Consultation on updates to our sanctions policy

This consultation is closed. The revised sanctions policy is available below and came into effect on 2 March 2026.

Outcome

With this consultation, our overarching aim was to ensure that decisions made through the FTP process continue to be transparent, proportionate, and focused on protecting the public.

The sanctions policy sets out how Practice Committee Panels should make fair, proportionate and consistent decisions when imposing sanctions following a finding of impairment in fitness to practise (FTP) cases.

We engaged with a range of stakeholders and the feedback we received was insightful. Following review and analysis, we have made the following broad updates:

• Structural and editorial improvements
• Clearer guidance for panels to consider contextual factors
• Strengthening language related to misconduct towards colleagues
• Adding further clarity and explanation
• Ensuring consistency across the policy

The key changes are summarised in the graphic below. For full information, as well as the rationale behind our decisions, please see the consultation response document, available below.

We would like to thank all those who took the time to respond to the consultation. 

The revised sanctions policy came into effect on 2 March 2026.

Consultation

The remainder of this page contains the details published about the consultation when it ran. 

We are seeking feedback on proposed changes to our sanctions policy to provide more clarity and guidance for panel members when deciding on the appropriate sanction in fitness to practise (FTP) cases. The changes will further ensure that all FTP decisions and outcomes are informed, fair, proportionate, and consistent.

Through this consultation we want to hear feedback from the public, registrants, professional bodies, unions, employers, learners, education providers and panel members, to ensure that the revised policy is robust, fair and effective in meeting the needs of the public and the professions we regulate.

Proposed changes

As well as making the guidance easier to use, our proposed changes include:

• making it even clearer that all forms of discrimination are considered unacceptable;
• providing additional guidance to help panels consider a registrant’s intent and state of mind to assess whether misconduct may have been sexually motivated;
• providing more information to help panels consider whether registrants have failed to maintain professional boundaries in line with our recently updated standards of conduct, performance and ethics;
• providing clarity and improving transparency on when interim orders are applied;
• providing greater clarity about which types of conduct are considered incompatible with continued registration and should therefore lead to a registrant being removed from our Register;
• providing more guidance to help panels assess how dishonest actions may affect trust or cause harm, so they can make more informed and consistent decisions;
• offering more detailed guidance to panels about how to assess apologies made by registrants when things go wrong; and
• clearly setting out the aggravating and mitigating factors that panels should consider, to enhance transparency and accountability.
  
  

How to respond

This consultation is no longer accepting responses.

The consultation ran from Thursday 29 May 2025 to Monday 1 September 2025. The questions we asked are set out in the consultation document.

We would encourage you to read the background information set out in the below documents before you answer these questions.

Any information included in your response will be treated in accordance with our data protection policy and privacy notice.

If you are unable to respond using the online platform, please complete the consultation response form and send it to us by post or email, using the details below.

If you would like a version in Welsh or in an alternative format, please email consultation@hcpc-uk.org or write to: