Colm Burke (Cork North-Central, Fine Gael)
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162. To ask the Minister for Health the details of the actions being taken to raise the level of psychotherapy standards and criteria; the level with which she and her Department have engaged with the sector on this matter; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50512/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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CORU is Ireland’s multi-profession health and social care regulator. CORU’s role is to protect the public by regulating the health and social care professions designated under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 (as amended), including setting the standards that health and social care professionals must meet to be eligible for registration and maintaining registers of persons who meet those standards.

The Counsellors and Psychotherapists Registration Board (CPRB) was established in 2019, tasked with establishing regulation for the two professions of ‘counsellor’ and ‘psychotherapist’.

The publication of the Standards of Proficiency and Criteria for Education and Training Programmes represents a significant milestone for the counselling and psychotherapy professions in Ireland. It is an important step towards the introduction of statutory regulation for both. Ireland is now the first country in the world to establish distinct regulatory standards for entry to both professions.

The recent publication of the Consultation Report relating to Psychotherapists (link provided below) offers a detailed examination of the consultation process undertaken by CORU and the CPRB to establish the pre-registration education and training requirements for both professions. The document notes that, in relation to psychotherapists, the Board concluded that the application of knowledge, skills and competency descriptors for National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ) Level 9 aligned with and directly reflected the level of demand identified in the Standards. It is also explained that the threshold level of qualification as set in the Criteria is determined based on the content of the Standards.

The engagement regarding this process has been via CORU and the CPRB. The Board acknowledges the valuable engagement from members of both professions, counsellors and psychotherapists, throughout this process. Nearly 700 individuals responded to the public consultation, including educators, professional bodies and existing practitioners.

Following the consultation, the Board reviewed every submission carefully and used the feedback to shape the final documents. The published Standards and Criteria reflect that input and the ongoing engagement between the Board and stakeholders, including representatives from both professions.

Doc 1: www.coru.ie/public-protection/publications/consultation-reports/counsellors-psychotherapists-registration-board/cprb-public-consultation-report-psychotherapists.pdf.

It should be noted that the CPRB is the regulatory body that has independent statutory responsibility for these decisions. CORU has kept my officials appraised of progress, and my officials have engaged with professional bodies as requested and continue to remain open to this engagement.