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Assessments and Public Access Tests
Welfare-first assessments for assistance-dog partnerships

Assessments can help you understand your dog, make informed training decisions and identify whether a team is ready for the demands of assistance work in public.

PAL CIC provides disability-informed, welfare-centred assessments for owner-trained and independently trained assistance-dog teams.

Our assessments are not designed to catch people out or demand perfection. They consider safety, readiness, communication and the welfare of both the dog and handler.

Depending on your circumstances, we may provide:

  • Temperament and suitability assessments
  • Training-progress reviews
  • Mock public-access assessments
  • Public Access Tests
  • Reassessments
  • Welfare and retirement reviews

To ask about an assessment, email contact@palcic.org.

Which Assessment Do I Need?

Temperament and Suitability Assessment

This assessment helps you better understand a dog’s temperament, emotional responses, strengths and support needs.

It may be suitable if you:

  • Are considering your existing dog for assistance work
  • Are assessing a potential assistance-dog prospect
  • Want to understand how your dog copes with unfamiliar situations
  • Have concerns about confidence, stress or reactivity
  • Need help deciding on an appropriate training pathway
  • Want welfare-centred recommendations before progressing further

A temperament assessment is not a final Public Access Test and does not guarantee that a dog will become an assistance dog.

Training-Progress Review

A progress review looks at where a team is within its training journey and what should happen next.

It may include:

  • Reviewing current skills and training records
  • Observing the dog and handler working together
  • Identifying strengths and areas for development
  • Reviewing disability-related tasks
  • Considering welfare and accessibility
  • Updating the Assistance Dog Support Plan
  • Recommending further training or professional support
  • Discussing whether the team may be ready for a mock assessment

A progress review can be helpful whether you are following the PAL Assistance Dog Pathway, working with an independent trainer, or primarily owner-training.

Mock Public-Access Assessment

A mock assessment follows a similar structure to a Public Access Test but is used as a supportive training and preparation tool.

It can help:

  • Familiarise the handler with the assessment process
  • Identify any gaps before a formal assessment
  • Explore reasonable adjustments
  • Assess how the dog copes across different environments
  • Create a focused plan for the final stage of training

A mock assessment does not result in a Public Access Test certificate.

Public Access Test

A Public Access Test considers whether an assistance-dog partnership demonstrates the behaviour, control, safety and welfare expected when working in public.

The assessment takes place in appropriate real-life environments and may include settings such as:

  • Streets and pedestrian areas
  • Shops
  • Cafés or similar venues
  • Public transport, where appropriate
  • Indoor public spaces
  • Areas containing everyday distractions

The exact route will be planned around the assessment requirements, local availability and the handler’s reasonable adjustments.

Reassessment and Welfare Review

Training and suitability can change over time.

A reassessment or welfare review may be appropriate following:

  • A significant change in behaviour
  • A long break from working
  • Illness, injury or changes in mobility
  • A change in the handler’s needs
  • A serious incident or recurring concern
  • A return to assistance work
  • A change in the dog’s role
  • Preparation for retirement

A review is intended to support responsible decisions, not punish handlers for asking for help.

What We Consider During a Temperament Assessment

Every dog is different, so the exact assessment will depend on the dog’s age, background and proposed role.

We may consider:

  • Sociability and responsiveness
  • Confidence in unfamiliar environments
  • Recovery following mild surprises
  • Responses to people and other dogs
  • Handling tolerance and body sensitivity
  • Stress signals and coping strategies
  • Frustration and arousal
  • Ability to settle
  • Engagement with the handler
  • Interest in learning and working
  • Existing behavioural or welfare concerns
  • The suitability of the proposed tasks and lifestyle

Assessments are carried out at the dog’s pace. We will not deliberately frighten, overwhelm or provoke a dog to see how they react.

A temperament assessment provides information based on what is known and observed at that time. It cannot predict every future behaviour or remove the possibility that a dog’s suitability may change.

What We Consider During a Public Access Test

A Public Access Test looks at the partnership as a whole.

We may assess whether the dog can:

  • Remain under appropriate control
  • Walk safely alongside the handler
  • Respond reliably to relevant cues
  • Settle calmly during periods of inactivity
  • Move through public spaces without causing obstruction
  • Ignore or appropriately disengage from food and other distractions
  • Behave appropriately around people and other dogs
  • Cope with ordinary sounds, movement and environmental changes
  • Enter, exit and remain in suitable public venues
  • Maintain appropriate hygiene and public manners
  • Recover from ordinary unexpected events
  • Work without showing sustained or excessive stress
  • Demonstrate a safe and trusting relationship with the handler

The assessment is not about robotic obedience. A dog can make a minor mistake without automatically being considered unsuitable.

We look at the overall partnership, including how the handler responds, supports the dog and makes appropriate welfare decisions.

Disability-Related Tasks

A Public Access Test primarily assesses readiness and behaviour in public. It is not an assessment of whether someone is disabled.

PAL CIC may ask about or observe relevant disability-related tasks to understand the dog’s working role. We will not require a handler to demonstrate a task where doing so would be unsafe, degrading or likely to trigger avoidable harm.

Alternative evidence or an adapted demonstration may be considered where appropriate.

