COSCA

What COSCA does

COSCA (Counselling and Psychotherapy in Scotland) is Scotland's professional body for counselling and psychotherapy, operating as a charitable company limited by guarantee registered in Scotland (Charity No. SC018887). Founded in 1990 and headquartered at 16 Melville Terrace, Stirling, the organisation advances and supports counselling, psychotherapy, and counselling skills across Scotland, and promotes high-quality supervision and continuing professional development for individuals and agencies delivering counselling services and education. Its core service is the COSCA Register of Counsellors and Psychotherapists, a publicly searchable web-based directory accredited by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care, which provides the public with a means to find qualified practitioners and gives registered professionals formal recognition.

COSCA's offering spans three primary revenue streams: annual professional membership subscriptions from counsellors and psychotherapists, course validation services paid by training and educational institutions (with panel reviews held three times per year), and advertising sold to counselling-related businesses on its website. Beyond these, the organisation runs a COSCA Recognition Scheme for organisations delivering counselling services, individual practitioner accreditation, a portfolio of validated training courses (Counselling Skills Certificate, Counselling Supervision, Further Steps in Counselling Skills, Group Counselling Skills) available in hard copy and digital formats, a scholarly COSCA Journal, and educational video resources including the Person to Person counselling guide and an Exploring Ethical Decision Making series. Distribution is direct via its website (cosca.org.uk) and the register search portal (finder.cosca.org.uk).

The business model is that of a member-funded professional body rather than a venture-backed technology company. The organisation is governed by its members, has no external investment or parent company, and operates with 11-50 employees. Customers span three horizontal segments: members of the public searching for accredited practitioners (micro-business/solo segment), counselling and psychotherapy professionals seeking accreditation and CPD, and training providers seeking course validation - with no reliance on a small number of large enterprise accounts.

Name

COSCA

Legal name

COSCA (Counselling & Psychotherapy in Scotland)

Website

https://cosca.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

COSCA is Scotland's charitable professional body for counselling and psychotherapy, operating an accredited practitioner register, individual accreditation, and course validation services for professionals, training providers, and the Scottish public.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Membership and Accreditation Services

NAICS

Technical and Trade Schools (6115)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Specialized/Single-Purpose Accreditors (e.g., seminaries, arts conservatories) (EDADACAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Accreditation Evaluation, Peer Review & Site-Visit Organizations (EDADACAI), Behavioral Health & Counseling (Social Work, Psychology, Substance Use CE) (EDAAALAD)

Keywords

• Professional membership body
• Counselling accreditation
• Psychotherapy register
• Course validation
• Mental health professionals

Headquarters

HQ city

Stirling

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership fees: COSCA generates revenue through membership fees for counselling and psychotherapy professionals joining the organization.
2. Course Validation Services: Training providers pay for course validation services to have their counselling and psychotherapy courses validated by COSCA. Providers submit applications, annual monitoring forms, and revalidation applications with associated fees.
3. Advertising: COSCA offers advertising opportunities to counselling-related businesses and organizations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

COSCA is Scotland's professional body for counselling and psychotherapy, providing a publicly searchable accredited register of qualified practitioners, individual professional accreditation, organisational recognition, and course validation services for training providers. The organisation also offers a portfolio of validated training courses, ethical guidance and complaints procedures, a scholarly journal, and continuing professional development resources to support practitioners across Scotland.

Product overview

COSCA (Counselling and Psychotherapy in Scotland) operates as a professional membership and regulatory body rather than a technology product company. Its core offerings include a publicly searchable Register of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (accredited by the Professional Standards Authority), professional accreditation for individuals, and quality assurance services including the COSCA Recognition Scheme for organisations and Course Validation for training providers. COSCA also offers a portfolio of validated training courses including the Counselling Skills Certificate Course, Counselling Supervision Course, Further Steps in Counselling Skills, and Group Counselling Skills Course. Additional services include a research journal, educational videos such as the Person to Person counselling guide and ethical decision-making series, and ethical guidance and policies for practitioners.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• COSCA Register of Counsellors and Psychotherapists

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social CarecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe COSCA Register of Counsellors and Psychotherapists is accredited by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care, providing official recognition and credibility for registered professionals.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Others

• Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH): Scotland's national mental health charity focused on service delivery, campaigning, and information rather than professional accreditation. Thematically adjacent to COSCA in the Scottish mental-health ecosystem but does not directly compete for practitioner accreditation.

Direct peers

• UKCP (UK Council for Psychotherapy): UK-wide professional body for psychotherapists with a PSA-accredited register. Operates the same core accreditation/register business model as COSCA, but with UK-wide reach and a broader psychotherapy scope.
• BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy): The largest UK professional body for counselling and psychotherapy, holding its own PSA-accredited register and offering accreditation, training validation, and member services. Directly comparable to COSCA in mission and service mix, but operating UK-wide rather than Scotland-only.
• National Counselling Society (NCS): Professional membership body for counsellors offering a PSA-accredited register and member accreditation services. Directly comparable to COSCA on the register and individual accreditation side, with a similar subscription-based revenue model.
• BABCP (British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies): UK membership and accrediting organisation for CBT practitioners, operating a register and accreditation service. Comparable to COSCA in being a single-modality therapy professional body with membership and register revenue streams.

Emerging players

• American Counseling Association (ACA): Largest US-based professional association for counsellors offering accreditation, publications, and training resources. International thematic peer to COSCA, with a comparable mission of advancing professional standards for the counselling field.
• British Psychoanalytic Council: UK accrediting body for psychoanalytic and psychodynamic psychotherapists operating a register. Smaller and more specialised than COSCA but operates the same register/accreditation model in an adjacent psychotherapy niche.

Broad incumbents

• British Psychological Society (BPS): The UK's largest professional body for psychologists and related professions. While broader than COSCA's counselling focus, BPS overlaps on accredited registers, accreditation, and CPD services and serves as the dominant incumbent in adjacent mental health professional regulation.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/coscacounselling

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 COSCA