The objective of the Athena Herd Foundation Accredited Practitioner Register™ (Register) serves to:

• create and maintain professional ethics and standards that prioritise the health and wellbeing of clients and public and protects them from harm or injury;
• promote and maintain client confidence and public credibility in the benefits of Equine Facilitated Interactions and the delivery thereof;
• provide a clear definition of professional standards required to support the delivery of Equine Facilitated Interactions;
• maintain ongoing compliance with these standards by all registered Practitioners.

Benefits of registration

• use of the designatory letters APUK
• a certificate of registration and a personalised logo that you can use to promote your practice
• free listing on The Register

Requirements

To become a registered Practitioner, you must:

• be resident and practicing in the United Kingdom
• have successfully completed an appropriate qualification, or qualifications, in line with the Register’s Standards of Education and Training
• currently be in practice, or have practised within the last two years, and
• agree to and be able to comply with the commitments set out below

Applying for Registration

Application can be completed online, or by requested application form.

Click here to find out more about how we will handle your application in our registration process 

In addition to relevant personal details, we will require various supporting documents. We recommend that you check out the full requirement and gather that information together before starting the process.

For more information please read our Registration Policy.

If you wish to proceed with registration please email [email protected] to request an application form, or download an application form here.

Commitments

As a registered member of The Athena Herd Foundation Accredited Practitioner Register™ you are bound by:

• the requirements of registration laid out in declaration of compliance in the application form.
• our Ethical Basis for Good Practice in Equine Facilitated Interactions
• our Framework of Professional Standards
• our defined levels of Continued Professional Development
• our Duty of Candour, and
• our Framework for the Ethical Treatment for Horses.

You must have read and agreed to all these as part of your original membership application.

You will have to recommit to these each year when you renew your membership. In addition to the links above these include evidence of appropriate current insurance and commitments to continuing professional development and supervision and maintaining up-to-date records of these activities.

Membership logo

Members will be provided their own annual “Accredited Practitioner” logo.  

Example logos and guidance for use of this logo is covered within the Athena Herd Foundation Brand Protection Policy and Guidance. 

Other Modalities, Practices and Adjunctive Therapies

The Register is only for Practitioners of Equine Facilitated Interactions, although it supports the recognition of other accredited therapies and modalities against a Practitioner’s registration, such as Counselling and Occupational Therapy. These will be permitted where the Practitioner can provide copies of all supporting qualifications and proof of membership of an appropriate accredited register.

If you are qualified to offer other practices (sometimes called adjunctive therapies), for example reiki or homoeopathy, please ensure that your association with the Register is clearly presented as distinct from these practices.

If you are providing coaching or other personal/professional development services these should not be promoted as linked to this registration.

For more information on this condition please read our Other Therapies and Practices Policy.

Reapplying for and Restoring Registration

Practitioners who for any reason have lapsed their registration can reapply at any time. The process of reapplication is dependent on the elapsed time and the recency or contemporariness of their professional learning and qualification.

Practitioner who might have been removed from the register can also apply to have their membership restored.

For more information reapplication or restoring click here.  

Audit

The Register carries out an annual audit of Practitioner compliance with the terms of registration. This will be undertaken by random sample, any Practitioner selected will need to make available all requested documentation. Find out more about our audit process.

Costs

There is an application fee of £75, and an individual membership is £125 per annum.

On receipt of application, we will invoice you the application fee, the Athena Herd Foundation Terms and Conditions shall apply. Individual membership will be invoiced on satisfactory completion of application.

Membership subscriptions run for one year and are reviewed annually.

Appeal

Should you be unhappy with, or wish to contest, any decision made in respect of application to the Register then you can raise an appeal in line with our Appeals Policy.

Return to the Register’s home page.