working Group for Hypnotherapy Regulation UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations

Issue 13 August 2008

PROFESSIONAL REGULATION

As reported in the last issue of UKCHO News, plans were announced at the beginning of the year for the launch of The Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC), to be established as the regulatory body for those therapists who practise in the field of complementary medicine and natural health care. The CNHC, supported by The Prince's Foundation for Integrated Health and backed by the Department of Health, has now been formally launched. Its aim is to increase public confidence and safety in the practice of complementary and natural health care in the United Kingdom.

It is expected that the kitemark - 'Registered with the CNHC' - will become recognised as the hallmark of quality in the field of complementary medicine and natural healthcare. Members of the public will be able to visit the CNHC On Line Register, soon to be established, to check that practitioners of complementary medicine and natural healthcare are properly qualified and abide by professional standards. Practitioners who fail to reach, and maintain, such professional standards may be removed from the CNHC Register.

The CNHC is a Council with a Federal Regulatory Board of (9) Independent Lay Members, nearly all of whom have experience in the field of medicine and complementary medicine. The Federal Regulatory Board is supported by four Functional Committees, one each for Finance, Registration, Education & Standards and Conduct & Competence. In particular, the Federal Regulatory Board is advised by (12) Profession Specific Boards, one for each of the therapies currently recognised by the CNHC.

The CNHC heralds a completely new approach to the professional regulation of practitioners of complementary medicine and natural healthcare in the UK. In particular, the roles of the regulatory body and the professional associations are now separated in order to give increased clarity of function. For full information on The Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council, please visit the websites at www.cnhc.org.uk and www.fih.org.uk

The CNHC held its first meeting with the professional associations, to which UKCHO was invited, at The Kings Fund, London, on Friday 18^th July 2008. A full report was delivered to the UKCHO Annual General Meeting, held at The Royal Society of Medicine, on Wednesday 6^th August, at 2 p.m. UKCHO is fully committed to the development of the CNHC and is working actively for the whole hypnotherapy profession to be included in its work and operation.

In the meantime, UKCHO's own Online Public Register, The National Register of Hypnotherapists, is growing from strength to strength and is being widely used by members of the public and hypnotherapists alike. For full information, please visit the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk

Issue 12 April 2008

As reported in the last Newsletter, The National Register of Hypnotherapists is now available as an online public register at www.ukcho.co.uk. The National Register has greatly enhanced the profession of hypnotherapy, and has been very well received by hypnotherapy practitioners and members of the public alike. The National Register contains the names and registration numbers of all those hypnotherapy practitioners who have been accredited and certified by their respective UKCHO Member Organisation as having satisfied the necessary standards of professional competence and proficiency in hypnotherapy. Such hypnotherapy practitioners are entitled to display the words ‘UKCHO Registered’ in the new logo format on their business cards and letterheads, and in their business advertising, together with their own unique Registration Number. Practitioners are urged to use their UKCHO Registration Number in all their communications. (A copy of the new UKCHO logo, in a coloured and black and white version, is obtainable from your UKCHO Member Organisation).

Please note, however, that The National Register of Hypnotherapists is only open to those hypnotherapy practitioners who are resident and practicing in the United Kingdom, with valid UK insurance cover and subject to UK legislation. Those hypnotherapy practitioners resident and practising in any other country in the European Union will need to be registered with the regulatory body in that country. A similar situation will apply to those hypnotherapy practitioners resident and practising in a country outside the European Union. The rules and regulations for the practice of hypnotherapy may differ from country to country.

It has long been the policy of UKCHO to have a single National Register of Hypnotherapists, independent of, and separate from, the national registers maintained by individual Member Organisations. Such a National Register is a key element in the professional regulation of hypnotherapy. To be included on The National Register means that a hypnotherapy practitioner has been trained to a specified minimum standard, abides by a set code of conduct, ethics and practice, and is subject to set disciplinary and grievance procedures in the event of a complaint being made against them.

The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health has now announced plans for the establishment of a Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC) for the voluntary regulation of complementary therapies, possibly including hypnotherapy. (For full details of the structure and operation of the new CNHC please visit http://www.fih.org.uk/information_library/publications/regulation/a_federal_approch_to.html). However, as reported in previous Newsletters, the psychological therapies – psychology, psychotherapy and counselling – are to be regulated by statute under the existing Health Professions Council (HPC). (For full details of the proposals for psychologists, psychotherapists and counselleors, please visit: http://www.hpcuk.org/mediaandevents/pressreleases/index.asp?id=244).

