What is IPN?
The Independent Practitioners Network aims to provide a meaningful model of best practice and accountability through open committed relationships with peers. We are a nationwide network of practitioners of equal status rather than a hierarchical organisation. We believe that high quality ethical practice is grounded in honesty, integrity, and transparency. This is achieved through our model of accountability structure whereby each group of participants links with two other groups – see Peer Accountability section below. We welcome counsellors, psychotherapists, educators, growth workers, and allied practitioners. The IPN has a commitment to encouraging diverse forms of practice, training, or therapeutic relationship, since we value richly pluralistic and multi-skilled ecology.
IPN Structure
Non-hierarchical, low bureaucracy. IPN is inclusive of more and less qualified and registered members. We recognise that there are many routes to being an effective practitioner. The structure is horizontal and multi-centred, rather than vertical and pyramidal. There is no central, standardised code of practice; each peer group creates its own ethical code which is then shared with the whole network.
This Structure Provides for:
• A powerfully effective means of supporting the interests of both client and practitioner
• Self and peer assessment, through a continual process of dynamic accountability
• An exciting, stimulating, and creative context for ongoing practitioner development
Through supporting and challenging practitioners, IPN enables them to work with clients as effectively as possible. However, IPN currently does not offer clients an independent process for the resolution of concerns or complaints about a member’s practice.
Freedom of Practice
We are committed to defending freedom of practice, and to creating a culture of openness and challenge. The Network grows out of the belief that no centralised organisation has the right or the ability to decide who should practice therapy, facilitation, or equivalent skills.
Peer Accountability
The unit of IPN membership is a group:
– Of at least four practitioners who know and stand by each others’ work
– Who develop a group ethical statement
– Who meet regularly to share, support and challenge themselves and each other
– Who address any problems or conflicts in their work.
The group seeks to establish the quality of its members’ work through continual, personal ongoing interaction. This is consistent with our belief that this most effectively facilitates accountable best practice.
A member group is expected to have formed cross-links with two other groups. The role of the link groups is to observe, support and challenge the group process of their link group; this goes both ways. Thus the process of peer support and challenge is widened and deepened.
Note December 2025: Following a decrease in Network participation, no existing IPN group currently has links with two other groups, a condition of membership set out in the network’s procedures for accountability. The Network is actively working to increase its number of participants; as this happens, this condition of membership will become easier to fulfil. The process of accountability is still taking place within each group and between groups where one link group exists. In the mean-time, individuals working with IPN practitioners can speak to them about their group’s status if they wish.
Why might I want to take part in IPN?
If you are interested in a form of active accountability sustained and co-created with peers in ways that matches your ethical commitment to client welfare.
You would be involving yourself in a community of practitioners
• with whom you could share the delights and difficulties of your work with clients
• devoted to sustaining the values and commitment to ethical practice that you value, along with keeping you open to challenge and growth from peers
• offering a form of practitioner accountability based on face-to-face relationship, rooted in continual and group reflection, rather than externally prescribed rules
• that honours the diversity of educators, human potential workers, growth workers and allied practitioners, alongside counselling and psychotherapy.
