The Consultation Institute

What The Consultation Institute does

The Consultation Institute (tCI) is a UK-based professional services organisation operating as tCI Group Limited, founded in 2003, that specialises in independent quality assurance, certified training, and advisory services for public-sector consultation and stakeholder engagement. Its primary clients are local councils, NHS organisations (Trusts and Integrated Care Boards), fire and rescue services, transportation authorities, and infrastructure promoters facing statutory consultation duties under the Gunning Principles and various sector-specific regulatory frameworks. tCI positions itself as the de facto standards body for UK consultation practice, with its Quality Assurance process formally recognised by the High Court and its training required for accreditation in NHS job descriptions.

The organisation delivers its services through a three-pillar portfolio: (1) Quality Assurance, comprising a seven-stage independent review process from Intervention Zero through Final Review, plus a streamlined QA-Lite offering; (2) Learning Hub, providing e-learning modules, in-house training, workshops, a Professional Certificate in Consultation and Engagement, and a 41-course public virtual training programme for 2026-27; and (3) Advice and Guidance, offering scoping workshops, risk assessments, document reviews, and board briefings. Underlying technology includes an e-learning and learning management system (LMS) for self-paced course delivery, plus a Training Needs Diagnostic tool (in beta) that produces specialist-reviewed personalised reports. The firm is supported by a network of tCI Fellows who serve as active practitioners and trainers, and is supplemented by a free top-of-funnel content archive of over 3,236 news and insights items.

tCI generates revenue through four streams: subscription-recurring income from membership fees and structured training programmes; professional services revenue from Quality Assurance engagements and bespoke in-house training; and event fees from Coffee Mornings and public workshops. The go-to-market is sales-led and event-driven, combining free diagnostic offers and Coffee Morning virtual events to build pipeline, followed by scoping calls that convert prospects into assurance, training, or consultancy engagements. Distribution is augmented by a strategic relationship with the Local Government Association, which uses tCI guidance for its own training programmes, embedding tCI content into the dominant UK local-government skills pipeline.

Name

The Consultation Institute

Legal name

tCI Group Limited

Website

https://consultationinstitute.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Consultation Institute is a UK-based professional services firm that delivers independent quality assurance, certified training, and advisory services for public-sector consultation and stakeholder engagement, serving councils, NHS organisations, fire and rescue services, and infrastructure promoters since 2003.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Biggleswade

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Quality Assurance Services: Independent assurance reviews for public consultations at various stages, providing Statements of Assurance that boards and scrutiny bodies can depend on.
2. Training and Learning Services: Revenue from e-learning courses, in-house training, workshops, and professional certificate programmes. The 2026-27 public virtual training programme offers 41 courses across consultation and engagement practice.
3. Membership Fees: Annual membership providing access to content, events, learning discounts, tools, briefing papers, and other benefits. Membership runs for stated terms with renewal notifications.
4. Event and Workshop Fees: Revenue from Coffee Morning sessions, public virtual training courses, and bespoke workshop delivery.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Consultation Institute provides independent Quality Assurance reviews of public consultations, professional training and certification through its Learning Hub, and advisory services to help UK public bodies design and deliver fair, lawful, and defensible consultation and stakeholder engagement. Its portfolio is anchored on the proprietary Consultation Charter framework and a seven-stage Assurance process mapped to the Gunning Principles.

