The following is a list of notable professional bodies in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. Many of these bodies also act as

learned societies A learned society ( ; also scholarly, intellectual, or academic society) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and sciences. Membership may be open to al ...

for the academic disciplines underlying their professions. The UK government has a list of professional associations approved for tax purposes (this includes some non-UK-based associations, which are not included here). There is a separate list of regulators in the United Kingdom for bodies that are regulators rather than professional associations.

Chartered

The following professional bodies are incorporated by

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

A–B

Association of Chartered Certified Accountants The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) is the global professional accounting body offering the Chartered Certified Accountant qualification (CCA). Founded in 1904, It is now the fourth-largest professional accounting body ...

(ACCA) *

Association of Corporate Treasurers The Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT) is the international professional body specialising in the profession of corporate treasury. It was founded in 1979 and was awarded a Royal Charter on 1 January 2013. It is both an examining body, pro ...

(ACT) *

Association for Project Management The Association for Project Management is a British professional organisation for project and programme management. It received a Royal Charter in 2017, and is a registered charity. It has over 45,000 individual and more than 470 corporate ...

(APM) * Association for Science Education (ASE) *

British Computer Society image:Maurice Vincent Wilkes 1980 (3).jpg, Sir Maurice Wilkes served as the first President of BCS in 1957. The British Computer Society (BCS), branded BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, since 2009, is a professional body and a learned ...

(BCS) *

British Psychological Society The British Psychological Society (BPS) is a representative body for psychologists and psychology in the United Kingdom. History It was founded on 24 October 1901 at University College London (UCL) as ''The Psychological Society'', the org ...

(BPS) * British Society of Gastroenterology (BSG)

C–D

* Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) * Chartered Association of Building Engineers (CABE) * Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (CIFA) * Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment (CISI) *

Chartered Institute of Arbitrators The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (abbreviated as CIArb) is a professional organisation representing the interests of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) practitioners. Founded on 1 March 1915, it was granted a royal charter by Queen Elizabe ...

Chartered Institute of Legal Executives The Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEX) is the professional body for paralegals, CILEX lawyers and other specialist legal professionals in England and Wales. History The original name of Institute of Legal Executives (ILEX) was e ...

(CILEX) *

Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP, pronounced ) is a professional body for librarians, information specialists and knowledge management, knowledge managers in the United Kingdom. It was established in 20 ...

(CILIP) * Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL) *

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) is a professional body representing the transport and logistics industries worldwide. It is a membership-based organisation with over 30,000 members in over 40 countries. This i ...

(CILT) * Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters (CILA) *

Chartered Institute of Marketing The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) was founded in 1911. It has over 30,000 members, including more than 3,000 registered Chartered Marketers. CIM offers 130 study centres in 36 countries, and exam centres in 132 countries. In 1952 Prince ...

(CIM) * Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) * Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) * Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals (CIPP) *

Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) is an association for human resource management Human resource management (HRM) is the strategic and coherent approach to the effective and efficient management of people in a company ...

(CIPD) * Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering (CIPHE) * Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS) * Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) * Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) * Chartered Institution of Railway Operators (CIRO) * Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) * Chartered Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys (CITMA) *

Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE; pronounced 'sib-see') is an international professional engineering association based in London, England that represents building services engineers. It is a full member of the C ...

(CIBSE) * Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors (CICES) * Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) * Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM) * Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM) * Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) * Chartered Management Institute (CMI) * Chartered Quality Institute (CQI) * Chartered Society of Designers (CSD) * Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) *

Chartered Trading Standards Institute The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) is a professional association which represents and trains trading standards professionals working in local authorities, business and consumer sectors and in central government in the UK and oversea ...

(CTSI) * College of Optometrists (CoO) * College of Paramedics (CoP) * The Chartered College of Teaching (CCT)

E–H

Energy Institute The Energy Institute (EI) is a professional organization for engineers and other professionals in energy-related fields. The EI was formed in 2003 by the merger of the Institute of Petroleum (dating back to 1913) and the Institute of Energy ( ...

(EI) * English Association (EA) *

Geological Society of London The Geological Society of London, known commonly as the Geological Society, is a learned society based in the United Kingdom. It is the oldest national geological society in the world and the largest in Europe, with more than 12,000 Fellows. Fe ...

I–J

Institute and Faculty of Actuaries The Institute and Faculty of Actuaries is the professional body which represents and regulates Actuary, actuaries in the United Kingdom. History The Institute and Faculty of Actuaries came into being on 1 August 2010 as a result of the merger of ...

(IFoA) * Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW) * Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI, operates in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

) * Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS) * Institute of Chartered Foresters (ICF) * Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA) * Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers (ICS) * Institute of Conservation (Icon) * Institute of Directors (IoD) * Institute of Health and Social Care Management (IHSCM) * Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST) * Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) *

Institute of Mathematics and its Applications The Institute of Mathematics and its Applications (IMA) is the UK's chartered professional body for mathematicians and one of the UK's learned societies for mathematics (another being the London Mathematical Society). The IMA aims to advance ...

