Continuing Professional Development
CPD requirements, what counts, and how to record your professional development.
CPD requirements for Pro+ members
The Code of Practice requires Pro+ members to complete a minimum amount of CPD each year. This section explains what counts, how to record it, and how it’s verified.
Annual requirements
| Membership level | Total CPD | Structured learning minimum |
|---|---|---|
| Pro+ | 20 hours | 5 hours |
| Accredited | 35 hours | 10 hours |
Your CPD year runs from the anniversary of your Pro+ membership. Hours don’t carry over from one year to the next.
What counts as structured learning?
Structured learning means activities with a defined learning objective and active participation. Someone has designed a learning experience, and you’re engaging with it — not just passively consuming content.
Examples of structured learning include:
- Workshops, webinars and conference sessions (including free events and ProCopywriters sessions)
- Online courses and tutorials with a defined curriculum
- Formal mentoring programmes with agreed goals and regular sessions
- Structured peer review or critique groups that meet regularly
- Studying for professional qualifications or certifications
- In-house training programmes provided by your employer
Structured learning doesn’t need to cost money. A free ProCopywriters webinar, an open-access online course, or a structured peer mentoring arrangement all count.
What counts as general CPD?
The remaining hours (15 for Pro+, 25 for Accredited) can be any professional activity that intentionally develops your knowledge or skills. The key word is “intentionally” — you set out to learn something, rather than picking things up incidentally through normal work.
Examples of general CPD include:
- Reading professional books, articles or industry publications
- Listening to professional podcasts or watching conference recordings
- Attending industry meetups, networking events or unconferences
- Self-directed research into a new specialism, tool or technique
- Writing articles, blog posts or talks that require you to research and develop your professional knowledge
- Contributing meaningfully to professional communities and discussions
- Mentoring other copywriters (which develops your own practice through reflection and articulation)
- Pro bono work that deliberately stretches you into unfamiliar territory or develops a new skill
What doesn’t count?
Normal client work doesn’t count toward your CPD hours, even if you learn from it. The distinction is between doing your job (which naturally involves some learning) and deliberately investing time in your own development.
Other things that don’t count:
- Passive social media browsing about the industry
- Casual reading with no clear learning purpose
- Repeat attendance at very similar events without new learning
- Activities with no meaningful connection to copywriting or professional practice
The key distinction
It’s the difference between doing your job (which naturally involves some learning) and deliberately investing time in your own development.
CPD doesn’t need to be expensive
We don’t want the CPD requirement to create a financial barrier. You can meet the full 20-hour requirement without spending anything. Library books, free webinars, open-access courses, peer mentoring, community participation, and self-directed research all count. What matters is the quality and intentionality of your learning, not what you paid for it.
If your employer provides training opportunities, those count too. In-house workshops, team learning sessions, and employer-funded courses all qualify.
Free CPD ideas
ProCopywriters webinars, library books, open-access courses, peer mentoring, and self-directed research all count toward your hours.
Recording your CPD
Pro+ members should keep a simple log of their CPD activities. For each activity, record:
- The date
- A brief description of what you did
- Whether it was structured or general CPD
- How long it took
- What you learned or how it developed your practice (a sentence or two is enough)
You don’t need to submit your log routinely. CPD is self-declared at Pro+ level — we trust you to be honest. However, you should be able to produce your log if asked. The Standards Committee may request CPD records if a specific complaint is raised about a member’s professional competence or commitment to development.
A simple spreadsheet, a notes document, or even a dedicated notebook is fine. We’ll provide a CPD log template to make this easy.
What if I fall short?
If you don’t meet the minimum hours in a given year, be honest about it. Life happens — parental leave, illness, a particularly demanding project year. If you’ve fallen short, plan how you’ll catch up and consider whether any areas of your practice have become rusty as a result.
Persistent failure to undertake any CPD would be inconsistent with the commitments you’ve made as a Pro+ member. But an occasional difficult year, acknowledged honestly, is a normal part of professional life.
CPD for Accredited members
Accredited Copywriters have higher CPD requirements (35 hours, with 10 structured) and must submit evidence of their CPD annually as part of the accreditation renewal process. Full details will be published when the Accredited pathway launches.