Programme accreditation

Although there is variation in advanced practice itself, by accrediting advanced level programmes the Centre for Advancing Practice will consistently assure education quality.

To become Centre accredited, programmes meet standards set out in the Multi-professional framework for advanced clinical practice in England and Standards for Education and Training set by HEE. We welcome diversity in programme content to cater to practitioner interests and service needs, but all should consistently meet the standards, put patients at the heart of what we do, and deliver a high quality academic and clinical programme.

HEE accredited programmes will become one of the benchmark routes to recognition for practitioners and will ensure a consistent level of quality across England.

For education providers

When can I accredit my programme?

As part of our initial scoping work, HEE identified a significant number of advanced-level education programmes eligible for programme accreditation. To be able to accredit programmes whilst maintaining high standards the Centre is taking a phased approach.

Since September 2020, several programmes have begun the accreditation process and gained accreditation, others are ongoing.

Find out more about the accreditation process

How do I know when my programme will be invited to submit?

The Centre is working with Regional Faculty Leads to develop a schedule for accreditation submissions that will enable support and maintain standards. Our priority is to ensure the process is efficient and appropriate while working to support education providers.

Legacy programmes

We are working through the advanced level programme in a phased approach, the accreditation of legacy programmes will be rolled out separately as part of a later phase. We will provide updates when the status of this route changes. 

What is a legacy programme?

A legacy programme is the previous version of the advanced practice programme submitted to HEE for accreditation or the previous version of an advanced practice programme that already holds HEE accreditation.

The date of HEE accreditation for a legacy programme will align to the date the legacy programme was validated by the education provider but will be no longer than five years from the validation date of the existing programme.  

Accreditation process

Find out more about the Centre’s accreditation process.

Accredited programmes

The above link provides access to a list of programmes accredited by the Centre for Advancing Practice. This list is updated on a regular basis. As advanced practice programme titles are determined by the education provider, variance may be seen within these programme titles with some programmes being aimed specifically at certain professionals and/or scopes of practice.

All programmes successfully accredited by the Centre for Advancing Practice have been deemed to meet the capabilities and standards set out in HEE’s (2017) Multi-professional framework for advanced clinical practice in England and HEE’s (2020) Standards for Education and Training (SET) regarding generic advanced practice competencies and skills and do not necessarily confer recognition of skills specific to a scope of practice even if such is included in any title.