(IMA) * Institute of Measurement and Control (InstMC) *

Institute of Physics The Institute of Physics (IOP) is a UK-based not-for-profit learned society and professional body that works to advance physics education, physics research, research and applied physics, application. It was founded in 1874 and has a worldwide ...

(IoP) * Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) * Institute of Refrigeration (InstR) *

Institution of Chemical Engineers The Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) is a global professional engineering institution with 30,000 members in 114 countries. It was founded in 1922 and awarded a Royal Charter in 1957. The Institution has offices in Rugby, Warwickshire, ...

(IChemE) *

Institution of Civil Engineers The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers and a Charitable organization, charitable body in the United Kingdom. Based in London, ICE has over 92,000 members, of whom three-quarters ar ...

(ICE) *

Institution of Engineering and Technology The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) is a multidisciplinary professional engineering institution. The IET was formed in 2006 from two separate institutions: the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE), dating back to 1871,Engin ...

(IET) * Institution of Engineering Designers (IED) *

Institution of Mechanical Engineers The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is an independent professional association and learned society headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that represents mechanical engineers and the engineering profession. With over 110,000 member ...

(IMechE) *

Institution of Occupational Safety and Health The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) is a global organisation for health and safety professionals, based in the UK. Structure IOSH is the chartered professional body for health and safety in the workplace. It acts as a cham ...

(IOSH) * Institution of Royal Engineers (InstRE) *

Institution of Structural Engineers The Institution of Structural Engineers is a British professional body for structural engineers. In 2021, it had 29,900 members operating in 112 countries. It provides professional accreditation and publishes a magazine, '' The Structural Eng ...

(IStructE)

K–P

Landscape Institute The Landscape Institute (LI) is a UK based professional body for the landscape profession. Its membership includes landscape architecture, landscape architects, urban designers, landscape planners, landscape scientists and landscape managers. ...

(LI) * The Law Society (LS) * Law Society of Northern Ireland *

Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript a ...

(LS)

Q–Z

Royal Aeronautical Society The Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a British multi-disciplinary professional institution dedicated to the global aerospace community. Founded in 1866, it is the oldest Aeronautics, aeronautical society in the world. Memb ...

(RAeS) *

Royal Agricultural Society of England The Royal Agricultural Society of England (RASE) promotes the scientific development of English agriculture. It was established in 1838 with the motto "Practice with Science" and was known as the English Agricultural Society until it received i ...

(RASE) *

Royal Anthropological Institute The Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (RAI) is a long-established anthropological organisation, and Learned Society, with a global membership. Its remit includes all the component fields of anthropology, such as biolo ...

(RAI) *

Royal Asiatic Society The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society, was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encourag ...

(RAS) *

Royal Astronomical Society The Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) is a learned society and charitable organisation, charity that encourages and promotes the study of astronomy, planetary science, solar-system science, geophysics and closely related branches of science. Its ...

(RAS) * Royal College of Anaesthetists *

Royal College of General Practitioners The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is the professional body for general (medical) practitioners (GPs/ Family Physicians/ Primary Care Physicians) in the United Kingdom. The RCGP represents and supports GPs on key issues including ...

(RCGP) *

Royal College of Nursing The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is a registered trade union and professional body in the United Kingdom for those in the profession of nursing. It was founded in 1916 as the College of Nursing, receiving its royal charter in 1928. Queen Eliz ...

(RCN) *

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) is a professional association based in London, United Kingdom. Its members, including people with and without medical degrees, work in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology, that is ...

(RCOG) * Royal College of Organists (RCO) * Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) *

Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow is a global community of over 15,000 Members working together to develop skills, knowledge and leadership to drive the highest standards in healthcare. For 425 years, the Royal College of ...

Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE) is a medical royal college in Scotland. It is one of three organisations that set the specialty training standards for physicians in the United Kingdom. It was established by royal charter i ...

Royal College of Physicians of London The Royal College of Physicians of London, commonly referred to simply as the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of ph ...

* Royal College of Psychiatrists * Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) * Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) *

Royal College of Surgeons of England The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) is an independent professional body and registered charity that promotes and advances standards of surgery, surgical care for patients, and regulates surgery and dentistry in England and Wa ...

* Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh * Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) *

Royal Economic Society The Royal Economic Society (RES) is a professional association and learned society that promotes the study of economics. Originally established in 1890 as the British Economic Association, it was incorporated by royal charter on 2 December 1902. ...

(RES) *

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

(RGS-IBG) *

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

(RHS) *

Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) is the professional body for architects in Scotland. History Previously the (lapsed) Architectural Institute of Scotland, it was re-founded in 1916 as the Incorporation of Architects in ...

(RIAS) *

Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...

(RIBA) * Royal Institute of Navigation (RIN) *

Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is a global professional body for those working in the Built Environment, Construction, Land, Property and Real Estate. The RICS was founded in London in 1868. It works at a cross-governmental ...

(RICS) *

Royal Institution of Naval Architects The Royal Institution of Naval Architects (also known as RINA) is a professional institution and global governing body for naval architecture and maritime engineering. Members work in industry, academia, and maritime organisations worldwide, par ...

