The National Federation for Biblio/Poetry Therapy was established in 1980 and attained  not-for-profit status in 1983. On May 17, 1980, the original board members signed this mission statement:

We propose to form a United Federation for the purpose of insuring Ethics, Standards, Uniform Training Requirements, in the field of Biblio and Poetry Therapy, and, in addition, to discuss mutual problems and related professional matters.

For nearly 30 years, a dedicated group of poetry therapists has worked assiduously to uphold these vital principles. In cooperation with education and certification committee members of the National Association for Poetry Therapy (NAPT), they established requirements for training and for credentials, created a guide for training, worked on developing a qualifying examination for board certification, communicated with the other creative arts therapy organizations, and served as a clearinghouse for questions about professional standards.

Because a membership organization like NAPT cannot legally be also a health-qualifying agency, in 2002 NFBPT was empowered to take full responsibility for the credentialing function previously handled by the certification committee of NAPT. Until 2006, professional fees were bundled with NAPT dues, as an additional fee stated for CPTs and RPTs.  Starting in 2006, credential renewal fees were billed by the Federation, biennially in even years.

The Federation board consists now of ten directors, both clinicians and developmentalists; it is not a membership organization. The directors serve 4-year terms and chair or actively participate in such functions as credentials, ethics, training standards, training guide development, mentor/supervisor training and support, education and communication with the public, trainees, trainers and practitioners.

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