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Do you want to evidence the competencies you have developed at work? The Drug and Alcohol Professional Certificate provides a competence-based certification for practitioners working or volunteering in the alcohol and other drugs field, based upon National Occupational Standards (NOS). The Drug and Alcohol Professional Certificate has 2 levels, registration and accreditation, and gives practitioners the opportunity to have their competence and professionalism recognised throughout the field.

Registration

Do you have strong experience working or volunteering in the addictions field but have no formal qualification? The Drug and Alcohol Professional Registration provides a first step in demonstrating workplace competence.

To become registered as a Drug and Alcohol Professional, practitioners need to provide evidence of competence in nine compulsory NOS units plus one from a set of optional NOS units. This evidence is gathered and assessed by a practitioner's supervisor at work via a workplace assessment, and does not require an independently validated qualification such as an NVQ or Diploma.

Case study: Jenny had been working as a key worker in a community drug and alcohol team for five years. She did not have vocational qualifications but wanted to evidence that she had built up competencies to work in the field. Her supervisor at work completed a Workplace Assessment Report for each of the 9 compulsory NOS units and one of the optional NOS units. She was successful in acquiring Drug and Alcohol Professional Certificate registration.

Accreditation

Do you have an educational level 3 qualification (or higher) in health and/ or social care but have no evidence of competencies related to the alcohol and other drugs field? Accreditation in the Drug and Alcohol Professional Certificate provides evidence of your competencies working in addictions.

To become accredited with the Drug and Alcohol Professional Certificate practitioners are required to have an independently validated educational level 3 qualification (or higher) relevant to the field. This is often an NVQ in Health and Social Care or a Diploma in Adult Care. To be accredited as a Drug and Alcohol Professional practitioners need to have their competence confirmed in nine compulsory NOS units plus one from a set of optional NOS units. Depending on the level 3 qualification taken, many of these competences may already have been evidenced in their qualification.

Case study: Mohamed had successfully completed a Health and Social Care NVQ level 3. In this qualification he evidenced the generic NOS compulsory units (numbers 3-9 in the compulsory units table) but had no evidence of competencies in working with people who use alcohol and other drugs. His supervisor completed the following missing alcohol and other drugs specific compulsory units via Workplace Assessment Reports: 1 Assess and act upon immediate risk of danger to individuals who have used alcohol and other substances, 2 Carry out assessment to identify and prioritise needs in substance misuse setting and he also completed Support individuals who misuse substances from the optional NOS units. He was successful in his application for Drug and Alcohol Professional Certificate Accreditation.

Easy access for those with existing professional qualifications

Those with relevant qualifications at a higher educational level such as social workers, nurses and other professionals only need to evidence alcohol and other drugs specific NOS to attain the Drug and Alcohol Professional Certificate Accreditation. For more information. 

How to apply

1 Make sure that you have Practitioner or Advanced Practitioner Membership. This can be as an individual, or as an associate member of an organisation.

2 Work out whether you would like registration or accreditation. For those without a formal qualification registration is the most appropriate option. For those with a level 3 qualification or above, accreditation is likely to be the best option.

3 Complete the application form

4 Make sure you provide a Workplace Assessment Report for each unit required.

5 Make sure you have included a Senior Manager Approval Form with your Workplace assessment report.

6 Make a payment

When making applications please ensure the following steps have been taken. We will respond to applications within 10 working days.

Practitioner/Advanced Practitioner or Associate Member?
Application form completed?
Workplace Assessment Report/s completed?
Senior Manager Approval Form completed?
Payment made?

Costs

The cost for the Drug and Alcohol Professional Certificate is £75 for three years. Reductions are available for those applying through affiliated agencies. There is a £25 charge for practitioners who have the National Counsellor Accreditation Certificate.

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