Direct, sourced answers to the 35 questions professionals, trainers and employers actually ask about continuing professional development — written by the assessors who apply the standard, and updated as requirements change.
What continuing professional development is, who it applies to, and how it is measured.
CPD stands for Continuing Professional Development. It is the structured and self-directed learning a professional undertakes after qualifying, in order to maintain and extend the skills their role requires. It is measured in hours, recorded over an annual cycle, and required for continued registration in most regulated professions.
Read the full answer →CPD stands for Continuing Professional Development. In some countries and sectors the same concept appears as CE (Continuing Education), CPE (Continuing Professional Education), CLE (Continuing Legal Education) or CME (Continuing Medical Education). The terms differ; the principle — evidenced learning after qualification — is the same.
Read the full answer →CPD is mandatory in regulated professions — healthcare, law, accountancy, engineering, financial services, teaching and construction among them — where it is a condition of maintaining registration or a licence to practise. Outside regulation it is voluntary but widely expected by employers and membership bodies as evidence of current competence.
Read the full answer →Any deliberate learning activity that develops professional competence can count as CPD: accredited courses, conferences, webinars, workshops, e-learning, structured reading, mentoring, shadowing, writing or presenting, and reflective practice. What matters is that the activity has a learning purpose and that you can evidence both the time spent and the outcome.
Read the full answer →Structured CPD has defined learning objectives, a set duration and independent evidence of completion — accredited courses, conferences and formal e-learning. Self-directed CPD is learning you organise yourself, such as reading, research, mentoring or reflection. Most professional bodies require a minimum proportion of the annual total to be structured.
Read the full answer →Reflective practice is the written account of what you learned from an activity and what you changed as a result. It converts attendance into development. Most regulators now expect a short reflection against each recorded activity, because it demonstrates impact on practice rather than merely time served.
Read the full answer →Counting CPD, evidencing it, and keeping a record that survives an audit.
There is no universal figure — each professional body sets its own. Common annual requirements fall between 20 and 50 hours, with some bodies requiring a minimum share to be structured or verifiable. Because these figures are revised periodically, confirm your current requirement directly with your own regulator.
Read the full answer →CPD hours reflect actual learning time, excluding breaks, meals, registration and networking. A full training day is typically around six to seven CPD hours, a half-day around three, and a one-hour webinar one hour. Accredited activities have their hours value assessed independently rather than set by the provider.
Read the full answer →For most bodies the terms are interchangeable and map one-to-one: one hour of structured learning equals one CPD point or credit. A minority weight points differently, awarding more for assessed or higher-level activity. Always check the receiving body's conversion rule before assuming that one hour equals one point.
Read the full answer →Record each activity with six fields: date, title, provider, format, CPD hours, and a short reflection on what changed in your practice. Attach the certificate or accreditation number as evidence. Update the record within a week of the activity — reconstructed records are the most common audit failure.
Read the full answer →In a CPD audit your professional body asks you to submit your record for a given cycle, usually with supporting certificates. Reviewers check that the hours meet the requirement, that the required share is structured, that evidence exists for each entry, and that reflections show impact on practice.
Read the full answer →Consequences depend on the body, but typically escalate: a request to make up the shortfall within a set period, then a formal development plan, then conditions on registration. Removal from a register is rare and reserved for repeated or deliberate non-compliance. Contact your body early — voluntary disclosure is treated far more favourably.
Read the full answer →Yes, professional reading generally counts as self-directed CPD, provided you record what you read, how long it took and what you took from it. It rarely counts toward the structured or verifiable portion of an annual requirement, because there is no independent evidence of completion.
Read the full answer →What CPD accreditation is, what it is not, and how the assessment works.
CPD accreditation is independent confirmation that a learning activity meets a published quality standard. An assessor with no commercial stake in the activity checks its objectives, content accuracy, structure, duration and completion evidence, then issues a unique accreditation number that anyone can verify on a public register.
Read the full answer →No. A qualification is awarded by an awarding organisation, usually sits on a national qualifications framework, and certifies a level of attainment. CPD accreditation is an independent quality mark applied to a learning activity. The two are complementary: qualifications establish entry to a profession, CPD evidences development within it.
Read the full answer →CPD is accredited by independent accreditation bodies, by professional membership bodies for their own members, and in some sectors by regulators directly. There is no single global authority. What distinguishes a credible accreditor is a published standard, individual assessment of each activity, and a public register anyone can check.