Product overview

The Consultation Institute (tCI) operates as a professional services organization offering a three-pillar portfolio of Assurance, Learning, and Guidance services. The Quality Assurance product provides independent reviews of public consultations across seven stages (from Intervention Zero through Final Review), producing Statements of Assurance that boards and scrutiny bodies can trust. The Learning Hub offers e-learning modules, in-house training, workshops, professional certificates, and public virtual training courses with over 5,000 professionals trained. The Advice and Guidance pillar provides advisory services, risk assessment, and scoping workshops for complex decisions. Additional offerings include the free Consultation Charter course, Training Needs Diagnostic (Beta), Coffee Mornings, and membership access to resources and events. The organization primarily serves UK public bodies including councils, NHS organizations, transportation authorities, and fire and rescue services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Quality Assurance Independent review and audit service for public consultations that provides assurance that consultations are fair, transparent, and defensible. Delivers public endorsement and certificate upon completion for UK public bodies.
• Certificate of Consultation Readiness Review of all pre-consultation activities and processes that provides assurance that an organisation has met tCI's standards to proceed to formal consultation.
• QA-Lite Review Streamlined independent review for service changes or decisions that do not require full public consultation but still carry legal, political, or reputational risk. Applies the same high standards in a more targeted way.
• Membership (Forum of The Consultation Institute) Annual membership providing access to e-learning courses, members' events, webinar library, Consultation Charter tools, briefing papers, briefing notes, and learning discounts for individuals and corporate teams.
• Learning Hub Professional development offering bundling e-learning, in-house training, workshops, and professional certificates for consultation and engagement practitioners.
• Professional Certificate in Consultation and Engagement Independently accredited qualification validating expertise in consultation and engagement. Blended learning format with assignments and assessment over 6-12 months, including an ACE Fast Track option.
• The Consultation Charter E-Learning Course Free foundational e-learning course covering the seven principles of good consultation: Visibility, Accessibility, Transparency, Disclosure, Fair Interpretation, Publication, and Integrity. Duration approximately 1 hour 45 minutes.
• Training Needs Diagnostic (Beta) Free structured self-assessment covering eight areas of consultation and engagement practice. A tCI specialist personally reviews responses and sends a personalised written report with practical recommendations.
• tCI Public Virtual Training 2026-27 Scheduled online training courses delivered via MS Teams covering consultation law, equality duties, digital engagement, AI, data collection and analysis, stakeholder management, co-production, and community engagement.
• In-House Training Training delivered on-site or virtually for organisations wanting to upskill multiple staff members at once. Available as half-day or full-day programmes for team-wide capability building.
• Workshops Interactive in-person sessions that build in-depth skills through real scenarios, available as half-day to multi-day programmes for focused skill development.
• Health Sector Training (Case for Change) Training services specifically designed for NHS Trusts and ICBs, including half-day virtual courses on drafting the case for change and peer review services for testing case narratives.
• Advice and Guidance Advisory and critical friend support service providing targeted guidance for leaders and project teams navigating complex or contentious change. Includes scoping workshops, decision-making routes, document reviews, and board briefings.
• Risk Assessment Advisory service helping organisations identify and manage risks in consultation and engagement processes, particularly for legally exposed or politically contentious decisions.
• Consultation Charter Workshop Workshop for select groups running through the principles of the Consultation Charter, covering obligations, challenges, and practical solutions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 5,000 professionals trained and 1,500 in the past five years alone
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Local Government AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Local Government Association uses tCI guidance for its own training programmes, indicating a strategic partnership where tCI's expertise is integrated into LGA's professional development offerings for local government practitioners.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• PA Consulting: Global consulting firm with a significant UK public sector transformation practice that includes stakeholder engagement and service design for councils and health bodies — broad incumbent whose engagement work overlaps with tCI's advisory offering.
• Ipsos UK (Public Affairs): Global market research firm operating a substantial UK public affairs and stakeholder research practice for central and local government — broad incumbent offering overlapping public engagement capabilities as part of a much wider portfolio.

Direct peers

• Hopkins Van Mil: UK engagement consultancy focused on public participation, consultation design, and stakeholder dialogue for infrastructure, planning, and government clients — directly comparable to tCI's stakeholder engagement and QA services for public bodies.
• Involve: UK charity that promotes public participation and democratic deliberation, providing advice, training, and standards for public engagement practitioners — closely analogous to tCI's standards-setting and professional development role.
• Behavioural Insights Team: UK social purpose research and consultancy organisation applying behavioural science and rigorous evaluation to public policy and public services — comparable to tCI's evidence-led approach to consultation and engagement best practice.
• Traverse: UK social research and engagement consultancy delivering public consultation, stakeholder engagement, and impact evaluation for transport, environment, and government clients — directly comparable to tCI's specialised public-sector consultation work.
• PPL Consultancy: UK public sector consulting firm specialising in service design, engagement, and improvement for local government and NHS clients — directly comparable to tCI's stakeholder engagement and quality assurance mandate.
• Dialogue Matters: UK consultancy specialising in public participation, deliberation, and stakeholder engagement — including training and facilitation programmes for public sector practitioners — directly comparable to tCI's Learning Hub and advisory services.
• BritainThinks: UK-based engagement and public affairs consultancy that designs and runs public consultations, deliberative research, and stakeholder engagement for public and third-sector clients — directly comparable to tCI's advisory and Quality Assurance work with UK public bodies.
• The Innovation Unit: UK social innovation organisation supporting public service reform, citizen engagement, and capability-building within councils and the NHS — directly comparable to tCI's advisory and training work with local authorities and NHS bodies.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TCInews
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@consultationinstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-consultation-institute
• Facebookfacebook.com/consultationinstitute

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Consultation Institute