(RINA) *

Royal Meteorological Society The Royal Meteorological Society is an organization that promotes academic and public engagement in weather and climate science. Fellows of the Society must possess relevant qualifications, but Members can be lay enthusiasts. It publishes vari ...

(RMetS) * Royal Microscopical Society (RMS) *

Royal Pharmaceutical Society The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPharmS or RPS) is the body responsible for the leadership and support of the pharmacy profession (pharmacists) within England, Scotland, and Wales. It was created along with the General Pharmaceutical Council ...

(RPS) *

Royal Photographic Society The Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, commonly known as the Royal Photographic Society (RPS), is the world's oldest photographic society having been in continuous existence since 1853. It was founded in London, England, in 1853 as th ...

(RPS) * Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) * Royal Society of Biology (RSB) *

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society and professional association in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the ...

(RSC) *

Royal Society of Medicine The Royal Society of Medicine (RSM) is a medical society based at 1 Wimpole Street, London, UK. It is a registered charity, with admission through membership. Its Chief Executive is Michele Acton. History The Royal Society of Medicine (R ...

(RSM) * Royal Statistical Society (RSS) * Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) * Society for Radiological Protection (SRP) * Society of Dyers and Colourists (SDC) * The Textile Institute (TEXI)

Non-chartered

A

* The Academy of Experts (TAE) * Arboricultural Association (AA) * Archives and Records Association (ARA) * Association for the Education and Guardianship of International Students (AEGIS) * Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) * Association of British Theatre Technicians (ABTT) * Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations (ACEVO) * Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) *

Association of University Administrators The Association of Higher Education Professionals (AHEP), formerly known as the Association of University Administrators (AUA), is the professional body for higher education administrators and managers in the United Kingdom and Republic of Irelan ...

(AUA)

B–G

* British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) * British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) * British Association of Social Workers (BASW) * British Guild of Travel Writers (BGTW) * British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS) * Institute of Osteopathy (BOA) * British Pest Control Association (BPCA) * College of Paramedics (CoP) * Direct Marketing Association (DMA) *

Faculty of Advocates The Faculty of Advocates () is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary. The Faculty of Advocates is a const ...

* Freshwater Biological Association (FBA) * General Council of the Bar (Bar Council)

H–I

* Immigration Law Practitioners Association (ILPA) * Independent Society of Musicians (ISM) * Information and Records Management Society (IRMS) * The

Inns of Court The Inns of Court in London are the professional associations for barristers in England and Wales. There are four Inns of Court: Gray's Inn, Lincoln's Inn, Inner Temple, and Middle Temple. All barristers must belong to one of them. They have s ...

, comprising

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, commonly known as Lincoln's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for Barrister, barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister ...

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

, and

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

* Insolvency Practitioners Association (IPA) * Institute for the Management of Information Systems (IMIS) * Institute of Acoustics * Institute of Administrative Management (IAM) * Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS) * Institute of Certified Bookkeepers (ICB) * Institute of Commercial Management (ICM) * Institute of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability (ICRS) * Institute of Economic Development (IED) * Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) * Institute of Employability Professionals (IEP) * Institute of Financial Accountants (IFA) * Institute of Fisheries Management (IFM) * Institute of Food Science and Technology (IFST) * Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) * Institute of Information Security Professionals (IISP) * Institute of Interim Management (IIM) * Institute of Leadership (IoL) * Institute of Professional Sound (IPS) * Institute of Science and Technology (IST) * Institute of Scientific and Technical Communicators (ISTC) * Institute of Tourist Guiding (ITG) * Institute of Transport Administration (IoTA) * Institute of Water (IWater) * Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management (IWFM) * Institution of Agricultural Engineers (IAgrE) * Institution of Analysts and Programmers (IAP) * Institution of Environmental Sciences (IES) * Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) * Institution of Railway Signal Engineers (IRSE) * International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) * International Institute of Risk and Safety Management (IIRSM) * International Society of Typographic Designers (ISTD) * Institute of Financial Accountants (IFA)

J–Z

* London Institute of Banking & Finance (LIBF) * Museums Association (MA) * Nuclear Institute (NI) * Operational Research Society (ORS) * Palaeontological Association (PalAss) *

Professional Publishers Association The Professional Publishers Association (PPA), formerly known as the Periodical Publishers Association until 2011, is the main publishing industry body which promotes companies involved in the production of media, supporting the creative economy a ...

(PPA) * Royal Society of Ulster Architects (RSUA) * Security Institute (SyI) * Society of British and International Interior Design (SBID) * Society of Indexers (SI) * Society and College of Radiographers (SCoR) * Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) *

United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy The United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) is a professional association of psychotherapy organisations and practitioners in the United Kingdom. History The UKCP exists to "promote and maintain the profession of psychotherapy and the ...

(UKCP)

References

{{Reflist Professional associations in the United Kingdom, List of *

Chartered

A–B

C–D

E–H

I–J

K–P

Q–Z

Non-chartered

A

B–G

H–I

J–Z

See also

References