GOC approves new standards of practice

The General Optical Council has agreed new standards of practice for optometrists, dispensing opticians and optical students – but not businesses – in a council meeting this week.

Coming into effect from April next year, the standards were designed to make the GOC’s expectations ‘much clearer’.

They left room for registrants to use their professional judgement in deciding how to apply the standards in any given situation, a statement added.

‘The standards are flexible enough to deal with future developments in practice across the four nations of the UK. They are also flexible enough for registrants to apply regardless of whether they are employees, locums or business owners and whether they work on the high street, in hospital or in domiciliary settings,’ a statement said.