New Training Standards

The work was undertaken by EFTA TASK Force under the leadership of Dr Valerie O’Brien.
Members of the Task Force include :
Valerie O’Brien (Chair); Federico Ferrari; Julia Hardy; Lucie Hornova; Teresa Moratalla Gellida; Martine Nisse; Yvain Piketty; Marie Jeanne Schon; Shan Tate.
Status of the Work:
The draft version – August 2025 HERE was agreed by the General Board of EFTA in August 2025. The draft was discussed at the EFTA Roundtable in Lyon on Friday Aug 29th 12.30 -13.30. Information regarding the background to the evolution is contained in the document. It may also be useful to read the results of the 2025 Survey of Training and Service Provision of Family Therapy in Europe READ THE SURVEY. The data was collected primarily by the Task Force in 2023. This survey provided important information in the development of the standards.
Feedback Invited : The Task Force is open to receiving feedback up to Sept 30th, 2025, at which time the definitive version will be published on the EFTA web site, following this date.
Information to be sent to the Chair of the Task Force Valerie O’Brien at and .
Commencement of New Training Standards:
It is planned that the new standards will be required for all Training Programmes commencing in the academic year 2027.
Dr Valerie O’Brien – Chair of EFTA Training Standards Task Force

Background to Survey
The data in this report provides a descriptive overview of some aspects of family therapy training and service provision across 35 countries. The information gathered through a questionnaire was used to review and update EFTA training standards for family therapists in Europe. We were particularly interested in capturing the variation in countries. Many thanks to the individuals in each country that worked with the Task Force to obtain this data. Thanks also to Dr Mattia Messena for his assistance. It is intended to publish a more detailed analysis of family therapy training in Europe – using the data in this report.
READ THE SURVEY REPORT
Task Force Members :
Valerie O’Brien (Chair); Federico Ferrari; Julia Hardy; Lucie Hornova; Teresa Moratalla Gellida; Martine Nisse; Yvain Piketty; Marie Jeanne Schon; Shan Tate.