THE ASSOCIATION REPRESENTING more than 6,500 counsellors and psychotherapists across Ireland has said it’s “deeply concerned” that new standards for the sector will undermine client safety and damage access to mental health services across Ireland.

The Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy is calling on Health Minister Jennifer O’Carroll MacNeill and Minister for Mental Health Mary Butler to intervene so that these concerns can be addressed.

In a statement, it said that standards and criteria published by regulator Coru in July saw the entry requirement for psychotherapists raised an extra level in the profession’s training framework.

The association believes that this higher threshold, combined with what it called restrictive scopes of practice, will deter new entrants, reduce the pool of professionals, and further limit timely access to care.

In addition, it argues that the new standards weaken professional training and threaten client safety at a time when mental health services are already under severe strain.

Lisa Molloy, IACP Chief Executive Officer said the association “fully supports fair regulation” and added that it had been calling for state oversight of the sector.

“But these new rules risk shutting people out of therapy, making waiting lists even longer and leaving the most vulnerable without the help they need,” Molloy said, adding that senior government ministers for the sector needed to intervene.