Podcast Accreditation
Audio and video podcasts are how a lot of professionals actually learn now. Accreditation turns listening time into recordable CPD.
Can a podcast be CPD accredited?
Yes. An educational podcast episode can be CPD accredited where it has defined learning content, a clear professional audience and a means of evidencing that the listener completed it. Accredo assesses the episode, assigns CPD minutes and issues a unique accreditation number listeners can verify.
Why podcasts are assessed differently
Podcasts are usually shorter than a training session and consumed passively, so we award CPD minutes rather than rounding up to hours. That is a deliberate honesty measure: a 34-minute episode is worth 34 minutes, and a certificate that says so will survive scrutiny that one claiming "1 CPD hour" will not.
What we assess
- Educational intent — is this teaching something, or is it primarily promotional?
- Content accuracy, particularly where guests make technical claims
- A defined professional audience rather than a general listenership
- Runtime, excluding advertising, trailers and sponsor reads
- Completion evidence — how you know a listener finished the episode
How listeners claim their minutes
Accredited episodes carry a claim link or code, typically in the show notes. The listener confirms completion, answers two or three short reflective questions, and receives a certificate stating the episode, the CPD minutes and the accreditation number. The reflective step is what converts passive listening into evidenced CPD — regulators increasingly ask for it.
Sponsored and interview content
Sponsorship does not disqualify an episode, but sponsor segments are excluded from the CPD minutes, and an episode whose editorial content is substantially an advertisement for the guest\'s product will not be accredited. The test is whether a listener with no interest in buying anything would still have learned something useful.
What providers say
As a freelancer I deliver under other people's brands constantly. The trainer credential is the one piece of my reputation that stays mine.
Placeholder Name
Independent Trainer, Freelance
India
The assessment feedback was the useful part. Our first submission came back with three specific points about learning objectives, and fixing them made the course genuinely better — not just accreditable.
Placeholder Name
Head of Learning, Placeholder Training Ltd
United Kingdom
We accredit around forty courses a year. Every one gets read by a person, and we can point clients at a register entry rather than asking them to take our word for it.
Placeholder Name
Managing Director, Placeholder Academy
United Arab Emirates
Testimonials shown are placeholders pending customer sign-off.
Questions people ask about this
What counts as CPD?
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.
What is the difference between structured and self-directed CPD?
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.
How do I verify a CPD certificate?
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.
Publishing an educational podcast?
Send us two representative episodes and we will tell you what they would be worth.
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