Psychology Board of Australia - Past consultations
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Past consultations

Where there are public consultations which have closed, they will be shown below along with the individual submissions that were received and considered.

The Board publishes submissions received on their websites to encourage discussion and inform the community and stakeholders, unless requested otherwise. There may be circumstances under which submissions may not be published including if the individual or organisation has requested that the submission not be published; if the submission contains offensive or defamatory comments or does not address the scope of the consultation; or if the submission has not been provided in an accessible format for publication.

If you have a submission published on this page and you wish to request it be de-identified or removed please email the Chair of the Board at - psychologychair@ahpra.gov.au.

Where there are consultations which are open for input, they will be shown under Current Consultations.

Public Consultation – Review of the Criminal history registration standard

Released: 4 June 2024
Closed: 30 July 2024

The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) and the National Boards invited stakeholders to have their say on the draft Criminal history registration standard (the criminal history standard) and supporting documents.

In late 2023, as part of our work to improve public safety in health regulation the National Boards and Ahpra consulted widely on a range of reforms, including a series of questions about the current version of the criminal history standard.

After consideration of all feedback, a draft registration standard and new supporting materials were developed. Stakeholders were invited to again have their say on how we have responded to feedback, the draft changes we have made to the criminal history standard, and the other material we have developed to explain how the standard is applied.

Consultation documents and submissions received are available on the Past Consultations page of the Ahpra website.

Public Consultation - Regulation of health practitioners who perform and who advertise non-surgical cosmetic procedures

Released: 27 November 2023
Closed: 1 March 2024 (Consultation was extended for four weeks)

Ahpra and National Boards are reforming the regulation of registered health practitioners who work in the cosmetics sector in Australia, to improve practice and standards, public safety and informed consumer choice.

We consulted on three draft documents below related to the regulation of registered health practitioners who perform and advertise non-surgical cosmetic procedures.

  1. Guidelines for nurses who perform non-surgical cosmetic procedures (nurses practice guidelines – applies to nurses only)
  2. Guidelines for registered health practitioners who perform non-surgical cosmetic procedures (shared practice guidelines – applies to registered health practitioners excluding medical practitioners and nurses)
  3. Guidelines for registered health practitioners who advertise non-surgical cosmetic procedures (advertising guidelines – applies to all registered health practitioners).

Submissions will be published on the Ahpra website.

Public consultation – Review of the Criminal history registration standard and other work to improve public safety

Released: 3 August 2023
Closed: 29 September 2023

The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) and the National Boards invited stakeholders to have their say as part of a review of the Criminal history registration standard (the criminal history standard).

The review, which was part of the work of our blueprint for reform to strengthen public safety in health regulation, which has a focus on sexual misconduct in healthcare, sought feedback on the current version of the criminal history standard, as well as comments on the future direction of other focus areas of work to improve public safety in health regulation including: 

  • our plan to better explain and publish more information about how we make decisions about criminal history and about professional misconduct by registered health practitioners
  • whether we can publish information about practitioners who are registered again after being removed from practice because of serious professional misconduct, and
  • more support for people who are affected by professional misconduct by registered health practitioners.

The consultation formed phase one of our work to review the Criminal history standard and ensured we received a range of views before a revised criminal history standard is developed and another opportunity is provided for stakeholders to comment (phase two).

Submissions will be published to the Ahpra website.

Public consultation – Two further possible changes to the National Boards’ English language skills requirements

Released: 16 August 2023
Closed: 13 September 2023

The National Boards and the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) consulted on two further possible changes to the National Boards’ English language skills (ELS) requirements. The National Boards invited responses to questions about the two further possible changes including specific issues the Medical Board of Australia asked its stakeholders to consider. This consultation did not invite further feedback on proposed changes to the National Board ELS standards that have been previously consulted on.

This was a shorter streamlined consultation process designed to meet timeframes likely expected by Health Ministers. Feedback will be used to inform the final ELS standards National Boards submit to Health Ministers.

