What Does Verified Clinic Mean?

Medically-Led Clinics

These are clinics where the lead practitioner is registered with the General Medical Council (GMC) for doctor-led clinics, the General Dental Council (GDC) for dentist-led clinics, or the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) for nurse-led clinics. We confirm statutory registration is current and active.

✓ Statutory Registration
We confirm the lead practitioner holds a current, active registration with the GMC, GDC or NMC as appropriate. Statutory registration requires practitioners to meet ongoing standards of fitness to practise and to hold appropriate professional indemnity arrangements by law.

✓ Professional Indemnity Insurance
We confirm that the clinic holds professional indemnity insurance that specifically covers the aesthetic treatments offered. Statutory registration requires appropriate indemnity arrangements to be in place, but standard medical defence policies do not always automatically cover aesthetic treatments. We check that cover explicitly includes the treatments the clinic is listed for on our platform.

✓ Care Quality Commission (CQC) Status Voluntary registration is not currently mandatory for cosmetic aesthetic clinics in England, but it is a strong indicator of clinical governance where held.

Where a clinic is CQC registered, we record this on their profile and link directly to their CQC report. CQC registration means a clinic has been assessed against the Care Quality Commission’s fundamental standards of quality and safety for health and social care in England.

✓ Professional Memberships
We check whether the practitioner or clinic holds memberships with recognised professional bodies such as the British College of Aesthetic Medicine (BCAM) for doctor and dentist-led clinics, the British Association of Medical Aesthetic Nurses (BAMAN) for nurse-led clinics, the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP) and Save Face.

✓ Patient Reviews and Feedback
We include verified Google review ratings on every clinic profile so you can see real feedback from patients. We also link to patient reviews on Trustpilot, Doctify and WhatClinic where available. We review the volume and quality of patient feedback across these platforms as part of our assessment. Where possible, we also speak directly with patients who have undergone treatment at the clinic, giving us a real-world perspective on the quality of care provided beyond credentials alone.

✓ CO2 Laser Clinics — Additional Checks
For clinics listed for CO2 laser treatments, we apply two additional checks regardless of practitioner type:

• Council licensing — In London and certain other areas of England, clinics operating laser equipment are required to hold a Special Treatments Licence issued by their local council. Requirements vary by borough. Where this applies, we confirm the licence is in place before listing.
• Laser-specific insurance — Professional indemnity insurance must explicitly cover CO2 laser treatments. A general aesthetics policy that does not specifically include high-risk laser treatments is not sufficient for a CO2 laser listing on our platform.

Non-Medically-Led Clinics

These are clinics where the lead practitioner is not registered with the GMC, GDC or NMC. We apply additional checks to these clinics to ensure equivalent standards of training, accreditation and clinical oversight are in place.

✓ Ofqual-Regulated Qualifications
We confirm the lead practitioner holds a formal, Ofqual-regulated qualification at the appropriate level for the treatments offered. For injectable treatments (including Profhilo® and polynucleotides), this means a Level 7 Diploma in Clinical Aesthetic Injectable Treatments from a JCCP-approved education and training centre. Note: Sculptra® listings are restricted to medically-led clinics only and do not apply to non-medically registered practitioners — see the Sculptra note below.  For laser treatments, this means a minimum Level 4 qualification in Laser and IPL. CPD-only qualifications without Ofqual regulation are not sufficient.

✓ Professional Accreditation
We confirm the practitioner holds accreditation with the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP) or Save Face. These are the strongest independent accreditation signals for non-medically registered aesthetic practitioners, requiring practitioners to meet ongoing standards of training, clinical conduct and patient safety.

✓ Professional Accreditation
We confirm the practitioner holds accreditation with the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP) or Save Face. These are the strongest independent accreditation signals for non-medically registered aesthetic practitioners, requiring practitioners to meet ongoing standards of training, clinical conduct and patient safety.

✓ Named Medical Oversight
For higher-risk treatments, we confirm that a named, statutorily registered healthcare professional has a documented oversight arrangement with the clinic. This means a qualified doctor, dentist or nurse prescriber is available to provide clinical oversight and manage complications where required.

✓ Professional Indemnity Insurance
We confirm that the clinic holds professional indemnity insurance from a recognised aesthetics insurer that specifically covers the treatments offered. For injectable treatments, leading UK insurers now typically require proof of a Level 7 qualification from a JCCP-approved centre before providing cover.

