Standards Review 2026
March 2026 update
The Standards Review 2026 will refresh our core standards: UK-SPEC, AHEP, AAQA, and the Regulations for Registration, to ensure they continue to reflect current engineering practice while remaining relevant, effective, and fit for purpose for the future.
This is in support of our mission to maintain internationally recognised standards of competence and commitment for the engineering profession.
Following approval at a February meeting of Registration Standards Committee, the Standards Review programme is moving into its next phase. The Engineering Council will hold five workshops in March and April 2026, to consider a series of topics related to the standards.
Standards Review 2026 Workshops
- UK-SPEC Core requirements: How are certain themes currently represented in the standard, and should they be strengthened or reframed? These include Critical thinking, Systems thinking, Security, Resilience, Regeneration, Sustainability, and Human focus.
- Continuing Professional Development: How might changes to the standard impact the requirement to undertake and reflect on CPD? Is the current approach to CPD sampling effective in providing assurance of the ongoing competence of professionally registered engineers and technicians?
- Behaviours and Competences in the standard: Should ‘Behaviours’ be presented as a standalone component within UK SPEC, distinct from the Competences? What consequences would this have for application requirements, evidence expectations, and assessment processes?
- Learning Outcomes: Are the current Learning Outcomes, processes, and regulations related to accreditation and approval fit for purpose and aligned with UK-SPEC?
- Presentation and accessibility of UK-SPEC: How could the Standard be published and presented differently to break down barriers and enable wider access to the Register?
Participation is by invitation only; if you would like to request an invitation please email professionalstandards@engc.org.uk with details on your area of interest, employer, professional engineering any other relevant affiliations.
A period of drafting and consultation will follow these workshops. Consultation opportunities will be shared on this page, and you can sign up for email updates on the Standards Review using the link below.
By signing up, you consent to receive updates and communications from the Engineering Council about the Standards Review. You can opt out whenever you wish by emailing professionalstandards@engc.org.uk.