Every month we carry out a random audit of registered members who are renewing their membership to ensure that they are meeting the requirements of the BACP Register.
We also use the audit information to gather statistical data and trends. We may pass anonymised information to other BACP departments for developments such as continuing professional development (CPD) events or professional guidance documents.
Selection process
Anyone who has been on the Register for more than a year is eligible for audit when their membership is due for renewal. Every month we audit 1.5% of eligible members who are renewing.
If you're selected, we'll send you an audit notice by email, giving you up to six weeks to return all the relevant information.
Do I have to take part?
You must provide information if you're selected for audit. You agreed to be audited when you signed the Register terms and conditions.
Can I continue to practise while being audited?
Yes, you can continue to practise while preparing your submission and while we are assessing your information.
Preparing your submission
If you're selected for audit, you must provide your past year's records relating to:
- supervision
You must submit an up to date record of your supervision sessions and examples of how supervision has had an impact on your practice.
See Registered members' guide to supervision for full details and templates. - CPD
You can submit records of the CPD you’ve undertaken during the year in the Learning centre or using the CPD Word template provided. A user-friendly and accessible version of the CPD Word template is also available. If you are unable to use the template provided then please email us at audit@bacp.co.uk to discuss alternative approaches.
We expect the reflection and planning section to match the action and evaluation section, however we understand that your plans may change during the year. -
See Registered members' guide to CPD for full details.
- indemnity insurance
You must provide your insurance certificate or certificates to cover the full audit period. For example, if your audit period is for June 2019 you will need to provide certificates from June 2018 to June 2019. If you're covered by your employer’s insurance, we need proof of your insurance from either your line manager or an appropriate member of staff, detailed on your organisation's branded letterhead. Your audit period might not be the same as the month we requested your audit documents.
Please remember to respect client confidentiality and remove anything that may contain a client’s personal details. Do not include personal, confidential or identifiable material in your records, unless this information is requested for audit purposes.
It's important that the information you provide is honest and accurate. If you give false or misleading information, you may be referred to Professional Conduct.
What if I'm not currently in practice?
Registered members must be in practice or have practised within the past three years, so you could be selected for audit even if you've not practised in the last 12 months. In this case, you'll only need to provide your CPD record, as the Register requires you to continue with CPD when not in practice. You must also send us a statement confirming the amount of time you've not been practising.
Can I ask for an extension?
As a registered member, you have a professional responsibility to manage your CPD and supervision throughout the year and you should have ongoing records. We may give additional time in exceptional cases, where circumstances beyond the normal difficulties of life have significantly interfered with your ability to submit your information. If you want to request additional time, please contact us at audit@bacp.co.uk as soon as possible.
If you don't provide your information by the deadline, your name will be removed from the BACP Register. You'll then have 16 days to respond. We'll reinstate your registration as soon as we receive your audit submission.
If you still fail to respond, we'll write to you again giving you a further seven days. If you do not respond, and we cannot contact you, you will be removed from membership.
How do I submit my information?
If you can, please submit your CPD for review in the Learning centre and the remainder of your audit documents electronically to audit@bacp.co.uk.
If you need to send in hard copies by post, please mark the envelope BACP Register Audit and send it to PO Box 10128, Lutterworth LE17 9EN. We recommend you use a secure mail delivery service to ensure your documents arrive safely.
Assessment
We'll assess your information against the standards of the Register. The assessment process takes around six weeks. We process the information in the order we receive it, so the sooner you get your records to us, the sooner you will receive your decision. If we have to ask you for further information or clarification, the process will take longer.
We'll contact you with the outcome of your audit, which could be:
- your information meets Register standards
- your information does not meet Register standards
If you do not meet any or all of the standards, we'll tell you why and ask you to resubmit your information.
You'll have two further attempts to meet the Register standards. If you still fail meet any of the standards after your third submission, you will be removed from the Register and from membership.
What happens to my information?
The information you provide will be kept confidential and will only be seen by Register staff responsible for the audit. We'll hold your personal information only for as long as is necessary for the audit and any follow-up process.
We will not pass your personal information onto any third parties.
Appeals process
You can only appeal against a decision to remove you from the Register on the grounds that:
- the audit procedure has not been followed correctly
or - your audit information has not been fairly and properly assessed against the Register standards
You must make your appeal in writing within one calendar month of receiving our decision letter. Your appeal will be considered by the Public Protection Committee.
Further information and help
If you have any queries about the audit process, check our audit FAQs. Or you can contact us at audit@bacp.co.uk or call 01455 883300.
If you have any queries about the Register or registration, check our Register FAQs or please email bacp@bacp.co.uk.