Association for Family Therapy and Systemic Practice (AFT)

What Association for Family Therapy and Systemic Practice (AFT) does

The Association for Family Therapy and Systemic Practice, operating under the name AFSP (Association for Family and Systemic Psychotherapy), is the UK's primary professional membership association for family and systemic psychotherapists and practitioners. It is a registered charity in England (no. 1063639) and a registered company in England and Wales (no. 03018026), headquartered in Warrington, Cheshire, with a small staff of approximately 19 employees. The organisation is member-governed, with committees and regional branches supporting its operations across the United Kingdom.

AFSP's service portfolio spans twelve distinct offerings organised around four functional pillars. First, public access services include the Find a Therapist Directory (connecting individuals, couples, families, and workplace teams with accredited practitioners) and the Accredited Courses Directory for prospective trainees. Second, professional development resources comprise Context magazine, on-demand and live webinars, and access to three academic journals — The Journal of Family Therapy (its official publication), The Journal of Marital and Family Therapy (US partnership), and The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy. Third, practice support tools include the SCORE-15 validated family therapy outcome evaluation instrument. Fourth, credentialing and member benefits include UKCP registration and reaccreditation services, the Creative Initiatives Fund, the AFSP Bursary Scheme, and an annual conference with regional events.

Revenue mechanics are not publicly disclosed; no membership pricing or fee structure is published on the website. The organisation generates income through membership subscriptions, training course accreditation fees, event/conference registration, and likely grants or bursary-related funding, consistent with UK charity sector norms. Distribution is purely digital and event-based, with no retail or commercial channel. The primary end-consumers of AFSP's services are practitioner members, while a secondary audience — individuals seeking therapy — interacts with the organisation primarily through the public-facing therapist directory.

Name

Association for Family Therapy and Systemic Practice (AFT)

Legal name

Association for Family and Systemic Psychotherapy

Website

https://aft.org.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

AFSP is the UK's professional membership association for family and systemic psychotherapists, providing accredited therapist directories, training course accreditation, UKCP registration pathways, peer-reviewed journals, professional development webinars, and annual conferences to its practitioner members.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Warrington

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Association for Family and Systemic Psychotherapy (AFSP) is a UK professional membership association that accredits family and systemic psychotherapists, maintains a public Find a Therapist directory, accredits training courses, publishes Context magazine and The Journal of Family Therapy, runs webinars and an annual conference, and provides a UKCP registration and reaccreditation pathway for its members.

Product overview

AFSP is a professional membership organization rather than a software product company. Its service portfolio comprises member directory services (Find a Therapist Directory, Accredited Courses Directory), professional publications (Context Magazine, three academic journals in partnership with US and ANZ organizations), educational resources (On Demand Webinars, SCORE-15 evaluation tool), financial support programs (Creative Initiatives Fund, AFSP Bursary Scheme), professional registration pathways (UKCP registration and reaccreditation services), and events programming (annual conferences and webinars). These offerings collectively serve the professional development, networking, and practice support needs of family and systemic psychotherapy practitioners in the UK.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Find a Therapist Directory Online public directory allowing individuals, couples, and families to locate AFSP-accredited family and systemic psychotherapists across the UK.
• Accredited Courses Directory Searchable database of AFSP-accredited training courses in family and systemic psychotherapy, ranging from introductory programs to doctoral-level qualifications, intended for aspiring and practising therapists.
• Context Magazine Professional magazine published by AFSP delivering articles, research updates, and clinical insights to family and systemic psychotherapy practitioners and members.
• The Journal of Family Therapy AFSP's official peer-reviewed academic journal publishing research and scholarship in family therapy and systemic practice, distributed to members as a membership benefit.
• On Demand Webinars Recorded professional development webinars available to members covering topics such as couple relationships, addiction, organisational therapy, and trauma within family and systemic practice.
• SCORE-15 Evaluation Tool Validated family therapy outcome measurement instrument used by practitioners to assess the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions with families and couples.
• UKCP Registration and Reaccreditation Service Membership service enabling AFSP members to register with and maintain UKCP (UK Council for Psychotherapy) accreditation through AFSP as the recognised professional body route.
• Events and Conferences Annual AFSP Conference and supporting programme of workshops and live webinars bringing members together to explore research, practice, and professional development in family and systemic psychotherapy.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• UKCP (United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAFSP serves as the route for UKCP registration and reaccreditation for family and systemic psychotherapists. The partnership enables AFSP members to register with and maintain accreditation through UKCP, providing professional credentialing recognized across the UK psychotherapy profession.
• The Journal of Family TherapycoreOthersAFSP publishes The Journal of Family Therapy as its official publication, providing members with access to peer-reviewed research and clinical insights in the field. The journal is distributed to all AFSP members as a membership benefit.
• The Journal of Marital and Family Therapy (US)minorOthersAFSP provides access to The Journal of Marital and Family Therapy as an additional resource for members, offering international perspectives on family therapy research and practice.
• Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family TherapyminorOthersAFSP provides members access to The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, extending the international reach of family therapy resources to AFSP members.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• European Family Therapy Association (EFTA):
• American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT): US national professional association for marriage and family therapists. Highly comparable as the closest international counterpart to AFSP in terms of mission, accreditation, journal, and conference activities, but serves the US rather than the UK market.
• Australian and New Zealand Association of Family Therapy (ANZ-AIFT / AAoFT): Peak body for family therapy in Australia and New Zealand and publisher of the ANZ Journal of Family Therapy (a journal AFSP distributes to its members). Comparable in scope to AFSP but focused on the ANZ region.

Broad incumbents

• British Psychological Society (BPS): UK's main professional body for psychologists, with broader scope than AFSP. Comparable as a larger incumbent that offers member accreditation, publications, and CPD across psychotherapy-adjacent disciplines, and competes for the same practitioner mind-share.

Direct peers

• UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP): UK's leading accreditation body for psychotherapists and a strategic partner of AFSP. Comparable because UKCP accredits training organisations and registers psychotherapists in overlapping modalities, and shares a registration/reaccreditation pipeline with AFSP.
• British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP): UK professional membership body for counsellors and psychotherapists. Directly comparable as a UK psychotherapy membership association offering accreditation, a therapist directory, publications, and CPD — competing for the same practitioner members and the same consumer-facing therapy referrals.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/association-of-family-therapy-and-systemic-practice-aft

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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