Criminal convictions and the appeals process
We ask whether you have any criminal convictions in order for us to maintain our duty of care to the general public and to the acupuncture profession.
You must tick the “Yes” box if you have a conviction, not including motoring offences for which you received a fine or three penalty points.
Although the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 allows certain convictions to be regarded as “spent” after a fixed period of time, by virtue of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, the provisions of Section 4.2 of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 do not apply to any employment which is concerned with the provisions of health services and which is of such a kind as to enable the holder to have access to persons in receipt of such services in the course of his/her normal duties.
Since members of the BAcC work unsupervised with young people, the elderly, the disabled and the seriously ill, the BAcC needs to consider all convictions, spent or otherwise, which an applicant has received.
If you have not been convicted of a criminal offence, you must tick the “No” box.
If you tick the “Yes” box, we will contact you for further details.
If you do not tick the “Yes” or “No” box, we will write to you asking for this information.
If you are convicted of a criminal offence after you have applied, you must tell us. You do not need to provide full details of the offence; you simply need to tell us that you have received a conviction. We shall then ask you for more details.
The appeals process for decisions on admissions relating to criminal declarations
If you have made a criminal declaration on your application form, the Professional Conduct Officer will send you a letter requesting further details.
On receipt of the details requested, the Professional Conduct Officer will arrange to meet, by conference call, with two members of the Disciplinary Panel.
If the judgement is that admission would constitute a risk to the safety and/or wellbeing of other members of the BAcC and general public that is inconsistent with the BAcC’s duty of care, then the Professional Conduct Officer will notify you by letter. You would then have the right of appeal to the BAcC governing board.
On receipt of an appeal, the BAcC governing board shall take whatever steps they consider reasonable to deal with the appeal and shall take what advice they consider appropriate.
If the judgement is that admission would not constitute a risk, the Professional Conduct Officer will send you a letter confirming the outcome.
To make an appeal, you may contact the Professional Conduct Officer, ethics@acupuncture.org.uk and you will be sent further information.
Join the BAcC
The British Acupuncture Council (BAcC) is the leading self-regulatory body for the practice of traditional acupuncture in the UK.