Finally, UKCHO is pleased to report that there are now ten Member Organisations and twenty Associate Member Organisations in membership, together with one Friend, as per the attached list.

Member Organisations

Association for Professional Hypnosis & Psychotherapy

British Association of Therapeutical Hypnotherapists

British Institute of Hypnotherapy

Corporation of Advanced Hypnotherapy

Hypnotherapy Association

National Association of Counsellors, Hypnotherapists & Psychotherapists

National Council for Hypnotherapy

National Register of Advanced Hypnotherapists

Society of Stress Managers

UK Guild of Hypnotherapy Examiners (10)

Associate Member Organisations

Atkinson-Ball College of Hypnotherapy & Hypnohealing

Belmont Hypnotherapy Centre

Clifton Practice Hypnotherapy Training

Contemporary College of Therapeutic Studies

Essex Institute of Clinical Hypnosis

Institute of Clinical Hypnosis

Institute of Clinical Hypnotherapy & Psychotherapy

Irish Hypnotherapy Association

Mind Flexibility

Motivation Partnership

National College of Hypnosis & Psychotherapy

National School of Hypnosis & Psychotherapy

Proteus School of Alternative Medicine

Quest Institute

Royal Berkshire College of Hypnotherapy

Scottish School of Hypnotherapy

South West School of Clinical Hypnotherapy

Therapy Training College

UK Academy of Therapeutic Arts & Sciences

UK College of Hypnosis & Hypnotherapy (20)

Friend

James Braid Society (1)

NEWSLETTER (11) January 2008

It is with great pleasure that UKCHO announces that ‘The National Register of Hypnotherapists’ is now available on line at www.ukcho.co.uk It has long been the policy of UKCHO to have a single National Register of Hypnotherapists, independent of, and separate from, the national registers maintained by individual Member Organisations. Such a National Register is a key element in the progression towards the professional regulation of hypnotherapy practitioners. To be included on a National Register means that a hypnotherapy practitioner has been trained to a specified minimum standard, abides by a set code of conduct, ethics and practice, and is subject to set disciplinary and grievance procedures in the event of a complaint being made against them.

The National Register contains the names and registration numbers of all those hypnotherapy practitioners who have been accredited and certified by their respective Member Organisation as having satisfied the necessary standards of professional competence and proficiency in hypnotherapy. Such hypnotherapy practitioners will be entitled to display the words, ‘Registered by UKCHO’ or ‘UKCHO Registered’ on their business cards and letterheads, and in their business advertising, together with their own unique Registration Number. Practitioners are urged to use their Registration Number in all their communications.

NEWSLETTER (10) November 2007

All members of the hypnotherapy profession will be aware that, in 2001, the Government accepted the Report of the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology, ‘Complementary and Alternative Medicine.’ In doing so, the Government agreed that hypnotherapy should be subject to voluntary professional self-regulation. A key element in such professional regulation is the establishment of a professional register. To be included on such register a hypnotherapy practitioner must be trained to a specified minimum standard, abide by a set code of conduct, ethics and practice, and be subject to set disciplinary and grievance procedures in the event of a complaint being made against them. Since the publication of the House of Lords Report and its acceptance by the Government, UKCHO has been a major advocate of professional regulation of the hypnotherapy profession. In particular, UKCHO has contributed to the development of National Occupational Standards in Hypnotherapy, standards which now form the basis of all recognised and accredited high quality training courses in hypnotherapy. UKCHO has also adopted a Professional Code of Conduct, Ethics and Practice, by which all hypnotherapy practitioners are expected to abide. The next major step in the regulatory process is the creation of a National Register of Hypnotherapists, to be made available by UKCHO on its website, from January 2008.

It has long been the policy of UKCHO, following the advice received from The Prince's Foundation for Integrated Health, to have a single National Register of Hypnotherapists, independent of, and separate from, the national registers maintained by individual Member Organisations. The aim of the National Register is to provide of a single source of information on hypnotherapy practitioners in order to meet one of the major aims of professional regulation - protection of the public, an aim confirmed again by the Government in its recent White Paper, Trust, Assurance and Safety: the Regulation of Health Professionals in the 21^st Century.