✓ Professional Memberships
We check whether the practitioner holds memberships with recognised professional bodies including the JCCP and Save Face.

✓ Patient Reviews and Feedback
We include verified Google review ratings on every clinic profile so you can see real feedback from patients. We also link to patient reviews on Trustpilot, Doctify and WhatClinic where available. We review the volume and quality of patient feedback across these platforms as part of our assessment. Where possible, we also speak directly with patients who have undergone treatment at the clinic, giving us a real-world perspective on the quality of care provided beyond credentials alone.

✓ CO2 Laser Clinics: Additional Checks
For clinics listed for CO2 laser treatments, we apply two additional checks regardless of practitioner type:

• Council licensing: In London and certain other areas of England, clinics operating laser equipment are required to hold a Special Treatments Licence issued by their local council. Requirements vary by borough. Where this applies, we confirm the licence is in place before listing.
• Laser-specific insurance: Professional indemnity insurance must explicitly cover CO2 laser treatments. A general aesthetics policy that does not specifically include high-risk laser treatments is not sufficient for a CO2 laser listing on our platform.

A Note on Sculptra®
Sculptra listings on The Aesthetic Standard are currently restricted to medically-led clinics only. This is because administering Sculptra requires reconstitution with a local anaesthetic, which is a Prescription-Only Medicine (POM) in the UK. A valid prescription from a doctor, dentist or nurse prescriber is required to obtain and use this medicine legally. In practice this means Sculptra can only be administered legally and insurably by or under the direct supervision of a statutorily registered healthcare professional.

 Both Medical & Non-Medically-Led Clinics

✓ Before and After Results
Where available, we include before and after photos of real patients treated by the same practitioner, giving you a realistic view of potential results.

✓ Clinical Environment
We confirm the clinic operates from appropriate registered premises suitable for the treatments being offered.

✓ Practitioner Interview
Every verified clinic participates in a practitioner interview with our editorial team. We speak directly with the lead practitioner about their approach to treatment, patient safety, and clinical outcomes. Their insights are published on our treatment profile pages, giving you a direct perspective from the person performing your procedure.

✓ Pricing and Consultation Information
We note whether a clinic offers a paid or complimentary consultation, and include indicative treatment pricing on every profile so patients can compare before booking.

✓ Two Dedicated Profile Pages
Every verified clinic has two dedicated profile pages, a general clinic profile and a treatment profile for each featured treatment.

The general clinic profile covers the clinic and practitioner background, treatments offered, trust and credentials, patient reviews and clinic location. The treatment profile goes deeper, covering treatment-specific pricing, consultation fee, a direct quote and clinical perspective from the lead practitioner, patient testimonials and before and after results where available.

This is what sets The Aesthetic Standard apart from general clinic directories. We go beyond checking boxes. We speak to the practitioners directly and publish their clinical perspective so you can assess their expertise before booking a consultation.

Clinics apply to be listed on The Aesthetic Standard or are identified by our editorial team. Before appearing on the platform, every clinic goes through our review process:

The clinic provides documentation of practitioner qualifications, clinical credentials and professional indemnity insurance.

Our team verifies the clinic against the criteria set out above.

We review the clinic’s Google rating, patient feedback and online reputation across platforms including Trustpilot.

A member of our editorial team interviews the lead practitioner to understand their approach to treatment and patient care.

Once a clinic meets our criteria, their profile is published with the Verified Clinic badge. Profiles are reviewed periodically to ensure information remains current. If standards change or new information comes to light, we reserve the right to remove or update a listing.

The aesthetic treatment industry in the UK includes thousands of clinics and practitioners with varying levels of training, experience, and clinical standards. For patients, it can be difficult to know which clinics maintain rigorous safety standards and which do not.

The Aesthetic Standard was created to help patients navigate this with confidence. Our Verified Clinic badge is a signal that a clinic has been reviewed by an independent platform focused specifically on advanced aesthetic treatments.

We focus on quality, not volume. We limit the number of clinics listed per area and per treatment so that every listing on our platform has been independently assessed and meets the criteria set out above at the time of review.

The UK Government is developing a licensing scheme for non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England. The scheme proposes a three-tier system classifying procedures by risk level, with different requirements for each tier. This scheme is confirmed in government policy but is not yet law. A further public consultation is expected during 2026 before any requirements come into force. The Aesthetic Standard will update its verification criteria as and when new regulations are implemented. In the meantime, our criteria reflect current best practice standards as recommended by the JCCP, Save Face and BCAM.