Background to the General Optical Council

The General Optical Council (GOC) is one of 13 organisations in the UK known as health and social care regulators. These organisations oversee the health and social care professions by regulating individual professionals. The GOC are the regulator for the optical professions in the UK. The Council currently registers around 23,500 optometrists, dispensing opticians, student opticians and optical businesses.

The GOC describes itself as having four core functions:

• Setting standards for optical education and training, performance and conduct,
• Approving qualifications leading to registration,
• Maintaining a register of individuals who are qualified and fit to practise, train or carry on business as optometrists and dispensing opticians, and
• Investigating and acting where registrants’ fitness to practise, train or carry on business is impaired.