The National Register will contain the names and details of all those hypnotherapy practitioners who have been accredited and certified by their respective Member Organisation as having satisfied the necessary standards of professional competence and proficiency in hypnotherapy. Such hypnotherapy practitioners will be entitled to display the words, ‘Registered by UKCHO’ or ‘UKCHO Registered’ on their business cards and letterheads, and in their business advertising. There will be no direct entry to the National Register for individual practitioners. Entry will be through their membership of an UKCHO Member Organisation. The details of all hypnotherapy practitioners are now being submitted to UKCHO by the Member Organisations for inclusion in the new National Register, unless individual practitioners notify their respective Member Organisation that they do not wish their name to be included. Personal details to be shown on the National Register will only be forename, surname, and location. Full addresses or contact details will not be published. The National Register will comply with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1988.

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com

NEWSLETTER (9) August 2007

The Annual General Meeting of the UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO) was held at The Royal Society of Medicine, London, on Wednesday 8^th August 2007. (A copy of the Minutes of the Annual General Meeting is attached for all Member Organisations and Associate Member Organisations). UKCHO is pleased to report that it now has in membership nine Member Organisations and seventeen Associate Member Organisations, together with its Friend, the James Braid Society, as listed overleaf.

As reported in the last Newsletter, UKCHO has agreed to establish a National Register of Hypnotherapists, with a launch date of 1^st January 2008. UKCHO has also agreed to establish two major Sub-Committees, a Professional Procedures Sub-Committee, with the remit to refine and clarify the code of conduct, ethics and practice, and the procedures for handling complaints, grievance and discipline, and a Schools Sub-Committee, with the remit of further developing the national occupational national standards for hypnotherapy, and making recommendations for the education, training and continuing professional development of hypnotherapists. The final step in the progress towards professional regulation will be the creation of a Hypnotherapy Governing Council, to be democratically elected by, and answerable to, the hypnotherapy profession, and to include members of the public, with an independent chair person. (Further information in due course).

UKCHO Member Organisations (9)

Association for Professional Hypnosis & Psychotherapy

British Association of Therapeutical Hypnotherapists

British Institute of Hypnotherapy

Hypnotherapy Association

National Association of Counsellors, Hypnotherapists & Psychotherapists

National Council for Hypnotherapy

National Register of Advanced Hypnotherapists

Society of Stress Managers

UK Guild of Hypnotherapy Examiners

Associate Member Organisations (17)

Atkinson-Ball College of Hypnotherapy & Hypnohealing

Belmont Hypnotherapy Centre

Contemporary College of Therapeutic Studies

Essex Institute of Clinical Hypnosis

Institute of Clinical Hypnosis

Institute of Clinical Hypnotherapy & Psychotherapy

Irish Hypnotherapy Association

Mental Combat

Motivation Partnership

National College of Hypnosis & Psychotherapy

National School of Hypnosis & Psychotherapy

Proteus School of Alternative Medicine

Quest Institute

Royal Berkshire College of Hypnotherapy

Scottish School of Hypnotherapy

Therapy Training College

UK Academy of Therapeutic Arts & Sciences

Friend

James Braid Society

Full details of membership of the UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations may be found on the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk.

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com

NEWSLETTER (8) June 2007

As reported in the last Newsletter, issued in January 2007, a ‘Hypnotherapy Open Forum’ was held in London on Wednesday 10^th January 2007, attended by representatives from the nine Member Organisations and fifteen Associate Member Organisations listed on the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk

Since then the Government has published its White Paper, Trust, Assurance and Safety: the Regulation of Health Professionals in the 21^st Century, in which it clearly states that the psychological therapies should be subject to a statutory system of professional regulation that is proportionate to the risks and benefits entailed. The Government has proposed that psychologists, psychotherapists and counsellors should be regulated by the Health Profession Council, an existing statutory body originally established to regulate the professions supplementary to medicine. (For the work of the Health Professions Council, please visit www.hpc.org.uk). In particular, the Health Professions Council will establish a National Register of all psychological therapists, and will develop national standards of education and training, setting standards of proficiency which psychological therapists will have to meet.