Reasonable Adjustments

Our assessments are designed to be accessible to disabled and neurodivergent handlers.

Reasonable adjustments may include:

  • Providing information in advance
  • Using clear written instructions
  • Allowing additional processing time
  • Agreeing on rest breaks
  • Adapting the order of assessment activities
  • Choosing an accessible route or venue
  • Considering mobility, sensory and communication needs
  • Allowing an appropriate support person
  • Avoiding unnecessary disclosure of medical information
  • Dividing an assessment where this is reasonable and appropriate

Adjustments change how someone accesses the assessment. They do not remove essential safety, behaviour or welfare standards.

Please tell us about any adjustments when enquiring so they can be discussed before the assessment.

Possible Assessment Outcomes

Depending on the type of assessment, the outcome may be:

Suitable to Progress

The dog currently appears suitable to continue along the proposed pathway, with recommendations for the next stage.

Further Development Needed

The team is not yet ready for the next stage or does not currently meet the Public Access Test standard.

We will explain the areas that need further development and, where appropriate, suggest a training or support plan.

Alternative Pathway Recommended

The dog may be better suited to a different role, a more limited form of assistance work or a pathway that does not include public access.

Unsuitable for Assistance Work

There may be significant behavioural, health, safety or welfare reasons why continuing assistance-dog training is not recommended.

Where possible, we will explain the reasons sensitively and discuss appropriate next steps.

Assessment Paused or Stopped

An assessment may be paused or stopped if:

  • The dog or handler becomes unwell or distressed
  • Continuing would compromise welfare or safety
  • The environment becomes unsuitable
  • Essential information has not been provided
  • The assessor cannot fairly complete the assessment

Stopping an assessment does not necessarily mean that the team is permanently unsuitable.

What You Will Receive

Following an assessment, you will receive feedback explaining the outcome and recommended next steps.

Depending on the service, this may include:

  • A written assessment report
  • A summary of observed strengths and concerns
  • Training and welfare recommendations
  • An updated support or progress plan
  • Recommendations for other professional support
  • A Public Access Test outcome
  • A certificate where the team has met PAL CIC’s Public Access Test standard

Reports describe the team’s performance and circumstances at the time of assessment. They are not a lifetime guarantee of behaviour or suitability.

What a Public Access Test Means

Passing a PAL CIC Public Access Test means that the team met PAL CIC’s published assessment standard on the date of the test.

It does not:

  • Register the dog with the government
  • Create a legal licence
  • Make PAL CIC the owner or legal operator of the dog
  • Guarantee access in every situation
  • Guarantee the dog’s future behaviour
  • Remove the handler’s responsibility for the dog
  • Replace ongoing training and welfare monitoring

There is no general UK government registration scheme or compulsory identification card for assistance dogs.

A PAL CIC report or certificate may provide useful evidence of training, but a handler’s legal rights do not exist because PAL CIC has issued a certificate.

Assessment Independence

Assessment decisions must not be influenced by referral fees, personal relationships or the amount someone has spent on training.

PAL CIC uses published criteria and written records to support consistent decisions.

Where PAL CIC or the assessor has been substantially involved in training a team, we will consider whether additional moderation or an appropriately independent assessor is needed.

No trainer can purchase a successful assessment outcome for a client.

If You Disagree With an Outcome

You can ask for clarification if you do not understand an assessment decision or believe relevant information has been overlooked.

Depending on the circumstances, the next step may involve:

  • A discussion with the assessor
  • Correction of a factual error
  • Review of additional evidence
  • Further training followed by reassessment
  • Review by another suitable assessor
  • Use of PAL CIC’s complaints or assessment-appeal process

Disagreeing with an outcome will not prevent you from accessing PAL CIC’s complaints procedure.

Dog Welfare and Safety

We may recommend veterinary or appropriately qualified behaviour support before completing an assessment where there are concerns about:

  • Pain or physical health
  • Significant fear or anxiety
  • Aggression or a risk of injury
  • Sudden behavioural change
  • The suitability of a proposed physical task
  • The dog’s ability to cope with the planned working environment

PAL CIC will not pass a dog that is unsafe, significantly overwhelmed or unsuitable for the proposed work.

Needing more time—or deciding that assistance work is not right for a particular dog—is not a failure.

Prices

Temperament and Suitability Assessment: £90

Sessions usually last approximately 60–90 minutes.

Public Access Test: from £80

Public Access Tests usually last approximately 90–120 minutes, including briefing and feedback.

Prices for progress reviews, mock assessments, reassessments, travel or more complex assessment arrangements will be confirmed before booking.

Concessions, payment plans or funded places may sometimes be available. Availability cannot be guaranteed.

Ask About an Assessment

To help us understand which assessment may be appropriate, email contact@palcic.org and include:

  • Your name
  • Your general location
  • Your dog’s age and breed
  • The stage you have reached in training
  • The type of assessment you are considering
  • Any relevant behavioural, health or welfare concerns
  • Any communication or accessibility adjustments you need

Please do not place yourself or your dog in a difficult environment simply to obtain videos or evidence before contacting us.

Email contact@palcic.org to discuss the appropriate next step.

Readiness, not perfection. Evidence, not judgement. Welfare before certificates.