Share your views and win a year’s free membership
We want to make sure your College membership delivers the best possible value for you. Help us improve by completing our membership survey and you’ll be entered into a prize draw to win one of two great prizes.
Welcome to the Royal College of Anaesthetists
Anaesthesia is the largest single hospital specialty in the NHS. We are the professional body responsible for the specialty throughout the UK.
We're here to support your needs. Find out more about:
Find out more about what we do
Training and careers
We're responsible for setting recruitment, training and assessment standards. This is how we're able to attract and then support the best doctors from medical schools.
Examinations
The Fellowship of the Royal College of Anaesthetists (FRCA) examination tests the knowledge, skills, behaviours and attitudes required by anaesthetists in training.
Research
The College supports the funding, development and delivery of high quality healthcare research.
Ways you can support our work
Membership
We are the third largest medical royal college in the UK by membership. With over 26,000 fellows and members, we represent the three specialties of anaesthesia, intensive care and pain medicine.
Resources
We keep our fellows and members up-to-date with the latest news from the College and specialty via the Bulletin and regular newsletters as well as providing free access to key academic journals.
Get involved
We thrive because of our strong and active membership. As we're keen to involve you in our work to help shape future strategy, we've created numerous volunteering roles for fellows and members within the College.
Latest news
Share your views and win a year’s free membership
We want to make sure your College membership delivers the best possible value for you. Help us improve by completing our membership survey and you’ll be entered into a prize draw to win one of two great prizes.
ACSA re-accreditation for Frimley Health NHS Foundation
Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust has been re-accredited under the RCoA Anaesthesia Clinical Services Accreditation (ACSA) scheme.
Jono Brüün to leave the RCoA for a new leadership role
After five years at the RCoA, our Chief Executive Jono Brüün will step down in December to become CEO of the Royal College of Physicians. Since joining in 2020, Jono has played a pivotal part in shaping the College's long-term strategic direction.
Upcoming events

Let's Talk
9 July 2025 7.00 - 8.00pm
A free live event for members where you can talk to senior members of the College about anything and everything that affects your membership.

Winter Symposium 2025
20 November 2025 | 09:00 - 16:30
Attend our two-day annual winter symposium to connect with experts in anaesthesia and enjoy a lively mix of lectures, debates and awards. Join us in London or online.

Anaesthesia 2026
12 May 2026
Our Anaesthesia 2026 flagship conference will take place in Brighton and online in May 2026 for three days.
Membership provides a variety of benefits to both you as an individual member, but also to the specialty of anaesthesia.