About | Professional Standards Councils

Associations with approved professional standards schemes

A basic outline of Australia with logos of Associations with schemes. Logos are: Australian Computer Society, Australian Institute of Building Surveyors, Australian Property Institute Valuers, Bar Association of Queensland, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, Certified Practising Accountant Australia Limited, Association of Consulting Surveyors National, Institute of Public Accountants, Law Institute of Victoria, The Law Society of New South Wales, The Law Society of South Australia, The Law Society of Western Australia, New South Wales Bar Association, Queensland Law Society, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, South Australian Bar Association, Strata Community Association (NSW), Victorian Bar Association, Western Australian Bar Association

Our Vision, Mission, Mandate

Our Vision

Professional and occupational associations lead the way in continuously improving the high standard of professional services to Australian consumers.

Our Mission

To regulate occupational associations to facilitate and promote consumer protection through improvement in professional standards under professional standards schemes.

Our Mandate

Protect consumers

Our aim is to protect consumers of professional services across Australia by demanding high levels of professional standards from those who participate in the national system of professional standards regulation.

Occupational associations with an approved professional standards scheme have committed to ensuring competent and ethical conduct by their members in providing services and ensuring avenues of resolution and redress are available to consumers.

Improve professional standards

Our aim is to encourage and assist occupational associations to improve the professional standards of their members by implementing occupational risk management strategies.

We encourage the development of professional standards and regulatory capacity through research, publishing information, providing guidance, and delivering forums. We promote discussion and better regulation in the areas of risk management, membership requirements, codes of ethics and practice, resolution of complaints, discipline of members, continuing education, insurance standards and quality management.

Help associations

Our role is to approve and supervise the operation of professional standards schemes. This involves helping occupational associations to develop their professional standards and regulatory systems, as well as to comply with the professional standards legislation.

Role of the Councils

Enable the creation of professional standards schemes that limit the civil liability of professionals and others

Supervise the operation of professional standards schemes by occupational associations

Monitor how well occupational associations and their members meet the standards demanded by their professional standards schemes

Encourage and assist professional standards regulation by occupational associations

Ensure protection of consumers who use the services provided by professionals and others through insurance, complaints, and disciplinary arrangements.

Professional Standards Councils’ meeting in Sydney

The Councils’ Strategy 2025

Strategy 2025 was published on 30 June 2022 and will build upon the outcomes achieved through Strategy 2021. The Councils invited views from a range of stakeholders, other consumer protection regulators, researchers, and consumer organisations.

The three new strategic goals to be achieved:

Extending the professionalisation of occupations through professional standards schemes

Strengthening the value proposition of professional standards regulation

Continued active supervision of scheme compliance and performance.

Annual Report 2021/22 highlights