Frequently asked questions

An independent review that tests a consultation's governance, materials, and analysis against the Gunning Principles, the relevant statutory duties, and the tCI Consultation Charter. The output is a written Statement of Assurance that boards, scrutiny bodies, and decision-makers can rely on under public, political, and legal scrutiny.

Full QA is for high-risk public consultations where the cost of getting it wrong is high — judicial review exposure, contested service change, or politically sensitive decisions affecting vulnerable people. QA Lite uses the same standard with a narrower scope, for service changes or decisions that carry legal, political, or reputational risk but do not require a full statutory consultation.

Yes, but the most useful intervention is at design and pre-launch, when there is still time to act on recommendations. Mid-engagement assurance is available, and we also offer Early Assurance specifically to test options, governance, and engagement plans before consultation begins.

Yes. tCI's Quality Assurance process has been recognised by the High Court. Several clients have successfully defended judicial review challenges where tCI assurance was part of the evidence base.

Yes. Training is recognised for CPD credits by the Chartered Institute of Public Relations and tCI. Some NHS job descriptions specifically require it for accreditation.

E-learning is self-paced foundation knowledge for individuals. In-house training brings several staff up to a consistent standard at once, on-site or virtually. The Professional Certificate in Consultation and Engagement is an independently accredited blended qualification for career progression.

Start with the free Training Needs Diagnostic — a short questionnaire about your experience and practice, after which a member of the tCI team reviews your responses and sends a tailored report with practical recommendations.

When the situation needs an experienced second opinion, an impartial chair, executive briefing, or extra capacity, but does not warrant a formal Statement of Assurance. Many contested consultations sit here — risk is real but proportionate intervention is enough.

tCI's risk assessment framework that surfaces legal, political, reputational, delivery, and equality risks early in a consultation programme. The output is a clear set of recommendations the team can act on before challenge arises.

Yes. Independent facilitation is part of the Advice and Guidance offer for public and stakeholder dialogue where tensions are high and impartial oversight will build trust in the process.

Individual membership (£400 ex VAT) includes the National Consultation Digest, Legal Update Bulletins, sector trends, one foundation e-learning course, webinars, member events, and the practitioner network. Organisation membership (£1,400 ex VAT for a team of five) adds organisation-wide resource sharing, five e-learning courses, training needs analysis, free vacancy advertising, benchmarking data, and tooling.

Yes. Individual memberships are personal to the named member and travel with you. Organisation memberships are non-transferable, except where the named user leaves the listed organisation, in which case the organisation may nominate a replacement.

Engagements are scoped against your timeline, governance cycle, and risk profile, and priced in advance. We do not place interims, and we do not operate on open-ended day rates without defined outcomes.

Office at 66 Paul Street, Shoreditch, London. Faculty work remotely across the UK with occasional client meetings. We have supported clients across health, local government, transport, fire and rescue, infrastructure, and central government, including international advisory work.

tCI Group Limited is legally a new company, established in 2025 after the original Consultation Institute went into liquidation in 2024. Many Associates and Fellows worked with the former Institute and bring that experience forward, alongside new leadership focused on rebuilding credibility through openness, discipline, and focus.