Similar professional registration and standards for education and training will clearly be required to achieve professional regulation for the hypnotherapy profession, but on a voluntary basis, and major steps have now been taken in this direction.

In the case of professional registration, UKCHO has always maintained that the key element in the professional regulation of any profession is the establishment of a National Register of its practitioners. To this end, the Executive Committee of UKCHO has agreed that, with the approval and support of all its Member Organisations, a ‘National Register of Hypnotherapists’ will be developed as soon as possible, with a launch date of 1^st January 2008. Please see the attached document, ‘Hypnotherapy Regulation: The Way Ahead.’

In the case of professional education and training, UKCHO Executive Committee has established a Schools Sub-Committee, drawn from representatives of the Hypnotherapy Training Schools, with the remit of further developing the already agreed national occupational national standards for hypnotherapy, and making recommendations to the Executive Committee of UKCHO on professional education and training, including a core curriculum.

These two major steps, together with the Code of Conduct, Ethics and Practice, long since agreed and published on the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk, mean that the major elements of professional regulation for hypnotherapy are now in place. A full report of these developments will be made to the Annual General Meeting of UKCHO, to be held at The Royal Society of Medicine on Wednesday 8^th August 2007. An Agenda is attached for all UKCHO Member Organisations and Associate Member Organisations.

HYPNOTHERAPY REGULATION:

THE WAY AHEAD

All members of the hypnotherapy profession will be aware that, in 2001, the Government accepted the Report of the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology, ‘Complementary and Alternative Medicine.’ In doing so, the Government agreed that hypnotherapy should be subject to voluntary professional self-regulation, whose purpose would be protection of the public. Since its foundation in 1998, the UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO) has had as its main aim the establishment of such a professional self-regulatory body for the hypnotherapy profession. UKCHO is one of the largest umbrella organisations of hypnotherapy practitioners in the United Kingdom, and is recognised as such by The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Medicine. UKCHO is a not for profit organisation, funded by its Member Organisations and Associate Member Organisations through an annual subscription, and its expenditure is limited to administration costs. As a Company Limited by Guarantee, UKCHO has an Executive Committee consisting of Directors democratically elected by each of its Member Organisations. The role of the Executive Committee is to represent and promote the views and aspirations of its Member Organisations and Associate Member Organisations.

Since the publication of the House of Lords Report and its acceptance by the Government, UKCHO has contributed to the development of National Occupational Standards in Hypnotherapy, standards which now form the basis of all recognised and accredited training courses in hypnotherapy. UKCHO has also adopted a Professional Code of Conduct, Ethics and Practice, by which Member Organisations, Associate Member Organisations and individual hypnotherapy practitioners are expected to abide. All UKCHO Member Organisations and Associate Member Organisations, together with the Professional Code of Conduct, Ethics and Practice, are listed on the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk The next major step on the road to professional regulation will the creation of a National Register of Hypnotherapists, to be launched by UKCHO on 1^st January 2008. The National Register will contain the names and details of all those hypnotherapy practitioners who have been accredited and certified by their respective Member Organisation as having satisfied the necessary standards of professional competence and proficiency in hypnotherapy. Such hypnotherapy practitioners will be entitled to display the words, ‘Accredited by UKCHO’ on their business cards and letterheads, and in their business advertising. The National Register will be funded by a capitation fee from each Member Organisation, at a sum yet to be agreed, but which will be no more than £5.00. There will be no direct entry to the National Register for individual hypnotherapy practitioners. Entry will be through their Member Organisation.

Full details of the National Register and the future of professional regulation will be discussed at the UKCHO Annual General Meeting, to be held at the Royal Society of Medicine, on Wednesday 8^th August 2007, at 2 p.m.

