In 1998 the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour (ASAB), a learned society, established a working party to examine the need for a professional framework for people working in applications of animal behaviour in the UK.  This working party included representatives from the British Psychological Society, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), the International Society for Applied Ethology, what is now the British Veterinary Behaviour Association and professional organisations representing behaviourists.  The working party concluded that a registration scheme, independent of education providers and professional bodies, would be in the best interests of the public, practitioners, vets and other related professions.  So, the CCAB accreditation scheme was formed. 

 

The scheme was set up and administered by an Accreditation Committee under the umbrella of ASAB, with a longer-term goal that, at some point, the accrediting organisation would become independent.  In 2023, the ASAB Council and the ASAB Accreditation Committee mutually agreed that that time had come, and CCAB Certification Ltd was formed as a separate, independent company limited by guarantee. CCAB Certification Ltd's remit and standards remain unchanged.