Association for Coaching (AC)
UK-based non-profit body for coaches and coach trainers, founded 2002, with a distinctive Executive Coach accreditation track alongside general coaching.
- Type
- Professional Accreditation Organization
- Founded
- 2002
- Headquarters
- United Kingdom
About
Founded in 2002 by Katherine Tulpa and Alex Szabo, the Association for Coaching (AC) is an independent, UK-headquartered non-profit body for coaches, coach training providers, academic institutions, and organisations building coaching cultures. Based in London, it supports roughly 5,000 members across more than 80 countries.
AC is the smallest of the three major coaching bodies by member count, but punches above its weight in two ways. First, it operates a dedicated Executive Coach accreditation track alongside general coach accreditation, a recognition that executive and organisational coaching demand their own distinct skill set. Second, it underwrites the profession's academic base: AC co-publishes Coaching: An International Journal of Theory, Research and Practice with Routledge, runs an international conference series, and maintains research partnerships that feed peer-reviewed evidence back into practice.
Its stated purpose is to inspire and champion coaching excellence, advance the profession, and deliver sustainable impact for individuals, organisations, and society.
Individual accreditation
Unusually among the major bodies, AC operates two parallel four-level accreditation pathways (one for general coaches, one for executive coaches) plus a dedicated supervisor credential.
Coach Accreditation Scheme
For coaches working across life, health, relationship, leadership, and other general contexts. Four progressive levels:
Foundation Coach
Coach
Professional Coach
Master Coach
Executive Coach Accreditation Scheme
For coaches working primarily in organisational and executive contexts. Four progressive levels that mirror the general track but assess against executive-specific criteria including stakeholder dynamics, board-level complexity, and organisational systems:
Foundation Executive Coach
Executive Coach
Professional Executive Coach
Master Executive Coach
Across both tracks, applicants evidence their coaching hours, client work, continuing professional development, and commitment to the Global Code of Ethics. Each level specifies minimum thresholds and rising expectations of reflective depth.
Coach Supervisor Accreditation
A separate credential for practitioners supervising other coaches, reflecting the increasing recognition that serious coaching practice requires ongoing professional oversight.
Training programme accreditation
AC accredits coach training courses at four progressive levels according to their length, depth, and scope:
AACT — Accredited Award in Coach Training (introductory)
ACCT — Accredited Certificate in Coach Training (intermediate)
ADCT — Accredited Diploma in Coach Training (advanced)
Accredited Advanced Diploma — master-level programmes
Programmes accredited by AC have been reviewed against the AC Coaching Competency Framework, the Global Code of Ethics, and requirements for practical assessed experience.
Global Code of Ethics and research base
In 2016, AC co-authored the Global Code of Ethics with EMCC. The Code has since been adopted by multiple other signatory bodies and sets out enforceable standards on confidentiality, boundaries, competence, contracting, and conduct.
Alongside the ethics framework, AC maintains an unusually strong link to academic research for a practitioner body, through its journal, conference, and formal partnerships with academic institutions. The intent is an evidence-informed profession where practice, research, and standards feed each other.
Relationship to ICF and EMCC
AC, the ICF, and EMCC Global together form the three principal professional bodies in the coaching field. ICF is the largest and US-originated; EMCC is European-rooted and covers coaching, mentoring, and supervision under one framework; AC is the smallest by headcount but the most explicitly academically oriented, with the distinct Executive Coach track and the peer-reviewed journal. Many senior coaches hold accreditation from more than one body, reflecting the legitimately different emphases of each.
What this means for you
If your coach is AC-accredited, they have been independently assessed against a framework that explicitly distinguishes general coaching from executive coaching, a signal that matters especially if you are a leader seeking organisational coaching. The AC titles run Foundation, Coach, Professional, and Master, with or without the Executive prefix, and tell you the tier of experience and demonstrated competence. And because AC is plugged into the academic research base of the profession, there is a reasonable expectation that your coach is working with contemporary evidence rather than outdated folklore.
Rigour protects the humanity of coaching. Standards, research, and peer review are how a craft earns the right to call itself a profession.
