• Membership of the Ethics Committee

1.1 The Ethics Committee (hereafter referred to as ‘the Committee’) shall consist of up to ten accredited members, honorary members or retired members appointed as follows:

a. Four members shall be appointed by the Governing Body, at least one of whom is a member of the Governing Body (who shall be the Governing Body representative on the Committee), and at least one of whom, if possible, has prior experience of working on the Ethics Committee.

b. Six members shall be elected by the voting membership at the Annual General Meeting or at an Extraordinary General Meeting.

c. Where possible, at least one member shall be from the jurisdiction of Northern Ireland, or be familiar with the legal and regulatory context of that jurisdiction.

1.2 The Chairperson of the Committee shall be appointed by the Governing Body.

1.3 The Committee shall elect from among its members:

a. a Committee Secretary, and

b. a Minutes Secretary.

1.4 If it is necessary for an officer or committee member to assume an acting role in the case of the non-availability of an officer, e.g., Chairperson, said person shall take full authority in that role for the duration of the meeting.

2.1 Appointments and elections to the Committee shall be for a period of two years. Members may be reappointed or re-elected for further periods of two years but no member shall serve on the Committee for more than eight consecutive years at a time.

3.1 The Committee will meet as and when required as determined by the Chairperson of the Committee or as instructed by the Governing Body.

3.2 Minutes will be taken at all meetings by the Minutes Secretary of the Committee with such minutes being kept and available on the IAHIP servers.

3.3 A majority of the members of the Committee shall constitute a quorum for meetings of the Committee unless determined otherwise by the Governing Body and communicated to the Chairperson of the Committee.

4.1 The Committee has the following seven functions:

a) providing guidelines and advice on concerns raised by members of the Association on ethical issues arising from their practices as psychotherapists, supervisors, or trainers (See clause 5 below)

b) providing consultation and ethical advice on all the formal policies, procedures and Bye Laws of the Association (See clause 6 below)

c) developing the Codes of Ethics and Practice of the Association (See clause 7 below)

d) developing the Complaints Policy and Procedures (See clause 8 below)

e) developing the Internal Grievance Policy and Procedures (See clause 9 below)

f) maintaining statistical records of complaints (See clause 10 below)

g) determining and applying sanctions following receipt of the Final Report of the Complaints Committee, the Internal Grievance Committee or the Formal Board (See clause 11 below)

(i) The Committee shall be available for consultation and as a source of ethical advice on issues arising for members of the Association in their practices as psychotherapists, as supervisors, or as trainers.

(ii) The Committee shall keep records of advice given on various topics, so that the previous exploration of issues may be drawn on, and precedents cited, as new cases arise. Such records should be kept on the IAHIP server. Such drawing on the wisdom of the past should not preclude the development of new understanding of issues and of values.

(iii) The Committee shall, where appropriate, summarise and generalise its advice in written Guidelines to be made available to members on specific topics such as mandatory reporting, note-taking, giving evidence in court, remote working, etc.

(iv) Where specialised legal advice is needed on such issues, the Committee may (taking due account, in consultation with the Governing Body, of the financial implications) seek such advice from the Association solicitor or from other legal specialists.

(i) The Committee shall be available for consultation and as a source of ethical advice on issues relating to the justice and fairness, and other ethical aspects, of existing or proposed Bye Laws or amendments to Bye Laws, or of proposed or formally adopted policies and procedures of the Association.

(ii) The request for such consultation and ethical advice may be made by the Governing Body or by other committees or established working groups of the Association.

(iii) The Committee may itself take the initiative in proffering such advice to the Governing Body or to other relevant committees.

(iv) The advice offered by the Committee is advice, and as such is not binding on those who receive it. However, in cases where such advice is rejected by the Governing Body or other committees, the Committee may bring the issue to the attention of a consultative forum of the Association or, if necessary, to a General Meeting of members.

(i) As well as its general role as a source of advice and consultation on all Bye Laws and formally adopted policies and procedures, the Committee has a specific responsibility for any necessary reformulation of the existing Codes of Ethics and Practice of the Association and, where necessary, for the development of new ones. In exercising this role, the Committee should monitor the adequacy of the various codes of ethics in the light of changing circumstances and newly emerging issues, and of newly emerging understanding of values.

(ii) The task of reviewing or developing any code of ethics may also be initiated in response to a request from the Governing Body.

(iii) In fulfilling this responsibility, the Committee may put forward to the Governing Body proposals for new Codes of Ethics and Practice or for changes to the existing codes.

(iv) If such proposals are not accepted, or are modified, by the Governing Body, further consultation between the Committee and the Governing Body shall take place to clarify the issues and to see if consensus can be achieved.

(v) If the Governing Body does not agree to back such proposals, the Committee shall be entitled to bring the issue to an AGM or EGM for decision by the voting membership.

(i) As well as its general role as a source of advice and consultation on all Bye Laws and formally adopted policies and procedures, the Committee has a specific responsibility, in consultation and liaison with the Complaints Committee, for the on-going development of the Complaints Policy and Procedures and related documentation.

(ii) In fulfilling this responsibility, the Committee following consultation with the Complaints Committee may put forward to the Governing Body proposals for changes in the Complaints Policy and Procedures.

(iii) If such proposals are not accepted, or are modified, by the Governing Body, further consultation between the Committee and the Governing Body shall take place, to see if consensus can be achieved.

