Pre-retirement Add-on

The pre-retirement add-on is available to registrants retiring from all clinical practice within two years. This change is membership can be added at the beginning of our membership year (1 October). It is designed to support members who are winding down their clinical practice. 

Eligible members who receive the add-on will:

• pay a membership fee which is 25 per cent less than the usual full clinical fee
• be exempt from the annual random audit and reaccreditation process while they have the add-on applied to their membership.

How to apply

If you are a full clinical member, you can apply online at any time during the year to have the pre-retirement add-on applied to your membership. If successful, the add-on will be applied to your full clinical grade at the start of the membership year following your application (1 October).

An important note about reaccreditation:

• If you have been reaccredited within the last two years, you simply need to complete the online application form.
• If you were reaccredited three to four years ago, you will need to complete the online application form and a review form.
• If you are due for your five-yearly reaccreditation in the same year that you are applying for the add-on, or are overdue, you must first reaccredit to be eligible to apply for the add-on. Please contact your organisational member or contact our regulation team by emailing dmr@ukcp.org.uk.
• By applying for and/or renewing your membership, you agree to the pre-retirement membership declaration/terms and conditions.

An important note about your membership fees:

• The pre-retirement add-on is designed for members who will retire within two years. The add-on lasts for a maximum of two years, and it can only be applied for and received by a member once.
• If you decide that you wish to continue as a full clinical member after the Add-on has expired, you will be expected to repay the discount that was applied to your membership free for the time that the add-on was in place, a £50 administrative fee, and the pro-rated fee at the time of your transfer. Additionally, if you were due to reaccredit while receiving the Add-on benefit, you will be expected to reaccredit, and pay any fees associated with that, before you will be allowed to continue your full clinical membership.
• Before you apply, it is important that you understand the cost implications of applying for the add-on and not retiring at the end of it.

How our organisational members are supporting the add-on

Organisational members will support the process by reviewing applications and approving review forms for registrants who last reaccredited three and four years ago. If a registrant is due or past due for their five-yearly reaccreditation process, that must be completed for them to be eligible to apply for the add-on.

Once a registrant has the pre-retirement add-on, they will not need to be reaccredited if they go on to retire. However, if they decide to return to full clinical practice rather than retiring and their reaccreditation date has passed, organisations (or the UKCP regulation team) will need to reaccredit them.

Frequently asked questions

How will the pre-retirement add-on change my membership status?

It won’t. Apart from the two benefits listed above, those with the pre-retirement add-on will still be registrants, so will receive the same membership benefits as before – for example, you will still be listed on our national register and receive a membership certificate. You will also be required to uphold the same high standards of practice such as maintaining the usual amounts of supervision and CPD, and will still be subject to our ethical codes and complaints procedure(s).

When can I apply for the pre-retirement add-on?

You can apply for the pre-retirement add-on at any time throughout the membership year. We will send you an acknowledgement, the add-on will take effect at the start of the membership year following your application (1 October) and your membership will be renewed at the discounted rate. We process new add-on applications between 1 September and 1 October each year to coincide with our cooling off period.

Can I change my mind about retiring?

Yes, we know that circumstances change. Registrants with the pre-retirement add-on can choose to have the add-on removed from their membership grade. However, you can only choose to do this once. You will be asked to repay the discount you received on your full clinical membership fee while the add-on was applied. A re-instatement fee of £50 will also be charged. Additionally, you will be required to undertake re-accreditation if your normal five-yearly re-accreditation was due during the time of the Add-on.

After two years as a full clinical member with the pre-retirement add-on, you will be offered UKCP’s retired membership grade. You can move to the retired grade at any point during the two years if you finish your clinical practice earlier, by submitting an application through your members area of our website.

If you decide to continue practicing, we can remove the add-on from your full clinical membership.  You will be asked to repay the discount you received on your full clinical membership fee while the add-on was applied. A re-instatement fee of £50 will also be charged. Before continuing practice, you will also be required to reaccredit if your reaccreditation was due while the add-on was active.

If you have any further questions that haven't been answered here, please email preretirement@ukcp.org.uk or membership@ukcp.org.uk.