Information about re-registering
with the FMC for 2017
6thJanuary 2017
What is re-registration?
The FMC Register holds information about mediators’ qualifications, experience, accreditation status, details of which FMC member organisation they belong to, practice information and contact details.The FMSB is responsible for making sure that the register contains the information it needs to uphold professional standards and maintain a record of training and accreditation.
Re-registration is now taking place to ensure these details are up to date, and to collectadditional information which has been identified as important to hold since first registration took place.
To re-register, you must return your completed form with any relevant certificates (see ‘Which information do I have to support with evidence?’ below) and pay the relevant fee.
What are the purposes and benefits of registration?
By re-registering with the FMC and providing information about your experience and activities as a family mediator you will confirm your professional status, ensuring that the public can identify you as a bona fide family mediator and entitling you to undertake legally-aided mediations (provided that you are working for a service or practice that has a legal aid contract). Re-registration will enable you to continue to use your URN, and, if you are FMCA, maintain your status as an Authorised Family Mediator for the purpose of signing court forms.
The register is an integral part of professional self-regulation, which was introduced in response to the commitment of the profession to the protection of the public - a commitment demonstrated by the number of family mediators who registered in 2016 (1225).It is our intention that all those family mediators who practise to high standards should see registration as a natural consequence of their commitment to sustaining those standards.
If you are working towards accreditation, you must be registered with the FMC in order to apply for FMCA status. If you currently hold FMCA, you will lose this status if you do not re-register, and will not be an Authorised Family Mediator for the purpose of signing court forms.
When is the deadline for re-registering?
The re-registration deadline is5th February 2017. You must re-register by this date to remain on the FMC Register. If you experience difficulties re-registering, contact us anyway before this date so we can help you with the process and ensure you are not removed from the register because of administrative difficulties.
Why are steps being taken to verify the information in the register?
In 2015, it was decided that information provided by mediators did not need to be supported by evidence. However, it has emerged that some details may not be entirely reliable. For this reason, and, for the protection of the public, the FMSB has decided that it is necessary to ensure that the information provided is supported by evidence, hence it is embarking on a process of verification. This is a significant exercise and we would be grateful for your co-operation and your patience as we complete this process.
Which information do I have to support with evidence?
You must be prepared to produce evidence relating to all the qualifications recorded on the register, and, if you are qualified to carry out direct consultation with children, a DBS check.
You are not, however, required, to submit all these documents now.
In the first instance, the FMSB is verifying mediators’ FMCA status or the successful completion of a foundation training course.
Your FMCA status will, where possible, be verified with the awarding body. If you have transferred in to FMCA having gained the relevant qualification a long time ago, and we are not able to verify this with the awarding body, we will write to you requesting the relevant certificate/letter showing you have gained this qualification.
If you are working towards FMCA, please send a scanned copy of the certificate or letter which shows you have passed a foundation training course with your completed re-registration form.
In early 2017 the FMSB will begin the process of verifying other information on the register, and will write to you to ask for the relevant evidence to be submitted at this time.
My training or qualification date shows as 1.1.15 but was earlier. Why is this and how do I correct it?
Your training or qualification date will show as 1.1.15 in the register if, upon first registration, you didn’t tell us the date you completed your training or obtained your qualificationor if you provided the date 1.1.15 as the date you transferred in to FMCA. Please provide the date you trained, or obtained the qualification that led to FMCA, on your re-accreditation form.
Why are you asking for my PPC’s URN and how do I find out what this is?
Every registered mediator must have a registered and accredited PPC, and will therefore have a URN. Your PPC will have been sent their URN when they registered last year, and so will be able to tell you this.
Why do I have to provide my practice addresses when they are all on the Find A Mediator search?
The Find A Mediator search currently gathers information from a database which is populated with information gathered via the FMC Membership Organisations. This is changing, and from January 2017, the information will be taken directly from the FMC Register. In order to ensure that all the information in the FMC Register is accurate, mediators are asked to send this information directly to the FMC as part of re-registration. This process is more straightforward than the one used up until now, and the new arrangements also mean that it will be quicker and easier to make a change to your practice contact details on the Find A Mediator search.
What is the required level of continuing development, adequate PPC dialogue and minimum expected level of practice referred to in the declaration?
Mediators are required to maintain (a) an adequate record of continuing development; (b) adequate dialogue with a Professional Practice Consultant; and (c) a minimum level of practice each year (see pages 6, 9 and 10 of the FMC Manual of Professional Standards and Self-Regulatory Framework).
What will you do with the information provided?
We will keep the information provided in the FMC Register. Apart from private contact information (see section 4) the information provided will be available to the public. We may also verify the information received with our member organisations. All information is handled in accordance with the FMC’s data protection policy.
How do I update my details during the year?
If you details change during the year, it is your responsibility to let us know. Please do so by e-mailing .
How can I find out about what the FMC is doing during the year?
The FMC now publishes a newsletter once every two months, to keep you up to date with the work it is doing, and to share news about the family mediation community. To receive this and other relevant updates directly, please select the consent box in Section 4 of the re-registration form.
How much are the fees and how do I pay them?
The 2017 fee for FMCA mediators is £100.
The 2017 fee for mediators working towards FMCA is £50.
If possible, please pay by BACS to
Account Name: Family Mediation Council
Account number: 21649388Sort Code: 40-24-13
You must provide your name and URN as a reference when paying online.
If this is not possible, please make a cheque payable to Family Mediation Council and sent it to Family Mediation Council, 2 Old College Court, 29 Priory Street, Ware, Hertfordshire, SG12 ODE, writing your name and URN on the back of the cheque.
Unfortunately, we cannot accept card payments.
Please also complete the payment section at the bottom of the form, to indicate how you have paid the fee. This will help us match payments to re-registration forms.
If you do not include you URN with you online payment or write it on the back of your cheque, then you re-registration may be delayed.
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