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Questions about Association for Coaching (AC)
Q.01What does it mean if a coach is AC-accredited?
What does it mean if a coach is AC-accredited?
It means the coach has been independently assessed against AC's Coaching Competency Framework and the Global Code of Ethics, and has demonstrated coaching hours, client work, and continuing professional development to the standard of one of the four accreditation levels. AC accreditation is renewed on a regular cycle through documented CPD.
Q.02What's the difference between the Coach and Executive Coach tracks?
What's the difference between the Coach and Executive Coach tracks?
AC uniquely operates two parallel accreditation pathways. The Coach track is for general coaching practice; the Executive Coach track is for coaching within organisational and executive contexts, where the skill set extends to stakeholder dynamics, board and leadership complexity, and organisational systems. Each has four progressive levels.
Q.03What are the four AC accreditation levels?
What are the four AC accreditation levels?
In each track, from entry to most senior: Foundation, then Coach / Executive Coach, then Professional (Executive) Coach, then Master (Executive) Coach. Each level raises the bar on hours, reflective practice, and demonstrated competence.
Q.04How is AC different from ICF and EMCC?
How is AC different from ICF and EMCC?
AC is the UK-based body, the smallest of the three, but has the most explicit separation between executive and general coaching and the strongest link to academic research through its peer-reviewed journal. ICF is the largest, US-originated, and coaching-specific. EMCC is European-rooted and covers coaching, mentoring, and supervision.
Q.05What are AACT, ACCT, and ADCT?
What are AACT, ACCT, and ADCT?
These are AC's four training programme accreditation tiers. AACT is the entry-level Accredited Award, ACCT is the intermediate Accredited Certificate, ADCT is the advanced Accredited Diploma, and the Accredited Advanced Diploma sits above that for master-level training. They signal a course has been reviewed against AC's competency and ethics standards.
Q.06Does AC accredit supervisors?
Does AC accredit supervisors?
Yes. AC offers a dedicated Coach Supervisor accreditation alongside its coach tracks. Supervision is treated as its own professional skill set, with its own competencies and ethical standards.
Q.07What is the Global Code of Ethics?
What is the Global Code of Ethics?
A shared ethical framework co-authored by AC and EMCC in 2016, subsequently adopted by multiple other signatory bodies. It binds accredited practitioners to standards on confidentiality, boundaries, competence, contracting, and conduct. AC will investigate alleged breaches.
Q.08Is AC only for UK coaches?
Is AC only for UK coaches?
No. Despite its UK headquarters, AC operates globally with members in more than 80 countries. Country chairs and area councils support practitioners across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Its accreditations are internationally portable.
Q.09Why does AC publish an academic journal?
Why does AC publish an academic journal?
The journal reflects AC's view that coaching, beyond being a craft, is a discipline that deserves peer-reviewed research. It is published with Routledge under the title 'Coaching: An International Journal of Theory, Research and Practice'. This distinguishes AC from purely practitioner-led bodies.
Q.10Where is AC based?
Where is AC based?
The Association for Coaching is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, with an international governance structure of country chairs and regional area councils that extend its presence across six continents.
Q.11What should I ask an AC-accredited coach before hiring them?
What should I ask an AC-accredited coach before hiring them?
Start with their accreditation level and track: Foundation, Coach, Professional, or Master, with or without the Executive prefix. Those distinctions are meaningful: a Master Executive Coach has demonstrated significantly deeper organisational competence than a Foundation Coach. Ask how many paid client hours they have completed and whether those hours align with contexts similar to yours. Ask whether they receive supervision. AC values supervisory practice, and its absence warrants a follow-up. Ask what they don't work with: AC-accredited coaches are professional practitioners, not licensed therapists, and any capable coach can articulate clearly where their competence ends. Coaching is not a substitute for clinical or therapeutic support; if your situation involves acute mental health concerns, trauma, or a clinical diagnosis, a licensed clinician is the right first call. One distinguishing question for AC in particular: ask how the coach keeps up with coaching research. AC's peer-reviewed journal gives its practitioners unusual access to evidence-based practice, and a coach who engages with it is working from a stronger foundation than one who doesn't.