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com

NEWSLETTER (7) January 2007

As reported in the last Newsletter, issued in October 2006, it is the intention of UKCHO, in consultation with The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health, to continue the good work already begun by the Hypnotherapy Working Group in order to promote the profession and practice of hypnotherapy within the United Kingdom. To this end, a ‘Hypnotherapy Open Forum’ was held in London on Wednesday 10^th January 2007, attended by representatives from the nine Member Organisations and fourteen Associate Member Organisations listed on the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk

Between them UKCHO Member Organisations, as listed below, accredit the largest number of high quality professional courses in hypnotherapy satisfying the national occupational standards:

Association of Professional Hypnotherapists & Psychotherapists

British Association of Therapeutic Hypnotherapists

British Institute of Hypnotherapy

Hypnotherapy Association

National Association of Counsellors, Hypnotherapists & Psychotherapists

National Council for Hypnotherapy

National Register of Advanced Hypnotherapists

Society of Stress Managers

UK Guild of Hypnotherapy Examiners

Of major importance at the Hypnotherapy Open Forum was the confirmation received from The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health that The Prince’s Foundation was the only body responsible for seeing hypnotherapy through to professional regulation on behalf of the Government and Department of Health. It was also confirmed that the Government has no plans to introduce statutory regulation of
hypnotherapy. Instead, the Government's intention is that hypnotherapy should be subject to voluntary regulation and is encouraging progress towards this. (For information, discussions are taking place elsewhere on the establishment of a professional regulatory body, either on a statutory or voluntary basis, for the psychological therapies – counselling, psychotherapy and psychology. (www.bps.org.uk). Consultation is also taking place on the development of national occupational standards for the psychological therapies. (www.skillsforhealth.org.uk).

Of equally major importance as far as UKCHO is concerned, it has been confirmed by The Prince’s Foundation that UKCHO, as a ‘not for profit’ organisation, is recognised as an ‘umbrella body’ working towards voluntary professional regulation. The ultimate aim of a professional regulatory body is to set standards of training that ensure that all practitioners are safe and competent to practise, thus fulfilling a primary criterion of regulation - protecting the public. It does this by establishing a code of conduct, ethics and practice, setting national occupational standards and a common curriculum for hypnotherapy training and, when necessary, enforcing disciplinary sanctions on practitioners. The ultimate sanction is the removal of a practitioner from the Professional Register.

All hypnotherapy organisations and individual hypnotherapists are urged to support UKCHO in its work. Further information will be issued as professional regulation develops.

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com

NEWSLETTER (6) October 2006

It is with great regret and dismay that UKCHO has been informed that it is proposed to disband the national Hypnotherapy Working Group, established only in February 2006 and having had only one meeting. This proposal comes at a time when professional unity is essential if hypnotherapy is to achieve the recognition it deserves from government and public alike. UKCHO does not believe that the alternative group being proposed - ‘the Working Group for Hypnotherapy Regulation’ – represents the best interests of the hypnotherapy profession. In particular, it believes that the proposed new group fails to meet the criteria for a professional regulatory body set out by the House of Lords Select Committee in its Report on ‘Complementary and Alternative Medicine’, published in 2001.

The House of Lords Select Committee stated that a professionally regulated body should have the following duties and responsibilities:

a) to establish a Governing Council, democratically elected by, and answerable to its Members, and which included members of the public;

b) to maintain a Register of Members, such a register to be funded by fees from individual Members;

a) to set National Occupational Standards by which Training Schools may be accredited;

b) to maintain professional competence among its Members with an adequate programme of Continuing Professional Development;

c) to establish a Code of Conduct, Ethics and Practice;

d) to establish a Complaints and Grievance Procedure for its Members, which is accessible to members of the public;

e) to establish a Disciplinary Procedure for its Members, which is accessible to members of the public;

f) to ensure that its Members are adequately insured for professional indemnity and public liability;

g) to represent its Members to government and academic bodies, and members of the public.

UKCHO, in consultation with The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health, intends to continue the good work already begun by the Hypnotherapy Working Group, whose aims will be:

a) to promote the profession and practice of hypnotherapy within the United Kingdom;

b) to develop and maintain national occupational standards for education and training in hypnotherapy;

c) to regulate the conduct, ethics and practice of those who practise hypnotherapy as a profession for the protection of the public.

It is intended that the UKCHO will continue to be the lead body for hypnotherapy, recognised by government and public alike as fulfilling the necessary criteria and standards for a professional regulatory body. All hypnotherapy organisations and individual hypnotherapists are urged to support UKCHO in this work.

