The Mediator Standards Board has advanced its response to the review by Resolution Resources of the National Mediator Accreditation System.

The Board’s Review Sub-committee has already spent considerable time and effort identifying and developing recommendations to be canvassed within the community. That will be done topic by topic. Those topics include:

  • a tiered system of accreditation to recognise advanced or specialist expertise,
  • the training and assessment required for accreditation at all levels,
  • the requirements for renewal of accreditation,
  • complaints handling, and
  • changes to the classes of membership of the MSB.

There are matters the Board must consider that Resolution Resources was not asked to address. They include the financial implications of accepting and implementing some of the recommendations, how to phase in changes that cannot be implemented in one move, and the need for consequential changes to the MSB’s constitution. Those factors mean that implementing the review is not a simple ‘plug and play’ exercise. Nor does the Board have a large staff of people to work on the details: the members of the Board are volunteers, and the MSB has a lean administrative overhead.

Among the review’s recommendations was a proposed draft Code, with a Code Administration Committee, modelled on the ACCC voluntary industry code framework under the Competition and Consumer Act. The Code would have effectively replaced the NMAS. It would require setting up a Code Administration Committee.

The Board has resolved not to accept that recommendation. The view of the Board is that the proposed structure was not an appropriate regulatory model for this profession. Further, it was not at all clear how a Code Administration Committee would or could fit within the constitutional structure of the Mediator Standards Board.

That means that the path forward is simpler. The Standards will be amended drawing on the excellent work done by Resolution Resources in developing the draft Code, as well as input from the Board and further consultation with the community as appropriate.

The Board looks forward to the next steps on this journey with its members and the community.

Release date: 06 Oct, 2022