(iv) If the Governing Body does not agree to back such proposals, the Committee shall be entitled to bring the issue to an AGM or EGM for decision by the voting membership.

(v) For the purpose of fulfilling this function, the Committee shall, in accordance with the requirements of Bye Law 7, appoint one of its members to be a member of the Complaints Committee. This person shall act as the primary means of liaison between the two committees and shall be subject to the confidentiality obligations required by each committee.

(i) As well as its general role as a source of advice and consultation on all Bye Laws and formally adopted policies and procedures, the Committee has a specific responsibility, in consultation and liaison with the Internal Grievance Committee, for the on-going development of the Internal Grievance Policy and Procedures and related documentation.

(ii) In fulfilling this responsibility, the Committee following consultation with the Internal Grievance Committee may put forward to the Governing Body proposals for changes in the Internal Grievance Policy and Procedures.

(iii) If such proposals are not accepted, or are modified, by the Governing Body, further consultation between the Committee and the Governing Body shall take place, to see if consensus can be achieved.

(iv) If the Governing Body does not agree to back such proposals, the Committee shall be entitled to bring the issue to an AGM or EGM for decision by the voting membership.

(v) For the purpose of fulfilling this function, the Committee shall, in accordance with the requirements of Bye Law 8, appoint one of its members to be a member of the Internal Grievance Committee. This person shall act as the primary means of liaison between the two committees and shall be subject to the confidentiality obligations required by each committee.

(i) The Committee, in consultation with the Complaints Committee, shall maintain statistical records of all complaints processed under the Complaints Policy and Procedures, including the nature of the complaints, the outcomes of the investigations, and the sanctions imposed (if any).

(ii) Such records shall be used for the purposes of:

a. developing Association policy and practice in regard to the Complaints Policy and Procedures,

b. providing guidance and assistance to those serving on the Committee, the Complaints Committee, and Formal Boards,

c. giving the Governing Body statistical information on Complaints Policy and Procedures activities, including those with legal or financial implications for the Association, and

d. providing an anonymised statistical report on the number of Complaints received annually to the members at the AGM.

(iii) All such records and information shall be maintained with paramount regard for confidentiality and the protection of the anonymity of all parties concerned.

11.1(i) On receipt of the Final Reports of:

a. the Complaints Committee following its investigation of a complaint under the terms of the Complaints Policy and Procedures; or

b. the Internal Grievance Committee following its investigation of an Internal Grievance under the terms of the Internal Grievance Policy and Procedures; or

c. a Formal Board following its hearing of an Appeal against a decision of the Complaints Committee or the Internal Grievance Committee,

it shall be the responsibility of the Committee to decide what sanctions, if any, are appropriate and to apply and monitor them.

• In arriving at its decisions, the Committee shall be guided by the findings in the Final Report received in accordance with Clause 11.(i) above.

• The Committee shall notify the Governing Body of all sanctions decided on and where a sanction involves withdrawal of a member’s accreditation, it shall be automatically ratified by the Governing Body before implementation.

• The Committee shall also send details of the sanctions, if any, that they impose to the Complaints Committee, the Internal Grievance Committee or a Formal Board, whichever is appropriate.

• When a complaint or an internal grievance has been upheld and appropriate sanctions are being considered, any member of the Committee who has an acquaintance or connection with any of the parties involved which could cause a conflict of interest or cast doubt on their impartiality shall declare such potential conflict and step aside from any involvement in the consideration of sanctions.

• If the member refuses to step aside from any involvement in the consideration of sanctions, then the Chairperson may remove the member from the process and the Governing Body in its sole discretion may remove them from the committee.

• The Committee appointee to the Complaints Committee under clause 8.v above shall always step aside from any involvement in the consideration of sanctions.

• The Committee appointee to the Internal Grievance Committee under Clause 9.v above shall always step aside from any involvement in the consideration of sanctions.

11.2 The Committee may impose the following sanctions:

a) An apology

b) A warning as to future conduct

c) Increased supervision requirements

d) Removal from a Committee

e) Mandatory Training to be undertaken

f) Suspension from a specific area of practice for a specified period

g) Temporary suspension of membership or association

h) Temporary suspension of supervisor accreditation

i) Temporary suspension of Recognised Training Course approval

j) Termination of Membership or Association

k) Termination of Supervisor Accreditation

l) Termination of Recognised Training Course approval

m)Notifying sanctions to employer, training school or other accrediting bodies

n) Publishing sanctions

The purpose of the Committee imposing a sanction is to:

• Provide a remedy to the injured party, and

• to ensure that the person against whom the finding is made receives the supports necessary so that such an issue does not arise again, and

• in serious cases to protect the public.

11.3 As regards any details of complaints, internal grievances, or any other personal issues relating to individuals, each member of the Committee shall sign a declaration of confidentiality which shall be binding for all time. This confidentiality requirement does not extend to the general work of the Committee unless clearly specified.

12.1 The Governing Body representative on the Committee shall have the task of liaising between the Committee and the Governing Body and submitting regular reports to the Governing Body.

12.2 The Committee shall report on its activities to the Annual General Meeting or, if requested to do so by the Governing Body or by a quarter of the accredited membership, to an Extraordinary General Meeting.

13.1. The Committee shall consult with the Governing Body as and when required to ensure that the Codes of Ethics and Practice and all documentation provided by the Committee is updated in line with all other Association documents.

13.2 This Bye Law should be reviewed by the Committee and the Governing Body at least every 3 years.