It is the first time course providers have been subject to formal quality assurance by the regulator. The GMC took on the regulation of PAs and AAs in December last year, and overseeing and approving training courses is a key component.

The courses have a combined capacity for up to 1,059 PAs and 42 AAs to qualify each year.

Professor Colin Melville, the GMC's medical director and director of education and standards, said: ‘This is an important milestone in the regulation of PAs and AAs and will provide assurance, now and in the future, that those who qualify in these roles have the appropriate skills and knowledge that patients rightly expect and deserve.

‘As a regulator, patient safety is paramount, and we have a robust quality assurance process for PA and AA courses, as we do for medical schools. We have been engaging with course providers for several years already, and we only grant approval where they meet our high standards.'

In response, Danny Mortimer, chief executive of NHS Employers, said: ‘NHS employers will welcome the rapid progress the GMC is making in discharging its relatively new responsibilities for PA and AA roles.

'The formal accreditation of the courses of study that PAs and AAs must complete is an essential component of regulation and public safety. We await the outcome of the Leng Review but recognise that individual NHS organisations also have a responsibility to support PAs and AAs to both use their knowledge safely with patients, and to ensure appropriate professional development and supervision.'