Outdated Entry Criteria Are Holding the Profession Back — It’s Time to Move Forward

In 2025, the way we live, work, and learn has evolved — yet some parts of the counselling and psychotherapy profession are still being held back by entry requirements that no longer reflect the realities of modern training, technology, or client needs.

At the National Alliance of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (NACP), we believe it’s time to rethink rigid and outdated membership criteria that exclude many capable, ethical, and well-trained professionals simply because their education didn’t happen in a traditional face-to-face setting.

The World Has Changed — So Must Our Gatekeeping

Several professional bodies continue to only accept members who have completed the majority of their counselling training in person, often with minimal consideration for the advancements in online learning, supervision technology, or hybrid education models.

While we respect the origins of this position — and agree that face-to-face interaction is an important part of therapeutic training — we also recognise that high-quality training no longer lives solely in physical classrooms.

Training delivery has transformed. Many excellent counselling programmes now integrate:

• Interactive online learning platforms
• Live, supervised role-play sessions over video
• Group workshops and intensives in person
• Remote but deeply engaged peer collaboration
• Digital supervision and ethical practice using teletherapy tools

To suggest that these methods are inherently inferior to traditional classroom-based models is not only outdated — it’s unfairly exclusionary in a profession that claims to value accessibility and innovation.

The NACP Approach: Rigorous, Realistic, Reflective

At NACP, we maintain clear professional standards — but we do not define quality solely by the medium of delivery. Instead, we ask:

• Has this counsellor undertaken meaningful, experiential face-to-face learning?
• Have they participated in supervised client work, either in-person or via secure video platforms?
• Is their training ethically sound, professionally assessed, and appropriate for client work in today’s world?

If the answer is yes, then we believe they deserve to be recognised, supported, and included — not turned away based on rigid ideas from decades past.

“This is 2025, not 1985. Education has changed. Therapy has changed. So must we.”

The Problem with Exclusion

Excluding therapists based on how they trained — rather than how competently they practise — risks:

• Shrinking access to qualified therapists in underserved areas
• Alienating therapists from diverse or non-traditional backgrounds
• Failing to reflect the technological landscape in which therapy now often takes place
• Creating arbitrary divisions within the profession based on outdated preferences

We believe professional bodies should support therapists who are reflective, accountable, and competent — not penalise those who trained in ways that reflect the realities of the modern world.

A More Inclusive Future for the Profession

The NACP takes a more holistic, future-focused approach to assessing member applications. We require:

• Evidence of recognised counselling or psychotherapy qualifications
• Documentation of face-to-face components, whether in the form of in-person workshops, live group practice, or supervised sessions (remote or in person)
• Proof of supervised clinical work
• A commitment to ongoing CPD, monthly supervision, and ethical standards

We balance rigour with realism — because what matters most is not how you trained, but how you practise.

Let’s Stop Gatekeeping and Start Evolving

Our profession needs to reflect the diversity of training pathways, technologies, and client expectations that now define the therapeutic landscape.

We welcome collaboration with training providers, therapists, and other organisations who share our vision for a more inclusive, modern, and client-centred future.

If you’re a qualified practitioner who has felt excluded from other professional bodies due to the nature of your training — we invite you to explore membership with the NACP.

Because we believe in recognising real therapists, not outdated assumptions.

The National Alliance of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (NACP)
📧 info@nacp.co.uk
🔗 www.nacp.co.uk

Ethical. Evolving. For the profession today — and tomorrow.