What is a Music Therapist?
Music Therapists are highly trained allied health professionals (AHPs), providing treatment that can help to transform people's lives.
Music Therapists hold a Masters degree in Music Therapy and have a high level of musicianship and skill. Like other Arts Therapists (such as Art and Drama Therapists), qualified Music Therapists must be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council. This national regulator holds a Register of health and care professionals who meet their Standards of Proficiency and who are bound by their Standards of Conduct, Performance and Ethics.
Music Therapists work in hospitals, schools, pupil referral units, day centres, hospices, care homes, therapy centres, prisons and in private practice across the UK. They often work within a multidisciplinary team alongside other professionals such as Speech and Language Therapists, Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists, Doctors, Paediatricians, Teachers, Social Workers, Consultants, Psychologists and Psychiatrists.
The title 'Music Therapist' is a legally protected title by law and only those registered with the HCPC can use it. Registered Music Therapists also undertake Continuing Professional Development to ensure that they are aware of new clinical developments and research that can support and enhance their practice.