Background

From 13 July to 7 September 2022, Ahpra and the National Boards (except the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practice Board of Australia) publicly consulted on revised English language skills registration standards (the ELS standards). There was broad support from stakeholders for the proposed revised registration standards.

On 30 September 2022, the National Cabinet announced the Independent review of overseas health practitioner regulatory settings (the Kruk review), and in April 2023, the National Cabinet endorsed the interim review report. In line with recommendations within the interim report endorsed by the National Cabinet, the National Boards consulted on two further possible changes to their English language skills requirements: expanding the range of recognised countries and a possible change to one element of the English test results accepted by the National Boards.

Submissions will be published soon.

Public consultation – Updating the code of conduct for psychologists

Released: 19 June 2023
Closed: 14 August 2023

The Psychology Board of Australia is updating the code of conduct that applies to all registered psychologists in Australia.

The Board published a consultation paper that included information on the review, development of the draft code and proposed changes.

Resources

To support the consultation, we developed a Guide to the review (143 KB,PDF) that outlined the key aspects of the consultation.

The Board hosted a series of webinars in July and August 2023. Board Chair, Rachel Phillips, provided background and context to the proposed changes. A copy of the presentation slides from the webinar is provided (1,408 KB,PDF).

You can view the recording of a webinar below.

 

What we heard

Our consultation report summarises the key themes from the submissions we received from stakeholders and explains how we used the feedback to inform our review of the code of conduct for psychologists.

Submissions

The consultation received 131 submissions from a broad range of external stakeholders. Of these, 66 stakeholders provided feedback by completing the submission template or freeform text via email. A further 65 stakeholders completed our online survey.

For this consultation, some of the feedback is not published as a number of stakeholders requested confidentiality and some submissions were out of scope of this review. As indicated in the online survey, the feedback provided via the survey is published without identifying details.

If you have a question or concern about how we’ve approached publishing your submission, please contact us at Psychconsultation@ahpra.gov.au.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the submissions are those of the individuals or organisations who submitted them. Their publication does not imply any acceptance of, or agreement with, these views by Ahpra or the Psychology Board of Australia.

Submissions received

Public consultation – Updating the competences for general registration

Released: 10 February 2023
Closed: 11 April 2023

The Psychology Board of Australia is updating the competencies for general registration as a psychologist in Australia.

The Board published a consultation document, including an overview of the review, and proposed updates to the competencies and other Board documents. 

Resources

Alongside the public consultation we developed a Guide to the review (339 KB, PDF) that outlined the key aspects of the consultation and we held two webinars in March 2023 where Rachel Phillips, Psychology Board Chair, provided background and context to the proposed changes. A copy of the slides from the webinar is provided here (PDF, 612KB).

You can view a recording of the webinar below.

 

What we heard

Read our consultation report to learn more about what we heard through the consultation on updating the psychology competencies for general registration and our next steps. 

Submissions

The consultation received 111 submissions from 38 organisations and 73 individuals. Twenty-three submissions were received during preliminary (confidential) consultation, and 88 submissions received during public consultation.  

Of the submissions received to the public consultation, 66 stakeholders completed the online consultation survey (providing brief feedback), and 22 provided detailed feedback using the submission template. Submissions that were received at preliminary consultation, via the online consultation survey form, or were out of scope of the consultation are not published. For this consultation, a high number of stakeholders requested that their submissions remain confidential and not be published.  

If you have a question or concern about how we’ve approached publishing your submission, please contact us at Psychconsultation@ahpra.gov.au. 

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the submissions are those of the individuals or organisations who submitted them. Their publication does not imply any acceptance of, or agreement with, these views by Ahpra or the Psychology Board. 

Submissions received:

Public consultation – scheduled review of National scheme accreditation arrangements

Released: 14 December 2022
Closed: 14 February 2023

National Boards and Ahpra are reviewing the current accreditation arrangements for the national health practitioner regulatory scheme to prepare for the next period to mid-2029.