For further information, please contact the Secretary of UKCHO at the address below, or any of the Hypnotherapy Organisations listed on the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com

NEWSLETTER (5) September 2006

The Annual General Meeting of the UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO) was held at Friends Meeting House, London, on Wednesday 19^th July 2006. (A copy of the Minutes of the Annual General Meeting has been sent to all Member and Associate Member Organisations, together with a list of the new Executive Committee). UKCHO is pleased to report that it now has in membership eight Member Organisations and thirteen Associate Member Organisations, together with its Friend, the James Braid Society, all of whom are listed on the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk

At the Annual General Meeting a formal response was agreed to the Consultation Document, issued by The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Medicine, proposing the establishment of a federal structure for the regulation of complementary healthcare, with a single Council for Complementary Healthcare, representing a number of individual complementary therapies, including hypnotherapy. The UKCHO Response is set out overleaf.

Full details of membership of the UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations may be found on the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk

“At the Annual General Meeting of the UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO) it was unanimously AGREED not to accept the federal model for professional self regulation proposed by The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health, but to pursue the status quo model through the Joint Hypnotherapy Working Group, with the hypnotherapy profession working together, as a discrete profession, to develop common codes of conduct, ethics and practice, standards of competence and training, and disciplinary procedures. UKCHO believes that this is the right approach for the hypnotherapy profession rather than be subsumed within the federal model.

UKCHO would point out that the federal model is being severely questioned in the parallel fields of counselling and psychotherapy, with the major bodies fearing that their identity will be lost and that the individual professions will be harmed. The consensus in these professions is for discrete and separate professional self regulation in the belief that their individual professions will not be best served by the federal model.

UKCHO further believes that the federal model is unwieldy, creating an additional tier of registration and regulation, duplicating the work of professional bodies in professions in which there is no real evidence of any significant threat to the safety or well-being of any member of the public.

UKCHO would ask, therefore, that The Prince’s Foundation reconsiders adopting the federal model for the regulation of professions involved in complementary medicine, and instead continues along the more productive path set out by The Prince’s Foundation before the federal model was suggested. In particular, UKCHO would strongly urge The Prince’s Foundation to focus more on the promotion of complementary medicine and its protection against the misconceptions and misrepresentations often revealed by those who practise orthodox medicine within the National Health Service, and less upon the issue of regulation by the federal model. Indeed, UKCHO would like to see The Prince’s Foundation as a true advocate of integrated health, less inclined to believe that integration means putting forward models and structures better suited to orthodox medicine. Integration means developing a model which is acceptable to all parties.”

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com

NEWSLETTER (4) July 2006

“Crippling depression and chronic anxiety are the biggest causes of misery in Britain today. They are the great submerged problem, which shame keeps out of sight. But if you mention them, you soon discover how many families are affected. According to the respected Psychiatric Morbidity Survey, one in six of us would be diagnosed as having depression or chronic anxiety disorder, which means that one family in three is affected. That is the bad news. The good news is that we now have evidence-based psychological therapies that can lift at least a half of those affected out of their depression or their chronic fear. These new therapies are not endless, nor are they backward looking treatments. They are short, forward-looking treatments that enable people to challenge their negative thinking and build on the positive side of their personalities and situations.”

The above quotation is from ‘The Depression Report; a new deal for depression and anxiety disorders’ – newly published by the Mental Health Policy Group of the Centre for Economic Performance, based at the London School of Economics and Political Science. The Report points outs that, according to the guidelines from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE,) psychological therapies should be available to all people with depression or anxiety disorders or unless the problem is very mild or recent. However, the NICE guidelines cannot be implemented because we do not have enough therapists. It is estimated that some 10,000 extra therapists are required to meet the demand. In most areas waiting lists for therapy are over nine months, or there is no waiting list at all because there are no therapists. So, if a patient goes to their GP, all that can be provided is medication, but many patients will not take medication, either because they dislike the side effects or because they want to control their own mood level. Hence, only one in four of those who suffer from depression or chronic anxiety is receiving any kind of treatment. So society has a massive problem – but society also has a solution that can improve the lives of millions of families, namely to implement the NICE guidelines; and most people with mental illness should be offered the choice of therapy including, as UKCHO would claim, hypnotherapy. (A copy of the above Report may be downloaded in pdf format at http://cep.lse.ac.uk)

