Course (CPD) approval

Applying for CPD course approval

Course organisers running podiatry CPD are welcome to submit their course for approval by the Royal College of Podiatry (RCPod) via an application form along with the relevant documentation.

The content must be aligned to extending the skills and knowledge of podiatrists with references to a clear evidence base that supports the course. If the subject is deemed to be an extension of practice, we especially recommend that approval is sought to ensure that our members who attend this course will be covered by their RCPod insurance to use the techniques learnt. RCPod approval is not mandatory for CPD courses; however, our members are always assured by courses that have been approved.

The application process

The College provides guidance to support completion of the application form to gain RCPod approval. When applying the following points should be completed:

• You will need to request and complete an application form to enable you to map your course against each standard
• You will need to provide a list of relevant supporting documentation with the application
• You will need to sign a declaration at the beginning of the application form
• Applications will go through a screening panel in the first instance to check course suitability and teaching category. Once this is complete, applications will be reviewed and approved by the Education and Training Committee
• An administration fee of £550.00 is payable to the RCPod for full approval to be granted. The fee covers the cost of the approvals process and is payable if applicants wish to proceed to full approval

Please note: we strongly recommend that applications are submitted at least six months before the course is first due to take place, as this allows time for any feedback and adjustments to be relayed to and considered by the applicant. It also increases the likelihood of your course being included in The Podiatrist, the journal that our members receive bi-monthly.

Approval for successful applications is granted for three years and the course can be run as many times as required, subject to receipt of ongoing information. Re-approval will need to be sought when the three years are up or if significant changes are made during the approval period. Approved courses will be permitted to use a CPD Trust Mark and be advertised to members via the RCPod members' website and via its communication channels.

To request an application form and guidance on the CPD Approvals process, please contact education@rcpod.org.uk.

CPD supported specialities

As part of its CPD Scheme, the College offers external event approval for a variety of events, workshops, webinars etc at regional, national and international level for over 40 specialities. Download the list of supported specialities here.

Learning objectives

Learning objectives should be explained in terms of the knowledge, skills, attitudes, or behaviours that the user or delegate would expect to acquire as a result of the CPD.

Examples of good learning objectives

Some clinical learning objectives:

1. After the course delegates will be able to differentiate between different Parkinsonian Syndromes and will be better able to treat those syndromes.
2. To understand the best practice management approach to patients with hormone receptor positive/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 negative locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer. 
3. To understand what good drug adherence looks like and what tools/approaches could be used to improve adherence in practice.

Some non-clinical learning objectives:

1. To be able to recognise the importance of developing oneself and the team and the impact such development may have on the organisation and its services and service users.
2. To be able to analyse the current performance within your team and identify areas for development of the team members.

Calculating CPD credits

HCPC CPD audits

CPD Standards are a compulsory component of HCPC registration. All registrants must ensure that their CPD is ongoing and that they are recording their CPD activity/keeping on file evidence of their CPD activity so that should they be called to audit, they can immediately evidence that they have been keeping themselves up to date.

The HCPC audit process does not recognise CPD points. Instead, the HCPC requires that registrants evidence the CPD activity completed and how that activity relates to the HCPC’s CPD Standards.

CPD points

• CPD points have been used from the inception of the CPD/CPD audit process to help practitioners to understand how much CPD they have completed in each 12-month period. CPD points are confirmed either by the practitioner for completion of self-directed learning or by the courser provider who will confirm the number of CPD points that a practitioner can expect to accrue by attending their event/course.
• CPD points are calculated by the individual practitioner or the course provider using the proviso that “one hour of activity equals one CPD point”.
• Practitioners can therefore calculate that if they spent “one hour” reading a journal/carrying out research/attending a learning event that they can then record “one CPD” point next to that activity in their CPD portfolio.
• Course providers can calculate that if their event provides their learners with four hours of learning time that the learners can record “four CPD” points next to that event in their CPD portfolio.
• 30 hours of CPD a year (i.e., 30 CPD points) is the minimum CPD considered desirable by the RCPod  Council and is not inconsistent with the recommendations of other Allied Health Professions. 30 hours equates to less than one week of study in a fifty-two week year (i.e., less than 2% of the year). RCPod hopes that most members will treat this as the minimum and will aim to complete significantly more than 30 hours.
• It must be remembered that it is the learning that has taken place rather than the hours counted or CPD points accrued that is of importance.

Attendance certificates and evaluation

After your event has taken place you will likely need to undertake evaluation and produce digital certificates. The Education team is more than happy to assist with this so get in touch once your course event has been delivered. The College will update members’ records, oversee feedback and issue certificates of attendance after each course has taken place, and upon receipt of the following:

• A signed register of participants
• An administrative fee of £5.00 per delegate