The current accreditation arrangements end on 30 June 2024 for all professions except paramedicine, which end on 30 November 2023. The National Boards and Ahpra intend to complete this scheduled review by May 2023 to inform National Boards’ decisions on arrangements for the next period and provide certainty for the future. The last scheduled review and public consultation on accreditation arrangements was in 2018.

This consultation is a key stage of the review and aims to confirm performance and progress on current accreditation priorities and will inform the priorities for the next period, including how progress in priority areas could be measured.

Public consultation on the English language skills registration standards

Released: 13 July 2022
Closed: 7 September 2022

Ahpra and the National Boards (except the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practice Board of Australia) carried out a public consultation on revised English language skills registration standards in July 2022.

National Boards invited practitioners, community members, employers, education providers and other stakeholders to give feedback on the standards.

National Boards published a consultation paper that included an overview of the review, proposed changes to the standards, frequently asked questions (FAQs), a literature review and questions to help frame feedback.

Background

To practise safely in Australia, registered health practitioners must have effective English language skills. This includes being able to communicate effectively with patients/clients/consumers and their relatives and carers, collaborate with other health care professionals and keep clear and accurate health records. The National Boards set requirements for English language skills to make sure all registered health practitioners can provide safe care and communicate effectively in English.

The English Language Skills Registration Standard (the ELS standard) is one of the five core registration standards required by all National Boards. It helps to ensure that everyone who registers as a health practitioner in Australia has these skills, regardless of their language background.

Ahpra and the National Boards (except the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practice Board of Australia) have reviewed their respective ELS standards to ensure that they stay current and keep pace with our changing and dynamic environment.

The review process has included considering available evidence of best practice, international benchmarking and consulting with various stakeholders whose feedback has been taken into account. For more details about the background and review process, please see the consultation paper

Submissions will be published soon.

Public consultation on the review of the Guidelines for advertising a regulated health service

Released:  11 September 2019
Closed:  26 November 2019

The National Boards and Ahpra carried out a public consultation on the Guidelines for advertising a regulated health service. The guidelines were developed to explain the advertising requirements in the National Law and to help advertisers (including registered health practitioners) to meet these requirements and advertise responsibly. The review is to make sure the guidelines are as contemporary, relevant and effective as possible.

Consultation documents and submissions received are available on the Past Consultations page of the Ahpra website.

Public consultation on the review of the Guidelines for mandatory notifications

The 15 National Boards in the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (the National Scheme) released for public consultation draft guidelines on Mandatory notifications.

Released: 11 September 2019
Closed: 6 November 2019

Consultation documents and submissions received are available on the Past Consultations page of the Ahpra website.

Public consultation on the national psychology exam guidelines and candidate manual

Released: 9 April 2019
Closed: 31 May 2019

Submissions received:

Public consultation on revised area of practice endorsement registration standard

Released: 12 October 2018
Closed: 7 December 2018

Submissions received:

 

Public Consultation paper on the proposal to retire the 4+2 internship pathway to general registration

Released: 29 March 2018
Closed: 1 June 2018

Submissions received:

Public consultation on review of accreditation arrangements – assignment of accreditation functions

National Boards and the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) have completed public consultation as part of a scheduled review of accreditation arrangements from mid-2019, when the current terms of assignment of accreditation functions end.

Released: 17 April 2018
Closed: 14 May 2018

Submissions and a brief consultation report are available on the Past Consultations page of the AHPRA website.

Public consultation on the draft guideline for informing a National Board about where you practise

The Psychology Board of Australia has published a consultation paper on the draft guideline for informing a National Board about where you practise.

Released: 13 April 2018
Closes: 25 May 2018

Submissions received are available on the Past Consultations page of the AHPRA website.

Public consultation on review of Professional indemnity insurance arrangements registration standard

Released: 13 March 2018
Closed: 4 May 2108

Submissions received:

Public consultation on review of supervisor guidelines

The Psychology Board of Australia (the Board) published Consultation Paper 29: Revised guidelines for supervisors and supervisor training providers.