As reported in the last Newsletter, the question to be discussed in detail by the next meeting of the Hypnotherapy Working Group is what form professional self-regulation for hypnotherapists should take? The Consultation Document, issued by The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Medicine, envisages the establishment of a federal structure for the regulation of complementary healthcare, with a single Council for Complementary Healthcare, representing a number of individual complementary therapies, including hypnotherapy. The formal response of UKCHO to the proposals contained in the Consultation Document will be considered in detail at the UKCHO Annual General Meeting, to be held in London, on Wednesday 19^th July 2006. Final Notice of the Annual General Meeting, together with the Annual Report & Accounts, is enclosed with this Newsletter. All UKCHO Member Organisations and Associate Member Organisations are urged to send a representative to this very important Annual General Meeting.

Full details of membership of the UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations may be found on the UKCHO website at www.ukcho.co.uk Please address all correspondence to the Secretary at the address below.

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com

NEWSLETTER (3) May 2006

In the last Newsletter it was reported that, at a meeting held at the Oxford and Cambridge Club, in London, on Thursday 9^th February 2006, a meeting sponsored and supported by The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health, it was agreed by UKCHO and all the other Hypnotherapy Organisations present to establish a ‘Hypnotherapy Working Group’ to develop proposals for the professional self-regulation of the hypnotherapy profession. A second meeting of the Hypnotherapy Working Group is planned for the near future. The focus of this next meeting will be consideration of the Consultation Document, ‘Exploring a Federal Approach to Voluntary Self Regulation of Complementary Healthcare,’ prepared by The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health. (Copies of the Consultation Document have been circulated by UKCHO to all Member Organisations and Associate Member Organisations. Additional copies may be downloaded directly from the website of the Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Healthcare at www.fihealth.org.uk, or obtained by sending an E-Mail to regulation@fihealth.org.uk).

The primary purpose of professional self-regulation is to protect the public by setting standards of education and training that ensure that all hypnotherapy practitioners are safe and competent to practise, and by establishing procedures for the registration and regulation of practitioners. This is done by establishing a code of conduct, ethics and practice, setting national occupational standards and, when necessary, enforcing disciplinary sanctions on practitioners. The ultimate sanction is the removal of a practitioner from the Professional Register.

The question to be discussed in detail by the Hypnotherapy Working Group is what form this professional self-regulation should take? The Consultation Document, issued by The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Medicine, envisages the establishment of a federal structure for the regulation of complementary healthcare, with a single Council for Complementary Healthcare, representing a number of individual complementary therapies, including hypnotherapy. The federal model envisaged is that of the Health Professions Council (HPC), which represents thirteen individual para-medical professions, i.e. those health professions working in the National Health Service which support, and are supplementary to, the work of Doctors and Nurses. (Full details of the Health Professions Council will be found on the HPC website at http://www.hpc-uk.org).

The formal response of UKCHO to the proposals contained in the Consultation Document prepared by The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Healthcare will be considered in detail at the UKCHO Annual General Meeting, to be held in London, on Wednesday 19^th July 2006, details of which are attached for Member Organisations and Associate Member Organisations.

Please address all correspondence to the Secretary at the address below:

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com

NEWSLETTER (2) March 2006

"Regulation of complementary healthcare practitioners will help to protect patients and the public by ensuring that practitioners meet agreed standards of practice and competence.” (Prince of Wales Foundation for Integrated Health, ‘Exploring a Federal Approach to Voluntary Self Regulation of Complementary Healthcare.’ 2006).

Ever since its foundation in 1998, UKCHO has had as its main aim the establishment of a professional self-regulatory body for the hypnotherapy profession, able to represent hypnotherapy as a profession to government, academic bodies and the public at large, and able to speak with authority on behalf of all hypnotherapy practitioners in the United Kingdom. UKCHO is, therefore, very pleased to report that, at a meeting held at the Oxford and Cambridge Club, in London, on Thursday 9^th February 2006, a meeting sponsored and supported by the Prince of Wales Foundation for Integrated Health, it was agreed by all the hypnotherapy organisations present to establish a ‘Hypnotherapy Joint Working Group’ to develop proposals for the professional voluntary self-regulation of the hypnotherapy profession. (A copy of the Minutes of this meeting may be obtained from the Secretary at the address below). The issue now is not only, if voluntary self-regulation will take place, but when, and what form it will take?

