Our role in Europe
As the UK’s competent authority for architects, ARB implements relevant EU legislation in relation to the free movement of architects in Europe. Under the Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications Directive (2005/36/EC), all of the qualifications listed under Annex V.7.1 of the Directive are automatically recognised across Europe. ARB is responsible for notifying ARB-recognised qualifications to the European Commission for inclusion under the Directive and, in turn, we comment on the compliance of architectural qualifications which are notified for listing under the Directive. For this purpose, we work with and exchange knowledge and best practice information with European stakeholders such as the European Network of Architects’ Competent Authorities (ENACA), the Architects Council of Europe (ACE) and the European Commission. ]
Positive feedback from UK schools/institutions – The feedback we have received has confirmed that the UK schools/institutions have found that we have provided vital support and assistance in notifying ARB-recognised qualifications to the European Commission. The schools/institutions have also welcomed our efforts to reduce the need for them to duplicate material which has previously been submitted for the purposes of prescription.
Positive feedback from UK schools/institutions – The feedback we have received has confirmed that the UK schools/institutions have found that we have provided vital support and assistance in notifying ARB-recognised qualifications to the European Commission. The schools/institutions have also welcomed our efforts to reduce the need for them to duplicate material which has previously been submitted for the purposes of prescription. Positive feedback from European counterparts – Our European counterparts have reported that they value the clarity we have brought to the process of notifying the Commission of recognised qualifications, with several adopting the templates we have developed for our UK notifications.
The current Qualifications Directive came into force in 2005. Like all Directives, it is subject to periodic review and adjustment. The relevant European institutions undertook the latest review of the Qualifications Directive between 2010 and December 2013 by consulting member states on what was and was not working well in terms of the Directive. ARB worked closely with its sponsoring government department (DCLG), as well as with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) during this time in order to feed into the consultation and revision processes. We provided advice and guidance to EU decision-makers regarding the registration of architects in the UK. In addition, we worked extensively with other European stakeholders to keep up to date with the revision process and input into it. Feedback from our stakeholders confirms that our expertise and experience in this area has been highly valued.