Released: 5 March 2018
Closed: 27 April 2018

Submissions received:

Consultation Paper 28: National Psychology Examination Curriculum Review.

The Psychology Board of Australia (the Board) has published Consultation Paper 28: National Psychology Examination Curriculum Review.

Released: 7 July 2017
Closed: 1 September 2017

Submission received

Public consultation on a proposed guideline for transitional programs 

The Psychology Board of Australia (the Board) published consultation paper 27 seeking feedback on a proposed new guideline for overseas applicants about the Transitional Program.

Released: 13 July 2016
Closed: 7 September 2016

Submissions received

Public consultation on area of practice endorsements

The Psychology Board of Australia (the Board) published consultation paper 26 on a review of the area of practice endorsements registration standard and the guidelines for area of practice endorsements.

Released: 11 January 2016
Closed: 4 March 2016

Submissions received

Public consultation on ending the higher degree exemption from sitting the National psychology Exam

The Psychology Board of Australia published consultation paper 25: Consultation on ending the higher degree exemption from sitting the National Psychology Examination.

Released: 7 August 2015
Closed: Friday 2 October 2015

Submissions received

Public consultation on proposed amendments to the Provisional registration standard and the Guidelines for the 4+2 internship program

Released: 19 December 2014
Closed: 27 February 2015

The Psychology Board of Australia undertook public consultation on a review of the:

  • Provisional registration standard, and
  • Guidelines for the 4+2 internship program

This paper also included exposure drafts of General registration standard and the Policy for recency of practice requirements which were initially released for public consultation on the review of the requirements for general registration, continuing professional development, and recency of practice in April 2014 (see below).

Submissions received

Public consultation on draft Guidelines for the regulatory management of registered health practitioners and students infected with blood-borne viruses

National Boards released for public consultation draft guidelines on the regulatory management of registered health practitioners and students infected with blood-borne viruses.

Released: 24 July 2014 
Closed: 26 September 2014

Submissions received will be available on the Past Consultations page of the AHPRA website.

Public consultation on a review of the requirements for general registration, continuing professional development, and recency of practice.

Released: 28 April 2014
Closed: 30 June 2014

The Psychology Board of Australia undertook public consultation on a review of the:

  • General registration standard
  • Continuing professional development registration standard
  • Guidelines for continuing professional development
  • Recency of practice registration standard, and
  • Policy on recency of practice requirements

Public consultation - Requirements for General registration continuing professional development and recency of practice - 28 April 2014 (964 KB,PDF), Word version (516 KB,DOCX)  

Submissions received

 

 

Review of the English language skills and Criminal history registration standards

Released: 25 October 2013
Closed: 23 December 2013

Submissions received can be found on the Past consultations page on the AHPRA website.

Following this public consultation the revised English language skills and Criminal history registration standards were approved by the Australian Health Workforce Ministerial Council on 17 March 2015 with approval taking effect from 1 July 2015.

A consultation report on the English language skills registration standard provides a summary of responses and rationale for changes and sets out the proposed way forward, including areas where further work is planned.

Document  PDF  Accessible format  Document 
Consultation report  PDF 
(576KB) 		 Word version 
(638 KB,DOCX) 		 May 2015 

International criminal history checks - further public consultation

All National Boards have undertaken further public consultation on a proposal to refine international criminal history checks.

Released: 2 October 2013
Closed: 31 October 2013

Submissions and a consultation report are published on the AHPRA website.

More information about the outcome of this consultation is available on the international criminal history page of the AHPRA website.

Draft guidelines for the 5+1 internship programs

Released: 13 May 2013
Closed: 8 July 2013

The Psychology Board of Australia is consulting on a draft Guidelines for the 5+1 internship program.

The consultation paper should be read in conjunction with the Psychology Board of Australia’s Provisional registration standard (352 KB,PDF), published on 1 June 2012.