Read the full answer →The provider registers, submits the activity with its objectives, materials, duration and trainer credentials, and an assessor reviews it against the published standard. Most complete submissions receive an outcome within two to three weeks. Approved activities receive a unique accreditation number, a seal, and a public register listing.
Read the full answer →Accredo activity accreditation runs for twelve months from approval and is renewable. Renewal confirms the content is still accurate and re-assesses any material changes. Certificates issued while an accreditation was current remain valid for that period even after it expires.
Read the full answer →Getting courses, events and programmes accredited, and what it costs.
Register as a provider — free, with no obligation — then submit the course with its learning objectives, materials, duration, intended audience and trainer credentials. An assessor reviews it against the published standard, and approved courses receive an accreditation number, a seal and a register listing.
Read the full answer →Accredo provider registration is free. Activity accreditation is priced per item and published openly: courses from GBP 295, e-learning from 345, webinars from 175, events from 395, podcasts from 95 per episode, publications from 145 per article, and trainer accreditation from 145 per year. Renewal is 60% of list.
Read the full answer →Most complete submissions to Accredo receive an initial assessment outcome within two to three weeks. Where revisions are needed, the total depends on how quickly updated materials are returned. Providers working to a launch date should submit at least four to six weeks ahead.
Read the full answer →Yes. Self-paced e-learning, live webinars, recorded sessions and blended programmes are all eligible for CPD accreditation. The requirement is not the delivery format but that learning time can be evidenced and completion verified — typically through platform tracking, an assessment, or both.
Read the full answer →Yes, on exactly the same terms as any other course. Assessment examines the finished activity — accuracy, depth, structure, currency and learning value. Material that passes those tests is accreditable regardless of how it was produced; material that fails them is not, however it was made.
Read the full answer →Submit the draft programme with session descriptions, speaker credentials and timings at least four weeks before the event. Assessment agrees a CPD hours value for the educational content — excluding breaks, meals and networking — and approved events can issue verifiable certificates to delegates.
Read the full answer →An accredited CPD provider is an organisation whose credentials, subject expertise and learning design processes have been independently assessed and listed on a public register. Provider status is the gateway to submitting individual activities — it does not, by itself, accredit everything the organisation produces.
Read the full answer →Yes. Trainer accreditation is a personal credential assessing subject expertise, delivery capability, professional conduct and the trainer's own CPD. It belongs to the individual rather than to any employer, agency or platform, and travels with them from client to client.
Read the full answer →Choosing CPD that counts, verifying certificates, and spotting fake seals.
Find the accreditation number printed on the certificate or seal and enter it on the accrediting body's public register. A genuine record confirms the provider, activity, CPD hours and current status. If a certificate carries a seal but no number, or the number returns no match, treat it as unverified.
Read the full answer →Check three things: does the seal carry a unique accreditation number, does that number appear on the accreditor's public register, and does the accreditor publish its standard. A seal with no number, no searchable register, or a body that will not say what it assesses should not be relied on.
Read the full answer →Check four things before booking: that the activity states specific learning outcomes, that its CPD hours are declared, that it carries a verifiable accreditation number, and that your own professional body accepts the activity type. If any of the four is missing, confirm with your body before paying.
Read the full answer →Yes, internal training counts as CPD where it has defined learning objectives, a recorded duration and evidence of completion. Accrediting an internal programme makes those hours verifiable outside the organisation, so staff can carry them to a regulator or to a future employer.
Read the full answer →There is no universal rule. Many employers fund CPD directly or through an annual allowance, particularly where registration is a condition of the role. The regulatory obligation, however, almost always sits with the individual — so where an employer does not fund it, the responsibility to complete it remains.
Read the full answer →How CPD works across borders, sectors and professional bodies.
CPD is an internationally understood concept, but recognition is decided by the receiving professional body, not by the accreditor. Independently accredited activity with a verifiable number and a stated hours value transfers most easily, because the receiving body can confirm it without contacting the provider.
Read the full answer →In India, continuing professional development is embedded in policy for school education and is a requirement of several statutory professional bodies. Requirements are set by the relevant council, board or regulator rather than nationally, so the applicable rules depend on the profession and the state.
Read the full answer →CPD requirements in the Gulf are set by sector regulators and licensing authorities rather than by a single national body, and are well established in healthcare, education and financial services. Requirements differ between emirates and between countries, so licence conditions should be checked with the issuing authority.
Read the full answer →Teacher CPD requirements are set by national or state education authorities, school inspection frameworks and, in many systems, individual employers. Typical priorities include safeguarding, inclusion and special educational needs, assessment, subject knowledge, and increasingly the classroom use of digital and AI tools.
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