CPD - Help Articles

What is CPD?

Anyone who belongs to an official Accountancy body (including the ICAEW, ICAS, ICAI, ACCA, CIMA, or CIPFA) is required to back up their qualification with CPD or ‘Continuing Professional Development’. As its name suggest, this is not a one-off qualification; it is something that you need to pursue throughout your career.

Read on to find out exactly what CPD involves.

What's it all about?

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is vital to a successful accountancy career. As well handing you the tools to move your career forward, CPD is an excellent way to stay on top of all the latest developments in the industry.

Your employer should consider CPD not only as an enhancement to your career, but as a necessity. It will guarantee and safeguard the skills required to undertake the professional and technical duties of your role, whilst maintaining continuous high standards.

For Accountancy professionals, CPD can be divided into four main areas:

• Accounting – through further study or keeping up-to-date with industry developments.
• IT – training on various software packages or any IT skills that enable you to do your job more effectively.
• Supervision and management – to increase your resonsibilities in your current role or to prepare you for a future position.
• Soft skills – anything that will allow you to do your job more effectively and develop your career: presentation skills; time management; project management etc.

What counts as CPD?

CPD can encompass any learning, training or experience that will help you in your current role or allow you to advance your career. Most professional accountancy bodies will require you to undertake a set amount of structured CPD (such as courses and further study), as well as less rigid training, such as reading relevant books or journals.

Here are some activities that can count towards your CPD:

• Workshops, training courses and conferences.
• Coaching and mentoring.
• Professional body branch meetings.
• Further study.
• Voluntary work.
• Relevant reading and research.
• Discussion groups.
• Online, e-learning or computer-based training, including podcasts and webinars.
• Coaching from colleagues, mentors or industry specialists.
• Specialist projects or secondments.
• Hands-on experience such as trialling a new software package.
• Specific CPD courses run by your Accountancy body.
• Commercial Courses.

Remember, both your employer and the accountancy body you're registered with are there to support you in attaining CPD points. Don't be afraid to ask for guidance when you're considering what training and development would be most useful for you.

How does CPD apply to me?

CPD requirements vary between the different accountancy bodies, so it's important you find out exactly what it is you're expected to accomplish. This section is designed to give you a quick overview of the various CPD policies of each body.

CPD requirements for AAT:

The Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) offers CPD to ensure that its members are kept up-to-date with the constantly changing world of taxation.

CPD is presented in a four-stage cycle:

1. Assess – Identify areas of your work where you could improve or maintain your performance.
2. Plan – Think about what you need to do to meet your goals, what kind of learning you respond to best and whether you prefer on-the-job training, attending courses or e-learning.
3. Action – Train, learn and do, while recording your learning outcomes.
4. Evaluate – Reflect on your CPD activities, review your progress and achievements, and start looking at how these can help you in the real work environment.

Your annual requirement is a total of 45 hours, 15 hours of which are structured training. AAT appreciates that its members not only need to keep up-to-date on related topics such as law, accounting and financial services, but will benefit from developing more general (or ‘soft’) skills such as staff development or software skills. To help you develop a broader skill-set, the AAT are happy for up to half of your total CPD points to come from training in non-tax areas.

For more information, please visit the AAT site.

CPD requirements for ACCA:

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) run a programme for their members called ‘Realise’, founded on the principles of professionalism and ethics.

‘Realise’ is designed to help you understand where you have gaps in your skills and knowledge, and what you can do to rectify them. It carefully guides you through the full process of CPD, from setting objectives to develop your career and skill-set, guiding you as you undertake your chosen CPD activity, and helping you evaluate your progress.

Participation in this scheme is mandatory for all members, including anyone who is semi-retired or working part-time.

There are four different routes to achieving CPD, which all contribute to your required units.

To comply with ACCA standards you'll need 40 CPD units each year, 21 of which must be structured. One unit is equal to one hour of development.

For more information, please visit the ACCA site.

CPD requirements for CIMA:

Members of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) are required to undertake CPD to ensure they are able to continually meet the high standards required of CIMA professionals. Taking an accredited CIMA CPD course will allow you to stay up-to-date with changes in the industry, and be well-prepared when it comes to the next stage of your career.

To help you structure your CPD, CIMA have created a Professional Development Cycle. The six steps of the cycle are:

1. Define – Define what is expected of you in your role, and future goals. Draw up brief descriptions of these roles and expectations.
2. Assess – Assess your development needs and outcomes. Compare what is expected of you in your current, or a future role, against your current capabilities.
3. Design – Design your programme around activities you believe are relevant to your role. Document these activities.
4. Act – Undertake the development activities planned in Step 3.
5. Reflect – Reflect on your development activities, consider what you learned, how you can apply your learning and changes you would make next time.
6. Evaluate – Evaluate your actual development against your development needs and outcomes. Any outstanding development can be carried over into the next cycle.

CIMA does not prescribe a set amount of hours or units. You should judge for yourself how much time you will have to dedicate to training in order to meet the needs of your role.

For more information, please the CIMA website.

CPD requirements for CIPFA:

The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) CPD scheme is designed to ensure members are up-to-date with industry standards and to help them with maintaining and developing their professional skills.

CIPFA has created the CIPFA Learning Centre, a website that allows you to:

• Register and declare your CPD.
• Review, plan, undertake, record and reflect on CPD.
• Access technical, management and leadership materials.
• Share CPD plans and discuss issues with other CIPFA members.

Over a three-year period you'll need to do 120 hours of CPD, with 20 hours of structured activities each year. If you have not yet registered for the CIPFA scheme, it may be possible to backdate your start date for up to 12 months to include any development already undertaken.

There are two Levels: Learning and Development Record (Level 1) and Learning and Development Plan (Level 2). You will also have to provide a Portfolio of Evidence to support whichever programme you choose.

For more information, please visit the CIPFA website.

CPD requirements for ICAEW:

Members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) are required to undertake CPD to develop and enhance their professional value. Their CPD scheme is a requirement for all members, except for those who are fully retired.

To fulfil ICAEW's CPD scheme, you must:

• Consider what is required in your role.
• Undertake any activities that will help you meet these expectations.
• Reflect on whether the activities you have undertaken reflect the needs you identified.
• Submit an annual declaration that you have met expectations.

For more information, please visit the ICAEW website.

CPD requirements for ICAS:

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS) has created a CPD programme for its members called ‘CA Lifelong Learning – Retain the Distinction’.

The aim of this programme is to:

• Maintain the professionalism and ethical awareness of members.
• Uphold the value of the CA brand.
• Enhance ICAS members' reputation with employers, clients and colleagues.

The Professional Development Process scheme requires you to think carefully about your training and development requirements for current and future roles. It also requires you to undertake any activities that will help you meet your development needs. There are no set hours; the focus is on the relevance of CPD activities to your career.

For more information, please visit the ICAS site and log in to the members' CPD area.