The House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology, in its Report on ‘Complementary and Alternative Medicine’, published in 2001, stated that a voluntary self-regulated professional body should have the following duties and responsibilities:

a) to establish a Governing Council, democratically elected by, and answerable to its Members, and which included members of the public;

b) to maintain a Register of Members, such a register to be funded by fees from individual Members;

a) to set National Occupational Standards by which Training Schools may be accredited;

b) to maintain professional competence among its Members with an adequate programme of Continuing Professional Development;

c) to establish a Code of Conduct, Ethics and Practice;

d) to establish a Complaints and Grievance Procedure for its Members, which is accessible to members of the public;

e) to establish a Disciplinary Procedure for its Members, which is accessible to members of the public;

f) to ensure that its Members are adequately insured for professional indemnity and public liability;

g) to represent its Members to government and academic bodies, and members of the public.

In short, a voluntary self-regulatory professional body exists primarily to protect the public. It sets standards of training that ensure that all practitioners are safe and competent to practise, and is responsible for the registration and regulation of practitioners. It does this by establishing a code of conduct, ethics and practice, setting national occupational standards and, when necessary, enforcing disciplinary sanctions on practitioners. The ultimate sanction is the removal of a practitioner from the Professional Register.

The question yet to be discussed in detail is exactly what form this voluntary self-regulatory professional body should take? This question will be addressed in the next Newsletter.

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com

NEWSLETTER (1) January 2006

“The public has a right to expect health care services to be provided by appropriately educated, safe, competent and regulated practitioners. All complementary practitioners who work with patients should be subject to effective regulation. The multiplicity of registering bodies and qualification-awarding bodies has made it difficult for patients to identify who is and who is not an appropriate practitioner. Voluntary systems of regulation need to be rationalized and strengthened if members of the public are to be able to make informed choices. A single, publicly available, up-to-date register of qualified practitioners is at the heart of effective regulation.” (Professor Julie Stone, University of Lincoln School of Health and Social Care, ‘Development of Proposals for a Future Voluntary Regulatory Structure for Complementary Health Care Professions,’ a Report Commissioned by the Prince of Wales Foundation for Integrated Health. ( www.fihealth.org.uk/pdf/stone.pdf )

In 2001 the Government accepted the recommendations contained in the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology Report, ‘Complementary and Alternative Medicine’. The Government stated that complementary medicine had a role to play within the National Health Service but, to do so it had to meet the same standards as other NHS treatments, and had to be clear and realistic about the contributions it could make. In the Government’s view the changes within the field of complementary medicine, which had already begun, needed to be driven forward more decisively. To do this all the professional organisations, and the disciplines within them, had to agree to work together.

UKCHO has always believed that unity was essential if the hypnotherapy profession was to achieve the recognition it deserved, and to this end it has always urged that all hypnotherapy organisations should work together for the common good. UKCHO is, therefore, pleased to report that all the major umbrella organisations and professional bodies within the field of hypnotherapy, which between them represent over 80% of the hypnotherapy practitioners in the United Kingdom, have agreed to work together through the Prince of Wales Foundation for Integrated Health.

The aim of the Prince of Wales Foundation is to encourage professional organisations in the field of complementary medicine to develop and maintain statutory, or voluntary, systems of regulation. This process of professional regulation is now underway, and UKCHO is pleased to report that the first meeting of a ‘Joint Hypnotherapy Working Party’, drawn from all the major umbrella organisations in the field of hypnotherapy, is to be held on Thursday 9^th February 2006. A full report will be issued in due course. In the meantime, UKCHO members may wish to download from the internet the Report of a Regulation Seminar, ‘Leading the Way: the future of voluntary self regulation’, recently organised by the Prince of Wales Foundation for Integrated Health. ( www.fihealth.org.uk/pdf/report12905.pdf )

Members and potential member of UKCHO are asked to visit the new website at www.ukcho.co.uk All correspondence should be addressed to the Secretary at either of the addresses listed at the beginning or end of this Newsletter.

Secretary: Peter Matthews, M.A., M.Ed., M.Phil., LL.B.,

10 Wimborne Avenue, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0RN

Tel: 0161- 652 2284 E-Mail: peter.matthews@btinternet.com