Submissions received

Guidelines for the National Psychology Examination

Released: 18 April 2013
Closed: 27 May 2013

Submissions received

Cross-Board consultation on common guidelines and psychology Code of ethics

Released: 4 April 2013
Closed: 30 May 2013

The consultation paper includes:

  • revisions to the Guidelines for advertising
  • a Social media policy
  • revisions to the Guidelines for mandatory notifications
  • endorsement of the APS Code of Ethics

Submissions can be found on the AHPRA website.

Proposed National Registration and Accreditation Scheme – Data access and research policy

Released: 22 February 2013
Closed: 5 April 2013

Received submissions will be posted on the AHPRA website under Past Consultations.

Consultation paper on review of accreditation arrangements

Released: 20 September 2012
Closed: 2 November 2012

Submissions received

Consultation paper on international criminal history checks

Released: 25 June 2012
Closed: 17 August 2012 

Submissions received can be found here.

Exposure Draft: National Psychology Examination Curriculum

Released: 7 November 2011
Closed: 27 January 2012

Submissions received

Exposure Draft: Guideline for Supervisors and Supervisor Training Providers

Released: 3 November 2011
Closed: 27 January 2012

Submissions received

Exposure Draft: Revised Standard and Guidelines on professional indemnity insurance for psychologists

Released: 7 September 2011
Closed: 2 November 2011

Submissions received

Proposed amendment to the Provisional registration standard for the 5+1 internship

Released: 6 June 2011
Closed: 29 July 2011

Consultation Paper 10 - Proposed amendment to the Provisional registration standard to account for the 5+1 program (387 KB,PDF)

Submissions received

Guidelines for the National Psychology Examination

Released: 6 April 2011
Closed: 13 May 2011

Consultation Paper 9 - National Examination Consultation Paper (258 KB,PDF)

Submissions received

Proposed revisions to the Professional Indemnity Insurance Arrangements Registration Standard

Released: 21 December 2010
Closed: 28 February 2011

Consultation paper 8 - Proposed revisions to the Professional Indemnity Insurance Arrangements Registration Standard (470 KB,PDF)

Submissions received

Exposure Draft – Guidelines on area of practice endorsements

Released: 11 November 2010
Closed: 22 December 2010

Consultation Paper 7 - Exposure Draft - Guidelines on area of practice endorsements (687 KB,PDF)

Submissions received

Registration standard – Limited registration for teaching or research

Released: 11 November 2010
Closed: 22 December 2010

Consultation Paper 6 - Proposed registration standard: Limited Registration for Teaching or Research (402 KB,PDF)

Submissions received

Revisions to the Guidelines on Area of Practice Endorsements

Released: August 2010
Closed: 10 September 2010

Consultation Paper 5 - Revisions to the Guidelines on Area of Practice Endorsements (546 KB,PDF)

Submissions received

Inappropriate Use of Psychological Testing

Released: 17 May 2010
Closed: 16 August 2010

Consultation Paper 4 - Options for the protection of the public posed by the inappropriate use of psychological testing (1.02 MB,PDF)

Submissions received

Supervisor Training

Released: 17 May 2010
Closed: 14 June 2010

Consultation Paper 3 - Guideline for Approved Training Programs in Psychology Supervision (1.29 MB,PDF)

Submissions received

Codes and Guidelines

Released: March 2010
Closed: 14 April 2010

Consultation Paper 2 - Codes and Guidelines (5.30 MB,PDF)

Submissions received

Registration Standards and Related Matters

Released: 27 October 2009
Closed: 24 November 2009

Consultation Paper 1 - Registration Standards and Related Matters (789 KB,PDF)

Submissions received

Exemption from Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

Public submissions are available on this website for transparency on our consultations regarding important matters affecting psychologists.

We publish submissions in their original format as made by the submitter. If you have difficulty accessing a submission, please contact us, and we will try to contact the submitter to provide an accessible version of their submission for your reference.

Please note that submitters are asked to provide their submissions to our public consultations in web accessible formats, and we guide them on how this can be achieved. We will update inaccessible submissions on this website when accessible format versions of files become available.

 
 
Page reviewed 18/11/2024
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