Internal Quality Assurance

Introduction

The National Council for Integrative Psychotherapists (NCIP) is dedicated to maintaining high operational standards. Our focus is to ensure that our members possess the relevant qualifications, skills, and proficiency for safe and ethical practice. Our comprehensive assessments of memberships and accreditations reflect our ongoing commitment to high standards, underscored by our quality assurance protocols. The NCIP is dedicated to transparency, accountability, quality, trust, the safety of the public and our members, including NCIP accredited educational institutions.

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Scope

This policy delineates the framework for our verification processes, including validation and accreditation tasks. It applies to all assessors, both paid and volunteer. All our assessors are externally trained (both staff and volunteers) for quality assurance. 

An assessor at the NCIP is responsible for critically assessing and judging the accreditation applications of members and training courses.

They base their decisions on provided documentation, corroborating evidence, and any requisite additional information. Assessors may also employ additional tools and resources, such as interviews and verifications. Assessments cover:

• Members accreditation
• Course Accreditation

The NCIP has 3 different verifying processes for different criteria. The Assessors, and what they do are as follows:

• Registrar - The registrar verifies membership applications, by using the Membership Criteria
• Assessment & Accreditation Team (AAT) - The AAT verify all Accreditation, be it membership accreditation applications or training course accreditation applications.
• Professional Standards Team (PST) - The PST annually perform Professional Standards Reviews

The relevant NCIP Assessor performs verification and quality control checks, considering the following:

• Adequacy of evidence and information
• Evaluation methods utilised
• Identified problem areas and decision-making processes
• Adherence to NCIP standards and regulations
• Compliance with NCIP assessment guidelines

We are committed to continual enhancement and will annually review our assessment systems to ensure alignment with our activity levels and standards.

Management Sampling

Each assessor's verification process spans 12 months, including observations and evaluations of their assessments, decision-making, and communication effectiveness. The NCIP's Operations Management regularly sample applications. The findings are reviewed quarterly by the Directors and shared with the Operations Team (Ops), for possible improvements and updates.

Portfolio Sampling

The NCIP's Operations Management portfolio sampling is reflective of the assessor's experience level and can report monthly with detailed analysis and recommendations. These reports inform discussions regarding CPD needs, standardisation, and contribute to the NCIP's quality control measures.

Verification Cycles

A 12-month rolling verification program ensures diverse sampling of decisions and applications. For new assessors, a graduated reduction in sampling frequency is applied as they gain experience. For established assessors, a consistent sampling frequency is maintained based on their length of service.

Training Providers Assurance

NCIP aims to validate that training providers and their programs meet our accreditation conditions and standards. Verification includes evaluating the sufficiency of evidence, methodologies, and quality of course delivery, ensuring they meet the required level of training prior to accreditation application with the NCIP.

This evaluation is periodically reviewed for consistency and quality, and plays a critical role in the renewal of training providers' accreditation status.

Annual Reporting

An Annual IQA Report synthesises monthly findings to inform discussions with NCIP leadership, teams, and assessors, ensuring the continued excellence of accredited training providers. This comprehensive review addresses any immediate issues and contributes to the public trust in the NCIP's accreditation symbol as a mark of quality and high standards.