Over 450 UK professional bodies, institutes, and regulators set the CPD requirements that shape professional careers. Here's how those requirements work — and how our accreditation helps both members and providers meet them.
Required by
450+ UK Bodies
Certified by
The CPD Register
Number
Verifiable on Register
Joined by
13,000+ Providers
Professional bodies, institutes, and regulatory organisations are the principal drivers of CPD requirements across the UK and internationally. Over 450 professional bodies in the UK require their members to complete a minimum amount of Continuing Professional Development each year to maintain their membership, professional registration, or licence to practise. Understanding how professional body CPD requirements work is essential for both professionals who must meet those requirements and training providers who want to serve those audiences.
The CPD Group works with training providers across every major sector to ensure their learning activities meet the CPD standards required by professional bodies. Our accreditation is recognised across all professional sectors and by thousands of professional body members worldwide.
Professional body CPD requirements vary significantly in terms of the number of hours required, whether CPD must be structured or can include informal learning, whether specific topics must be covered, and how CPD must be evidenced and reported. Most professional bodies communicate their CPD requirements to members through their membership documentation, annual renewal processes, and online member resources.
As a general pattern, professional bodies in regulated sectors — healthcare, law, financial services, engineering — tend to have the most prescriptive CPD requirements, often specifying minimum hours, required topics, and verification standards. Professional bodies in less regulated sectors typically set guidance rather than mandatory requirements, though CPD is still expected and valued.
Typical requirement variables
Minimum hours per cycle
Structured vs unstructured ratio
Required topics or themes
Evidence & verification standards
Reporting cadence
When a professional completes a training activity that is CPD accredited by The CPD Group, they receive a verifiable CPD certificate confirming the number of CPD credits earned. This certificate can be submitted to their professional body as evidence of structured CPD. The accreditation number on the certificate can be independently verified on The CPD Register, providing professional bodies with the assurance that the activity has been quality assessed.
For professionals who need to demonstrate their CPD to multiple bodies or employers, The CPD Group's CPD Passport provides a free, centralised record of all their accredited learning. Certificates and records can be stored, organised, and accessed at any time at thecpd.group/cpdpassport.
Whether you report to GMC, NMC, ICAEW, SRA, or any of 450+ UK bodies — the CPD Passport gives you a free, time-stamped record of every accredited activity you complete.
Professionals who belong to bodies with CPD requirements actively seek accredited learning. A training provider without CPD accreditation is often invisible to these audiences — the professional may not be able to justify the time or cost of attending if the activity will not count towards their CPD. CPD accreditation from The CPD Group makes your activities eligible for professional body CPD records, immediately expanding your addressable audience.
In addition, having activities listed on The CPD Register — which professional bodies and their members use to find and verify accredited CPD — increases your discoverability to exactly the audiences most likely to need your training. Our accreditation is the most independently verified in the sector, which gives professional body members additional confidence in the quality of your learning.
A selection of major UK professional bodies with CPD requirements for their members.
Medical doctors
Nurses and midwives
Solicitors in England and Wales
Barristers
Chartered accountants (England & Wales)
Accountants
HR professionals
Marketing professionals
Chartered engineers
Surveyors
Financial services professionals
Dental professionals
This is not an exhaustive list. The CPD Group works with providers serving the members of all these bodies and many more. If you are a training provider seeking to serve members of a specific professional body, contact the team.
Our mark is recognised by 450+ UK professional bodies and thousands of members worldwide. Every certificate carries a verifiable number on The CPD Register.