A complete guide to the GOC Standards of Practice — what each standard requires in daily optical practice, how they are assessed in fitness to practise proceedings, and how to demonstrate ongoing compliance
Every practising optometrist and dispensing optician must meet the GOC Standards of Practice. These standards are the benchmark against which all GOC fitness to practise assessments are made — and understanding them in depth protects both patients and registrations.
The GOC Standards of Practice for Optometrists and Dispensing Opticians set out the professional standards all GOC registrants must meet. Published and updated by the GOC, they cover every dimension of professional optical practice — from clinical examination through to professional conduct,
consent, record keeping, and continuing professional development. All GOC fitness to practise assessments are conducted against these standards. A concern in proceedings is always framed as a failure to meet one or more specific standards.
The standards are organised around core professional values: acting in patients' best interests; communicating effectively; obtaining valid consent; maintaining appropriate records; working within your competence; maintaining up-to-date knowledge and skills; maintaining professional boundaries; and behaving with honesty and integrity.
The guide to GOC fitness to practise proceedings explains how these standards are applied in investigation and hearing contexts.
The GOC Standards require optometrists to conduct thorough eye examinations that meet the current standard of care — including appropriate history-taking, anterior and posterior segment examination, measurement of visual acuity, refraction, and
intraocular pressure where clinically indicated. The standard of referral — when and how to refer to secondary care — is a specific and frequently litigated area of GOC fitness to practise cases.
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Missed diagnoses — particularly missed glaucoma, retinal pathology, and other sight-threatening conditions — are among the most serious clinical competence concerns in GOC proceedings.
The standard applied is whether the examination was consistent with current evidence-based guidelines — including College of Optometrists clinical management guidelines — and whether the referral decision met the standard expected of a reasonably competent optometrist in the same circumstances.
The GOC Standards require valid informed consent before any optical examination, test, or procedure — and specifically before any procedure carrying material risk.
Consent must be informed (the patient must have been given sufficient information), voluntary (given without pressure), and given by a competent patient. The consent process and the patient's response must be documented in the clinical record.
For contact lens fitting and supply — which carries specific risks including microbial keratitis — the GOC's additional guidance on contact lens practice imposes specific consent and aftercare obligations.
Consent failures in contact lens practice are a significant category of GOC fitness to practise concern. The guide to informed consent in healthcare provides the legal and regulatory framework.
The GOC Standards require clinical records that are accurate, contemporaneous, legible, and sufficient for a colleague to continue care safely. Records must document the clinical history, examination findings, diagnoses, management decisions, referrals, and
the consent process. GOC fitness to practise cases frequently involve allegations of inadequate record keeping — both as a primary concern and as an evidential issue where poor records make it impossible to assess the quality of clinical care provided.
For optometrists, GOC-compliant record keeping requires documentation of the full examination findings — not just the prescription. For dispensing opticians, records must document the dispensing decision, fitting process, and
patient instructions. Maintaining good clinical records is both a professional obligation and a practical protection against fitness to practise allegations.
The GOC requires all registered optometrists and dispensing opticians to complete mandatory Continuing Education and Training (CET) in each registration cycle.
Failure to meet CET requirements is itself a fitness to practise concern. The CET requirements specify the number of hours required, the proportion that must be interactive, and the specific clinical areas that must be covered in each cycle.
CET completed in response to a GOC fitness to practise concern — specifically addressing the GOC Standard most relevant to the allegation — provides both compliance with CET obligations and remediation evidence for the proceedings.
The guide to what GOC CPD evidence counts explains how CET evidence is assessed in fitness to practise proceedings.
The guide to GOC remediation evidence covers how to build a complete evidence file around these standards.
UK-registered healthcare professionals can access professional ethics training through Healthcare Ethics Courses.
Professionals with connections to Canada can consult professional development in Canada.
Those with connections to Australia can review ethics training in Australia.
10 CPD-certified courses for £500. Optometrist and dispensing optician-specific ethics and professionalism CPD — demonstrating active engagement with GOC Standards in both routine practice and fitness to practise proceedings.
Bulk Buy 10 Courses →The GOC's published professional standards for optometrists and dispensing opticians — covering clinical examination, referral, consent, record keeping, professional conduct, and CET. All GOC fitness to practise assessments are conducted against these standards.
Whether the examination was consistent with current evidence-based guidelines — including College of Optometrists clinical management guidelines — and whether clinical decisions met the standard of a reasonably competent optometrist in the same circumstances.
Valid informed consent — sufficient information, voluntary, competent patient — before any examination or procedure. Consent process and patient response must be documented in the clinical record. Specific additional obligations apply for contact lens fitting.
Accurate, contemporaneous, legible records sufficient for a colleague to continue care safely — documenting history, examination findings, diagnoses, management decisions, referrals, and consent process.
Mandatory Continuing Education and Training in each registration cycle — with specified hours, a proportion that must be interactive, and specific clinical areas that must be covered.
A concern is always framed as a failure to meet one or more specific standards. Case examiners and the committee assess whether conduct met the standard expected of a reasonably competent optometrist or dispensing optician in the same circumstances.
Whether the examination was thorough and consistent with current evidence-based guidelines, and whether the referral decision met the standard expected of a reasonably competent optometrist in the same circumstances.
The GOC's additional guidance on contact lens practice — imposing specific consent, fitting, aftercare, and supply obligations on top of the general Standards of Practice.
Failure to meet CET requirements is itself a fitness to practise concern. CET completed in response to a fitness to practise concern — specifically addressing the relevant GOC Standard — provides both CET compliance and remediation evidence.
Yes — CPD specifically addressing the GOC Standard relevant to any concern or risk area demonstrates active professional engagement with that standard. With reflective notes connecting the CPD to the specific standard, this evidence carries significant weight in fitness to practise proceedings.
All registrants must maintain appropriate professional boundaries — prohibiting sexual conduct with patients and any conduct that exploits the inherent power imbalance in the practitioner-patient relationship.
Transparency with patients, colleagues, and the GOC; accurate clinical records; honest billing; and disclosure of any adverse events or concerns. Dishonesty in any professional context is treated as a serious fitness to practise concern.
The GOC reviews and updates its Standards periodically. All registrants have a professional obligation to stay current with GOC guidance and apply the most recent standards in practice.
This guide is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Seek independent legal advice from a solicitor experienced in GOC regulatory proceedings.
